In a rapidly changing environment shaped by commercial pressure, workforce constraints and the accelerating impact of AI, clients are under increasing pressure to do more with less. For consultants, this creates an opportunity to not only solve the problem in front of them but help clients understand what is driving it.
‘Lead with impact, partner with purpose and deliver with confidence’ is the theme for Futurespace 2026, where our day two keynote and Creative HQ Chief Growth Officer Dr Colin Kennedy will invite delegates to rethink the way they respond to client challenges – moving beyond the immediate brief to determine the core problem and uncover the deeper opportunities that create lasting and sustainable value.
We asked Colin about his session Beyond the brief: turning insight into opportunity and how he’ll equip delegates to confidently apply this approach to tackling challenges.
Moving beyond the brief
Consultants are often brought in to respond to an immediate issue, and the instinct can be to solve what is directly in front of you. Colin’s message is that this is only part of the value consultants can bring. “If you engage only with the problem the client has come to you with, you risk doing them a disservice. The real opportunity is to understand the underlying issue and create change that produces productivity and efficiency in a sustainable way.”
Drawing on Creative HQ’s work with major public and private sector organisations in New Zealand and internationally, Colin will share a disciplined innovation approach to addressing challenges by focusing on both incremental and transformative innovation.
Delegates will learn how to move past providing stop-gap solutions to reframe problems, test assumptions and uncover the real opportunity sitting beneath the brief. Rather than seeing an immediate issue as a constraint or challenge to be solved as quickly as possible, Colin will guide delegates how to flip it into something positive, tangible and exciting – an opportunity to create longer-term value through bringing sustainable change and transformation to an organisation.
What delegates will learn
Through Colin’s keynote and session, delegates will discover how to move beyond technical problem-solving and become more strategic, commercially-aware advisors. They will explore how to test the brief, identify the root issues, balance short-term action with long-term opportunity, and develop clearer, more effective solutions.
Colin will discuss practical, evidence-based ways to balance immediate delivery with longer-term transformation, helping organisations find productivity, efficiency and value in the face of complexity. This includes the 70:20:10 model: focusing 70 per cent on what is in front of you, 20 per cent on the mid-term and 10 per cent on the long-term.
“If a consultant can bring that 70:20:10 lens into the conversation and say: ‘We can help you solve the immediate problem, but let’s also put on a different lens and look at what’s caused that problem in the first place, where the pressures are coming from and how to stop that happening again in five years’, I think that’s a very healthy conversation.”
Why this approach matters now
Across sectors, clients are facing fast-moving pressures: shifting technology, changing workforce needs, commercial constraints, productivity demands and the ongoing challenge of creating more value with fewer resources. These are not often issues that can be solved quickly.
For future firm leaders and industry influencers, this creates a powerful opportunity. Those who can encourage clients to see beyond the immediate issue, understand the real drivers of change and make confident decisions will build deeper partnerships and deliver greater impact.
Flipping the challenge
One of the most compelling ideas Colin will explore is “flipping the challenge”: helping clients to see a problem as a genuine opportunity rather than something to fear.
This shift matters. Fear can push people to act, but if consultants can connect a client’s challenge to tangible gains such as stronger capability, better retention, improved productivity, increased efficiency or clearer investment decisions, they give clients something to get excited about. “If you can connect your clients to viable and tangible opportunities as a result of the action, then they’re more likely to lean into it,” says Colin.
Delegates will leave Colin’s session with the skills to frame better conversations, back themselves with evidence and help clients understand both the cost of inaction and the opportunity of moving forward.
See you at Futurespace 2026 – for leaders ready to create impact
Futurespace 2026 is designed for current and future leaders who want to influence direction, strengthen relationships and deliver work that makes a measurable difference.
Discover how to rethink the brief, sharpen client conversation and build confidence in leading through complexity to create lasting value from an innovation leader successfully applying this approach with organisations from across Aotearoa and around the world.
Register now for Futurespace 2026 in Auckland