“The Board’s Strategy Session, October 2030”

As the first rays of dawn slip through the curtains, you blink awake in the quiet of your hotel room, head still heavy with thoughts of the important board corporate strategy  session you’re attending today. Your smart-hotel room senses your morning movement  and begins to orchestrate a symphony of automation as the curtains slowly open and  fresh coffee brews to welcome the day. Detecting your awakened heart rate, a soothing  voice emanates from the smart-device you now wear all the time bidding you good  morning. 

“Good Morning. Today’s date is October 28th, 2030. The current temperature registers at  27 degrees Celsius. Your schedule reveals a singular engagement, a Board strategy  session, slated for 9:30 am. Do you wish to see today’s feed?” As you mumble yes and  don your lightweight virtual reality glasses, an image of your face is captured that serves  as a portal to illuminate the air with your 3-D custom feed of physiological health metrics,  news preferences, emails, and social media highlights. With the glasses resting comfortably over your eyes, your vision transforms before you and integrates your world. 

Thanks to AI and the inexpensive cost of sequencing a person’s DNA, the world is no  longer confined to the constraints of one-size-fits-all medication. Your wearable device  swiftly analyzes your vital signs, and the updated data is immediately sent to your health  care provider so that your prescription drug and dosage can be tailored to your unique  genetic makeup. You scan the air’s projected feed and quickly glide through your international news feed which often highlights climate-related weather events and  articles about the geo-political leadership struggles between the United States and  China. Other interesting articles you review include NASA’s continued search for life and  orbital space junk hampering flight, the entire ocean floor has been mapped, the  metaverse and generative AI markets have hit a new trillion market share, the launch of  the new 6G cellular network standard and smart grid tech across all developing nations, depression is the #1 disease in the world, and the end of Windows 10. A smart ad appears  for you to upgrade your home to solar windows (transparent solar panels that look like  regular windows but capture energy and convert it to energy) and you send it to your  partner for consideration. You wonder if your credit rating may be impacted soon by  changes in climate policy as technology, consumer and market sentiment adjust to a  lower-carbon economy.  

You now swipe to see your social media and a flag appears – it’s your grandchild’s  birthday. The magic of AI has already curated a list of thoughtful gift suggestions perfectly  suited to their “Solarpunk” tastes. You muse at the Now-Gens (millennials, Zs and Alphas)  and their Solarpunk era of clean, green philosophy and lifestyle. A sense of nostalgia  washes over you as you consider the stark contrast between your own upbringing and  the world your grandchild is growing up in. At the last Board meeting in the metaverse  boardroom, HR noted that 75% of the workforce are Now-Gens and a discussion ensued regarding their main priorities which are sustainability, existentialism, and technology. You review the gift options and purchase the backpack that sells excess kinetic energy back  to the grid. Thanks to drone delivery, the gift will be there in 30 minutes. You recall the  days of going to the shopping mall to buy a gift, but now, more than half of the malls are  gone, chequebooks are extinct, and banknotes and coins are only used in rare  transactions. You keep getting email reminders from your bank to ditch your physical  credit and debit cards and store your bank account information in your wearable device  to pay for all goods and services. With advanced biometrics, such as voice, fingerprint  and face recognition, and smart products like grocery-buying fridges, you recognize that  paying with advanced wearables is more secure and easier than remembering pin  codes and being plagued by credit card fraud. 

You hop out of bed and the hotel furnishings reconfigure themselves to create more  space, a feat of innovation known as Furniture Customization Transformation (FCT). FCT has been a huge trend since living spaces in urban areas have become smaller due to  cost, Now-Gen’s philosophy of minimalism (not amassing “stuff”) and their preference to  rent goods and services. These factors have had a huge impact on the housing market  as more than 50% of homes are now rented.  

Awaiting your presence at the hotel’s entrance is a pre-arranged self-driving vehicle, a  seamless fusion of autonomy and transportation. As you enter the vehicle, a voice  message extends its virtual hospitality and you begin your travel, operated by a  combination of AI, electronic sensors, advanced mapping, and communications  between cars and infrastructure, which have significantly reduced traffic accidents and  travel time. As you look out the window, some of the office buildings you pass have been  converted to vertical farms which grow produce and grains controlled with AI and raise  lab-grown meat. It’s incredible that Canada is now considered a global food  superpower, and Russia is said to be next.  

Upon your arrival to the Board strategy session, you are greeted by a new face at the  front entrance. Across its chest displays its name: GRIN, which stands for “Greetings Robot  with Intelligent Networking.” GRIN uses AI facial recognition to confirm your identity and  provide you with your pass into the meeting. This AI-driven innovation not only streamlines  entry processes, but also enhances security measures, ensuring the safety of all attendees (very efficient for entry to the football game you recently attended). In 2030, service robots now number 1 billion worldwide. It’s not surprising that 50% of manufacturing jobs  have transformed in the Fourth Industrial Revolution as the boundaries between the  physical, digital, and biological worlds have fused due to advances in AI, robotics, the  Internet of Things (IoT), Web3, blockchain, 3D printing, genetic engineering, quantum  computing, and other technologies. 

As you step into the conference room, you are welcomed by a congregation of peers,  many of whom you have not seen in years since transitioning to permanent remote work  in 2026. There are also many faces missing since most of the Boomers have retired or are  busy implementing their succession plans. As per a recent Board Education session, it was  noted that the 2030s are witnessing the largest wealth transfer in history as more than $68  trillion is being bequeathed by the Baby Boomer Generation to their Millennial children,  thereby making Millennials the wealthiest generation in history.  

After catching up with fellow attendees, you settle into your seat and engaging strategic  discussions begin which must consider: stakeholder priorities, digital modernization  (digitizing old/offering new solutions, data security imperatives, and the rise of quantum  computing), new requirements for balance sheets (business disruption, ESG,  unemployment, deposit and interest rates), the nuances of talent, evolving customer & environmental imperatives and enhanced legislative, regulatory and security standards  evolution, such as diversity and modern slavery. 

In the wake of these realizations, you find yourself contemplating the Board’s existing and  future state of governance. 10 pivotal questions arise for the Board to consider: 

1. What is the purpose of the organization (the fundamental reason we exist)? 
2. What is the governance culture of the organization (how does leadership distill the  vision in a way that reflects core values, long-term goals, and commitments)? 
3. What is the Board’s responsibility for decision-making and oversight of the  organization’s impact on the economy, environment, and people? 
4. Is there an appropriate governance framework (legal, regulatory, economic, social  foundations) and structure to enable leadership’s direction and oversight? 
5. How is the purpose, vision, and values communicated to and include stakeholders? 
6. How does the Board reflect the actions and behaviours to positively impact trust, foster a culturally healthy work environment and promotes EDI? 
7. Does the Board review and approve the ESG (sustainability) strategy and is it  adequately aligned/integrated with the organization’s corporate strategy? 
8. Does the Board have adequate training and education on emerging trends in  modern, sustainable governance? 
9. Do we possess Directors that are “futureholders” (those that challenge world values,  systems, and practices; are connected and confident in their abilities; and enable  compassion to be a leading force in their decisions)? 
10. Is our strategy future-focused enough and does our governance structure support it? 

As you reflect on the changes you’ve seen in the last decade, you begin to contemplate  how your organization can sustainably position themselves to be resilient for the next 10  years. Your next Board meeting is tomorrow and it will be interesting to welcome the new  Director – an AI entity. As a futureholder Director, you will have to ask the biggest question  of them all: How do we best govern what’s next?