The new year of the Future-Driven Training programme started on 30 January 2026 with a co-creation workshop in Hanko. SMEs from Hanko, Lohja, Porvoo and Helsinki gathered to explore how future thinking, innovation and peer learning can support the development of their businesses.
The workshop day was designed to combine inspiring introductions, practical exercises and opportunities for discussion, creating a relaxed and open atmosphere for co-creation.
The day began in the cosy setting of Beurre Lunch & Catering, where participants discussed the assignments they had completed in advance in the programme’s future workbook. The conversations explored the future-shaping phenomena and drivers of change that participants had identified, as well as the kinds of future-related questions different companies are currently facing. Many participants also shared early insights about how these themes might influence the future of their own businesses.
Throughout the day, the themes of the future, business development and innovation were explored from multiple perspectives and through different frameworks. Participants worked on exercises designed to support future-oriented thinking and to make innovation in future business development more concrete.
The group also experimented with using AI as part of the workshop activities. In addition, peer learning played an important role during the day, as participants exchanged ideas, shared experiences and challenged each other’s thinking in constructive ways.
The feedback collected after the workshop was extremely positive. Participants found the exercises particularly useful because they helped them tune into future thinking, offered the right level of challenge and opened new ways of looking at their own businesses.
Several participants described the day as thought-provoking and inspiring, helping them see the future possibilities of their companies from a new perspective.
The open comments reflected this atmosphere. Participants wrote, for example: “So inspiring and rewarding, thank you so much.”, “My thoughts took flight.”, “Inspiring – my thinking is in a completely different place than it was this morning.”, and “The future is now.”
The English translation of this article was prepared with the assistance of AI tool (ChatGPT).