The Future Report

Here at McCrindle, we believe data tells a story.

While we work with numbers and statistics on a daily basis, we are also acutely aware that these numbers represent people’s beliefs, opinions, and values.

They paint a picture of the varying sentiments across people groups, and can help guide strategic thinking.

One way that statistics and stories can add real value is to a company’s public relations (PR) campaign.

In today's episode, our host, Ashley Fell, sits down with McCrindle’s Media Research Specialist, Anna Colthorpe, to discuss the power of research for public relations.

Welcome back to another season of The Future Report podcast!

To kick this one off, we’re delving into two topics that we’ve conducted some recent research on, both of which reveal a lot about our society - tattoos and coffee.

Our host, Ashley Fell, sits down with McCrindle’s Managing Director, Sophie Renton, to discuss these fun and interesting findings.

Obtaining a quality education is incredibly valuable.

Not only does education equip us with knowledge, it equips us with friendships, opportunities for to develop leadership qualities, ways to contribute, and most importantly, the ability to learn. But, how much of a financial impact does providing a quality education have?

This was the purpose of the research we conducted on behalf of Futurity Investment Group.

In today's episode, our host, Ashley Fell, sits down with McCrindle’s research strategist Jason Authers to discuss these insights.

How important do you think statistics are?

We, of course, believe that they are incredibly important - but perhaps not everyone feels the same way.

However, research, numbers, and statistics do have the opportunity to effect real change.

Why?

Because behind the statistics are real people and their stories. And stories are powerful.

In today's episode, our host, Ashley Fell, sits down with social researcher and futurist, Mark McCrindle, to discuss some of the stats that changed the world.

Choosing a name for your child is a huge decision!

It’s very personal, and with more naming options than ever before, it can be hard.

Analysing baby names over time also paints a fascinating snapshot of that era.

While the Builders generation (born before 1945) chose traditional names such as Peter, Paul, John, Karen, Jennifer or Sharon for their children, in the 1980s, we saw Baby Boomer and Gen X parents begin to draw on baby name books for inspiration and trends.

Meanwhile today’s parents, Generation Y (also known as the Millennials), are not only choosing new and different names, but they are also parenting a new and unique generation – Generation Alpha.

At McCrindle we have the privilege of gathering the top baby names and compiling the top 100 list. We have just released our 2023 baby names report, and there are some interesting naming trends that Gen Y parents are drawing on for their Generation Alpha children.

In today's episode, we are mixing things up a bit! As Ashley Fell is the key media spokesperson for this research and its insights, this episode is hosted by our podcast producer, Holly Schaaf, who sits down with Ashley to discuss the top baby names of 2023.

Like many other aspects of society, marketing has changed over time.

Cutting-edge technologies are changing how organisations connect with consumers.  

But it's not just about technology - there is also the human side of marketing, and how consumers have changed over time.

All of this is reshaping the landscape as we know it.

In today's episode, our host, Ashley Fell, sits down with McCrindle's Marketing Executive, Luke Davies, to discuss the future of marketing.

Economic uncertainty, the rising cost of living, and rising interest rates are having impacts on Australians, as well as the "recessionette" environment that we find ourselves in.

Despite these tough times, people still have financial dreams, goals and aspirations.

In today's episode, our host, Ashley Fell, sits down with social researcher and futurist, Mark McCrindle, to discuss some key findings from the recent research we have conducted for our client, Insignia Financial.

Never in the history of the world has education been more accessible, more flexible, and more vulnerable to disruption.

That’s why, in the latest instalment of our future of education study, we chose to not only identify these disrupters to the future of education, but also the unique opportunities that flow from them, so that we can all play a part in equipping students to thrive in this changing world.

By hearing from 500 teachers on the frontlines and delving deeper with key educational thought leaders, this research offers some clarity in this ambiguity of changes and trends.

It is our hope that this research will help this noble profession continue to be a resilient, responsive, and relational one.

In today's episode, our host, Ashley Fell, sits down with McCrindle’s Managing Director and key author of this report, Sophie Renton, for part two of exploring disruptors to the future of education.

The waves of change impacting the education sector are perhaps unparalleled.

There are the demographic trends of new generations entering the classroom, combined with the challenges of attracting and retaining younger staff, technological transformations, social changes, funding challenges, global influences, empowered parents (and students) and the growing expectation of holistic student development as well as an ongoing transition to the new world of work.

This is why, each year, McCrindle conducts a sector-wide study about the trends impacting the education sector so we can better understand them.

Seeing as we just released this research, we thought we would discuss some of these fascinating insights across two episodes of the podcast.

For part one, our host, Ashley Fell, sits down with McCrindle's Managing Director and key author of this report, Sophie Renton, to discuss some significant disruptors impacting the future of education.

Although it seems like Artificial Intelligence has only been on our radar for the last couple of years, it has in fact been something talked about and considered for decades.

In recent years, AI has been utilised in the background, but now with it becoming more accessible and its use widespread, what does it mean for the way humans work and the type of work they will do in the future?

It’s an important question not just for those beginning their careers, but all of us in the workforce.

In today's episode, our host, Ashley Fell, sits down with McCrindle's Data Scientist, Mike Abecina, to chat about how AI will impact jobs of the future.