Given the intensity of day-to-day operations, it’s difficult to pick up your head and look out to the horizon. But spending time looking at the trends out there will help you in your strategic planning. Don’t be caught unaware of the new technologies impacting you and your competition – and what you’re competition is doing about it.

Working with clients in the retail industry always keeps me on my toes with the speed of innovation and technology ever increasing. Some of the newest retail trends are

• A store with no staff that uses QR codes and facial recognition to speed up the check out process
• With artificial intelligence, Ebay has a new function that create a list of related objects when you share an image from social media on “Find it on Ebay”

And in the travel and transportation industry, I work with two big clients who are great about looking out for the next new thing. Whether or not you adopt the next thing is another story, but the first step in strategic planning is awareness.  Here are two cool new developments:

• In Paris, eco friendly boats (solar powered with zero emissions) boast a speed of 18.5 miles per hour – the SeaBubbles are super cool.
• In Dubai International Airport, their developing facial recognition cameras to serve as security procedure – more than 80 cameras assess travellers as they pass through an underwater aquarium.

Spend 15 minutes looking at your industry and get inspired.