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Leading the Fascinatingly Unpredictable Future | ABRDN, Scotland | Matthew Griffin | Leadership Keynote Speaker
In this leadership session speaker and futurist Matthew Griffin discusses how emerging technologies and trends are transforming every industry, and the impacts that that has on investors and the future of leadership.
Cite or link to this article
Griffin, M. (2022) 'Leading the Fascinatingly Unpredictable Future | ABRDN, Scotland | Matthew Griffin | Leadership Keynote Speaker', 311 Institute, 2 December. Available at: https://www.311institute.com/futurist-keynote-uk-the-fascinatingly-unpredictable-sci-fi-less-future-with-abrdn/ (Accessed: 1 October 2026).
Firstly, thank you to Kevin and Tina at ABRDN, one of the UK’s largest asset managers with over £464 Bn under management (AUM), and OnTrack, one of the UK’s leading leadership and training organisations, for asking me to host a session on the future of technology, trends, and leadership.
During my session we discussed all manner of topics, and took ABRDN’s 300 strong global leadership team and their aspiring young leaders through a tour of the possible and probable futures they’ll all one day experience and have to adapt to. From the speed of disruption and global technological change, and their impact on global business, culture, and society, to in depth dives into the breadth of change and its impact on ABRDN’s investment strategies and vectors, we discussed a great many topics. Then we headed out to Q&A.
Rewind and Replay
Today, we live in arguably the most complex times any of us have ever experienced, and as the world lurches from one crisis to another it shouldn’t come as any surprise that this year the UK’s Collins English Dictionary coined a new word – ‘Permacrisis’ – as the word of the year. And, as we look ahead to the new year things are set to become even more uncertain as organisations face the prospect of increased geopolitical unrest, raging inflation, stuttering supply chains, war, and the ever-present threat of a resurgent pandemic.
With all of this uncertainty, and against the backdrop of our so called VUCA world, it’s no surprise therefore that many of today’s leaders suffer from analysis paralysis, so in this session, and even though leaders only directly control around 45 percent of what happens to and within their organisation, I showed them how they can see it, understand it, and thrive from it.
FAQ
Why does this matter?
In this leadership session speaker and futurist Matthew Griffin discusses how emerging technologies and trends are transforming every industry, and the impacts that that has on investors and the future of leadership.
About the author
Matthew Griffin Founder, 311 Institute
Matthew Griffin is a multi-award winning Futurist and expert in Disruption and Innovation, Geopolitics, Leadership, and Technology, who NASA have described as a "walking encyclopaedia of the future" and a "futurist Polymath."
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Matthew Griffin is a multi-award winning Futurist and expert in Disruption and Innovation, Geopolitics, Leadership, and Technology, who NASA have described as a "walking encyclopaedia of the future" and a "futurist Polymath." 15-time best selling author of the "Codex of the Future" series, Matthew is the Founder and Futurist in Chief of the 311 Institute, a global Futures and Deep Futures advisory firm working with royal households, world leaders, G7, G20, and G77 governments, NGOs, and multi-national mid and mega cap firms to help them explore, shape, and lead the next 50 years of business and society.
An award-winning YouTube creator with over a million followers, with an unrivalled global reach and impact, Matthew is a highly sought-after international keynote speaker, lecturer, and mentor who collaborates with global leaders through the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) and United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) to shape pivotal initiatives such as the UN’s AI for Humanity program, the United Nations Conference of the Parties (UN COP), and the World Economic Forum in Davos.
As the former Global Head of Cloud, National Security, and Enterprise Sales for companies including Atos, Dell-EMC, and IBM, Matthew has a proven track record of building multi-billion dollar business units and turning failing divisions into market leaders. His ability to identify, analyse, and communicate the implications of hundreds of emerging technologies and trends is unparalleled, and his insights are trusted by many of the world’s most respected organisations, including ABB, Accenture, Adidas, AON, ARM, BCG, Centrica, Citi, Coca-Cola, Dentons, Deloitte, Dow Jones, EY, Google, KPMG, Lego, Legal & General, LinkedIn, Microsoft, PepsiCo, Qualcomm, RWE, Samsung, Siemens AG and Siemens Energy, T-Mobile, UBS, VISA, Walmart, Workday, Worldpay and many others.
Regularly featured in the global media including the AP, BBC, Bloomberg, CNBC, Discovery, Forbes, Khaleej Times, Telegraph, TIME, ViacomCBS, WIRED, and the WSJ, Matthews mission is to help organisations create a fair and sustainable future whose benefits are shared by everyone irrespective of their ability, background, or circumstances.
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Sources and further reading
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Source: first published by the 311 Institute on 2 December 2022. Cite as: Griffin, M. (2022). Leading the Fascinatingly Unpredictable Future | ABRDN, Scotland | Matthew Griffin | Leadership Keynote Speake. 311 Institute. https://www.311institute.com/futurist-keynote-uk-the-fascinatingly-unpredictable-sci-fi-less-future-with-abrdn/
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