Sense-making is the most vital skill needed in public life today.
Richard Hames is a philosopher-futurist, strategic foresight practitioner, author and mentor whose work sits at the intersection of business, government and civilisational change.
An Australian citizen educated in Britain and continental Europe, and now based in Thailand, he holds doctorates in music, medicine and computer science. He began his working life in paediatric oncology before moving through computer science, music composition and sound design into senior academic posts, including Head of Sound Design at Dartington College of the Arts, Head of Contemporary Music Studies at the Victorian College of the Arts, Dean of the Australian Film, Television and Radio School, and Distinguished Professor of Foresight at Djurakij Pundit University in Bangkok.
He built his early reputation in industry as a turnaround leader, taking a near-bankrupt media company and rebuilding it into one of Europe's most successful, an experience shaped by a close professional friendship with the quality-management pioneer W. Edwards Deming. In 1993 he co-founded Global Business Network Australia; two years later he founded The Hames Group in Chicago, a strategy firm and design laboratory that grew to some 180 staff and advised more than two hundred corporate and government clients across the United States, Europe, Asia, Africa, Brazil and Australia. His advisory relationships in China date back to work with Premier Wen Jiabao's government on environmental sustainability, and his counsel has since extended into taxation, financial systems, urban design, security, philanthropy and the future of governance itself.
He is the originator of several methodologies now widely applied to complex institutional change, including Strategic Navigation, developed with the Australian Taxation Office ahead of national tax reform, along with Deep Design, Transformational Narrative, Systemic Acupuncture and Wayfinding. His Ecority framework, built over the past decade, brings ecological philosophy and long-horizon stewardship into strategic decision-making, testing every engagement against whether it serves the present, future generations and the planet. He currently serves as President and Chairman of the Asian Foresight Institute, founder of the Centre for the Future, and Director of Strategy for MHealth in the United Kingdom, and continues to advise ministers, entrepreneurs and family offices throughout the Global South. Colleagues have noted his record for reading emerging conditions well ahead of consensus, from the business implications of climate change in the 1980s to the social pressures that later produced the Arab Spring.
He is the author of around 30 books, among them The Management Myth, The Five Literacies of Global Leadership, Teaching Silicon How to Feel, The End of the Opposition, and Wayfinding: Navigating without Maps. His current writing appears through The Hames Report on Substack and The Virtual Activist on Patreon. He is a Fellow of the World Academy of Art and Science, has chaired Australia21 and the International Steering Committee of the State of the World Forum, and has held various fellowships including the Leverhulme European Fellowship, the Lord Attlee Fellowship and a French Government Scholarship.
Talking Points
Managing Uncertainty: Future-proofing your organization
Uncertainty is a permanent feature of running a business today. But there's a way of using it to your advantage. Being "future-ready" entails the daily practice of using new strategic tools and substituting Strategic Navigation in place of standard planning. Then, using real-time intelligence, aided by AI to guide decisions in a navigational context, you become pretty muchManaging Uncertainty: Future-proofing your organization
"future-proof".
Managing Uncertainty gives you the tools, tricks and habits you need to avoid being taken by surprise by external events. Strategic Navigation is the risk free way of remaining ahead of the curve and understanding what's around the corner and an exercise in engaging the entire workforce.
Key Takeaways: Participants in this keynote/workshop are given a comprehensive overview of the Strategic Navigation methodology, along with the key tools for implementing "futurereadiness" out of the box!
Dangerous 2025 - The Evolution of Artificial Intelligence
AI models are evolving far beyond what they were programmed to do, teaching themselves new capabilities, solving problems in unexplainable ways, creating their own internal languages, and solving problems in ways we do not understand.Dangerous 2025 - The Evolution of Artificial Intelligence
Dangerous 2025 examines the risks and opportunities, considering the staggering pace of AI, achieving in months what took humans 300,000 years of evolution to do. These systems may surpass human reasoning in most domains in 2025, marking the emergence of a new form of intelligence capable of reshaping reality itself.
Key Takeaways: We analyse whether humanity is prepared for this transformative future and what needs to happen - in terms of coding, risk legislation, and security applications - to ensure that the future is one in which humans control technology rather than the other way around.
Going Global: The future of Australian banking
Beyond a 5-year horizon, with China and the BRICS nations playing an increasingly important and larger role, traditional banking models will, of necessity, morph into a multipolar financial system. Richard predicts a reduced reliance on Western financial institutions and models; greater use of local currencies, digital currencies, and alternative payment systems; and a focus on financial inclusion, regional collaboration, and technological innovation tailored to the needs of emerging markets.Going Global: The future of Australian banking
Going Global maps out a new paradigm for banking in the Asia Pacific region. In this scenario, BRICS nations will become architects of a parallel financial ecosystem that will redefine global banking. The balance of power in the financial world will hinge on how effectively these nations collaborate and execute their shared vision. For Australia, pressure from the US, regulatory divergence, and dependence on China pose the greatest risks, but diversifying trade and aligning with regional players like Indonesia offer opportunities.
Key Takeaways: As the global financial system becomes more multipolar, Australia’s ability to adapt and innovate will ensure its relevance. In this keynote, Richard identifies what must happen for Australia to position itself as a bridge between Western and BRICS systems in order to safeguard its economic interests, strengthen its role in the Asia-Pacific, and contribute to shaping a more inclusive and interconnected global financial ecosystem. This dual alignment will not only protect Australia from geopolitical risks but also position it as a key player in the evolving financial order.
Australia - First Global Nation
It's evident that Australians are increasingly fed up with the games being played by the two main political parties and want to weaken entrenched political and corporate power. The next election gives Australia a chance to break the Liberal-Labour duopoly while using new technologies to introduce more direct forms of democracy leading to civic renewal. The greater prospect, though, is to see a future where Australia stands as a truly global prototype in the community of nations.Australia - First Global Nation
Australia – First Global Nation reflects a vision of Australia as a diverse, economically integrated, and diplomatically active nation that serves as a bridge between cultures and regions. This scenario highlights Australia's potential to lead on global issues, embrace diversity, and act as a model for how nations can thrive in an interconnected world.
Key Takeaways: In this keynote Richard identifies the conditions needed to elevate Australia's economic complexity and competitive ranking globally; strategies for bridging the Sinic-Occidental divide; how grassroots engagement can strengthen civil society; ways to liberate entrepreneurial energy and focus using the innate resources and talents of a successful multicultural community.
The Future of Healthcare & Wellness
We are living longer, healthier lives. The future of healthcare is shifting rapidly toward a personalized, preventative, technology-driven model that empowers individuals to take control of their wellbeing. Advances in agent-based diagnostics, cellular-level treatments, and telemedicine, for example, are already driving innovation, with an increased focus on mental health, holistic care, nutrition and exercise, changing the role of clinicians and hospitals. Ultimately, the integration of wellness into daily life will transform healthcare from the treatment of disease, to prevention, via enhanced individualised care - reducing our dependence on drugs and invasive procedures, thus turning the current system on its head.The Future of Healthcare & Wellness
The Future of Healthcare & Wellness is an overview of the latest developments in the field, as seen through the eyes Dr Richard Hames, a futurist who started his career in medicine and is currently Director of Strategy for MHealth UK (with deep expertise in international healthcare development and management) and Chairman of Ora Life (an Asian wellness startup featuring whole genome sequencing).
Key Takeaways: Richard points participants to key developments in technology (such as predictive analytics, alternative therapies, health apps, implantable devices, and digital twins) where these are being deployed; and professional contact details for people who are leading the field globally.
Beyond ESG: From the impossible to the inevitable
Treated as a compliance cost, any ESG agenda will be a drag on the business. But re-envisaged as a virtuous investment, ESG strategies reap dividends, opening up new markets and generating value far in excess of old cash cows that run out of steam.Beyond ESG: From the impossible to the inevitable
Beyond ESG puts you on the front foot and beyond competition. Rather than cutting costs to scrape through compliance regulations by the skin of your teeth, Beyond ESG: From the impossible to the inevitable, shows you how to extract full value for all stakeholders.
Key Takeaways: A new mindset toward compliance; 5 steps to unlocking value across your business ecosystem; turning "impact" into a high value-low risk investment.
Unleash Your Unique Potential
Richard's third book, "The Five Literacies of Global Leadership", blew orthodox leadership models out of the water. Simple to understand, easy to implement, radical in impact, the "5L model" is used today by some of the world's most successful startups and social enterprises.Unleash Your Unique Potential
Unleash Your Unique Potential uses a leadership code driven by dialogue. Based on consistent ways of seeing, interacting, and making decisions, it contains the trade secrets of the alchemists, artists and entrepreneurs among us. Leaders who use the 5L code charge others with energy in a constant upgrading of discovery and innovation.
Key Takeaways: A new philosophy of leading; an explanation of the 5L code; a primer in how to use the Five Literacies to engage and motivate any workforce.
Why Richard Hames Could Be the Perfect Fit for Your Next Event in Thailand
Dr Richard Hames is a strategic futurist, mentor and author based in Bangkok who delivers keynotes and advisory-style presentations for leadership teams, conferences and executive forums across Thailand and Southeast Asia. With deep expertise in foresight, systems thinking and long-range decision-making, Richard helps organisations make sense of uncertainty and build clarity in an era shaped by disruption, complexity and rapid global change.
His keynotes resonate strongly with organisations operating in Thailand’s fast-evolving business environment, where leaders must balance transformation, talent challenges and regional growth opportunities across markets such as Bangkok, Singapore, Vietnam and Indonesia. Richard tailors his sessions to suit senior leaders and high-stakes environments, delivering insights that support future-ready strategy, stronger leadership thinking and more confident decision-making across Southeast Asian contexts.
Video
Going Global | Closing Plenary | Dr Richard Hames
An Introduction to Dr Richard Hames
Entrepreneurship: A Business Breakfast in Melbourne | Dr Richard Hames
Richard's ideas are for anyone searching for new meanings in work. Marvelous! ... keep reading Dr Charles Hampden-Turner, University of Cambridge
Richard offers us a new management paradigm to lead us back to community as the foundation for sustainable prosperity and balance.
It is a rare person who is able to transform our thinking by creating a fundamentally new vision of how things could work better. Richard Hames is one of those people.
Richard Hames has, in a very significant way, helped us to reshape the Australian Taxation Office and lay the foundations for a new organization that is now so essential as we move into a huge tax reform process here in Australia.
Richard's capacity to identify and weave together the major issues that are shaping our future world is extraordinary.
Incredibly insightful, interesting and intellectually stimulating
Motivating and enlightening
Thank you for providing me with a response to that niggling old chestnut, "If you could sit next to anyone on a flight to London who would it be? Dr. Richard David Hames will be my answer from here on in! In fact I'd even do a stop over, about turn and return flight with him. Stimulating, challenging and relevant - what a way to begin a Monday morning.
Congratulations to you. I thought that your leadership was stunning and your facilitation of such an open-ended event as a well as with such large numbers was skilful, masterful and very clever.
In each case, the group thoroughly enjoyed your work - as I always do - and you provided a veritable smorgasbord of concepts, thinking, and reference points for everyone to take back with them. Quite apart from the clarity of your thinking, you have a special gift for 'connecting' with groups, and the interactive components become a significant feature in themselves.
