Jörn Bühring

Academic Engagement: Dr. Jörn Bühring is currently engaged in advancing a research culture in Design in Business that is collaborative, innovative, and highly impact focsued. This collaborative approach brings academia, designers, and business stakeholders together to develop high-impact design knowledge, concepts, and solutions. To this end, Dr. Bühring is the convener of the School of Design’s Design Economy research theme; furthermore, he leads SD's Ignite Innovation Futures program specifically aimed at fostering Industry-University collaboration through tailored design foreisght program initiatives. Dr. Bühring is Subject Leader for the curriculumn subjects: SD5202, lecturing in products and services innovation development; SD5173 Capstone Reflective Thesis, and SD5001 Innovation Tools for Strategic Design; SD5406 Design Experience, other subjects include SD5104 Branding: From Local to Global Strategies. Dr. Bühring also acts as as a PhD Chief Supervisor, and coach for Master students and their individual Capstone Thesis projects.

Research Focus: Dr. Bühring's main research explores design foresight (futures thinking), vision and fiction techniques as emerging thought-processes within Strategic Design and Innovation Management. Certified as a Professional Futurist and in Strategic Foresight (University of Houston), he is a full member of the "World Futures Studies Federation" (www.wfsf.org), and serves on the Scientific Council of the Alternative Planetary Futures Institute (ApFi) (https://www.apfi.us/about-us). Dr. Bühring has conducted futures research for over a decade in, e.g. luxury hospitality (2020), and omni-channel retail (2020). With focus on the Financial Services sector as a core pillar of the economy, he leads several design project initiatives that explore wealth management futures from Millennial perspectives (2020, 2030). Engaigng with experts from industry and academia, Dr. Bühring research based on Delphi techniqes explored preferable futures into Wealth Management and Private Banking to the year 2030 (Greater China). From this body of work, futures scenarios and concepts were produced into an animated motion video (2030). With the focus on developing Design Foresight techniques and appraches, and in support of the global Engineering group ARUP, a further exploratory research project was focused on Greater China Public Transportation Futures (2030).

Amid accelerating environmental complexity and uncertainty, meeting the demands of rapid social, technological and environmental change, design forsight research is expanding beyond human-centered inquiries, being applied to life-centric value innovation futures with emphasis placed on systems design, sustainability, and the involvement of broader groups of stakeholders in strategic planning processes.

Dr. Bühring's research further expands with a specific interest is experiential consumption, memorable experience constructs and dimensions, and designing experience co-creation concepts involving stakeholders within the experience economy.

Dr. Bühring's professional background, international work experience, and academic qualifications in Corporate Management, Business Innovation, Marketing and Brand Development have exposed him to various industry, company and project initiatives that include innovative start-ups, new business formations, and new market entries. As a global citizen, Dr. Bühring has worked across a wide range of global brand icons (e.g. Bang & Olufsen, Toyota, MIT, Four Seasons), organizational cultures, and geographic locations, having lived and worked in key markets such as Germany, United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Australia, and the United States.

Dr. Bühring holds a B.A. (equivilant) in Hospitality Management, an M.B.A. (VU) majoring in Entrepreneurship and Innovation, and a Ph.D. in Business and Consumer Engagement Innovation from the Swinburne University of Technology (Melbourne, Australia).

Publications (academic) - Google Scholar

• Book Release (Springer Nature, Springer Brief in Finance, ISBN 978-981-16-3394-2) – Private Banking and Wealth Management Futures 2030 – Greater China Perspectives, by Jörn H Bühring [1^st ed. 2021]

• She Ji: The Journal of Design, Economics, and Innovation, 6(3), 408-432. Buehring, J., & Bishop, P. C. (2020). Foresight and Design: New Support for Strategic Decision Making.

• Journal of Futures Studies 25, no. 1 (2020): 65-78. Buehring, J. and Vittachi, N. ‘Transmedia Storytelling: Addressing the Futures Communication Challenge with Video Animation’

• Book / Chapter Contribution (Book Series: Open Innovation: Bridging Theory and Practice; World Scientific Series, Imperial College Press) – Edited Book: Transformation Dynamics in FinTech: An Open Innovation Ecosystem Outlook; ‘Innovation with Foresight: Anticipating alternative and creative responses in strategic organizational decision-making, and stories of possible financial services futures’ by Jörn H Bühring [forth-coming, 2021]

• ADIM 2019 London, Conference– Full Research Paper presentation [forth-coming] Joern Buehring and Nury Vittachi, ‘Bringing futures scenarios to life with video animation: A case of disseminating research to nonexpert audiences’ [London, June 18-21, 2019] 

• Journal of Innovation Management – ‘Embracing systematic futures thinking at the intersection of Strategic Planning, Foresight and Design’by Joern Buehring & Jeanne Liedtka; Issue 6, 3 2018 133-151

• Journal of Innovation Management, Letter from Industry, ‘Emotional and Social Intelligence as ‘Magic Key’ in Innovation: A Designer’s call toward inclusivity for all’, Jörn Bühring and Patricia Moore; Issue 6, 2 (2018) 6-12

• Cumulus 2018, Paris, Conference-Full Research Paper presented,‘Foresight by design: Supporting strategic innovation with systematic futures thinking’ by Joern Buehring & Jeanne Liedtka [Paris, April 11-13, 2018]

• IASDR 2017, Conference – Full Research Paper published:‘Beyond Forecasting: A Design-inspired Foresight Approach for Preferable Futures’ by Joern Buehring & Ilpo Koskinen

• ISPIM Innovation Summit, -Academic Workshop, ‘Futures Thinking Techniques: Dealing with Uncertainty at the Front End of Innovation’, by Joern Buehring & Joseph Voros

• Design Management Academy [DMA], Conference 2017 (7-9 June, Hong Kong) Full Research Paper published: ‘Design-inspired foresight: strategic foresight techniques for preferable futures by Joern Buehring’,Track Chair ‘Foresight by Design’, Conference Committee Member

• Book / Article Contribution (Routledge Nov-2017) – Culture, Innovation and the Economy “Value innovation in the ‘new’ age of experiential consumption: The Millennial force” by Jörn H Bühring

• Association of Consumer Research 2015, ACR Annual Conference (19-21 June, Hong Kong) Working Paper (peer-reviewed) – ‘Forward-looking Experience Desires: Getting into the Mind of the Consumer to the year 2020’

• CAUTHE 2015 Conference, Working Paper WP 15.146 Peer-reviewed: ‘The Future Luxury Hotel Room: Experts’ Views on Memorable Guest Experience Generators’

• Proceedings: Council for Australian University Tourism and Hospitality Education (CAUTHE) 21st conferencein Adelaide, February 2011, ‘Designing and Delivering Memorable Experiences in the Luxury Hotel Sector’

• Proceedings:International Event Management Summer Seminar in Pori, Finland, 2012, Co-author - Designing Luxury Hotel Experiences as Memorable Events’

• Proceedings: Network-Based Education 2011 (NBE 2011 Conference) 4th Int’l conference in Salla, Finland 2011, Co-author -‘Virtuality versus Reality Based Learning Experiences: Is There an Education Effect on Student Preferences?