Hyundai Motor Group and the University of Oxford held an opening ceremony for the Oxford-Hyundai Motor Group Foresight Centre at Oxford’s Convocation House to mark a new partnership between the two organizations.

Based at Saïd Business School, the Foresight Centre is dedicated to exploring the Group’s long-term vision and strategic direction. It will strengthen the Group’s ability to shape the future and identify critical focus points to address future geopolitical shifts and risks in advance. The Centre will conduct innovative research to advance progress for humanity and facilitate interdisciplinary conversations between government agencies, academia and industry experts to develop long-term insights into future societal trends.

The University of Oxford, known for its Oxford Scenario Planning Approach (OSPA), has strong expertise in reshaping industry perspectives and conceiving long-term corporate directions.

The automotive industry is undergoing a paradigm shift and significant changes in business environments, leading to unprecedented uncertainty. In such times, it is crucial for companies to move away from an experience-based approach and adopt a long-term perspective to identify large-scale future trends. We expect that the Foresight Centre will play a significant role in cultivating a multifaceted and comprehensive perspective on the future within organizations, known as ‘future literacy’.

—Gyun Kim, Executive Vice President and Head of Hyundai Motor Group Business Intelligence Institute

Specialized programs, such as the Oxford Scenarios Programme and Oxford Futures Forum, will be implemented to share these insights across the Group, ensuring strategic alignment and forward-thinking leadership.

Furthermore, the Foresight Centre will engage with the Group’s open innovation network across key locations, including the United States, China, India, Germany, and Singapore. This collaboration will contribute to the expansion of the Group’s ecosystems in realizing its envisioned future.

The Foresight Centre will be directed by Professor Rafael Ramirez and co-directed by Titular Associate Professor Trudi Lang. Ramirez previously chaired the Global Agenda Council at the World Economic Forum and provided strategic future scenario planning counsel to industry leaders such as Royal Dutch Shell. Trudi Lang has also held strategic foresight positions at prominent global organizations, such as the World Economic Forum and the OECD Secretariat.