Futurist Michael Rogers talks about computers that, 25 years from now, are more like companions – your BFF rather than your GPS. He sees interactions in which your mobile device observes what you do and then adapts to help you. For instance, once your computer knows you’re an avid gardener, it may suggest a jaunt to the local botanical gardens. Dig fish? No matter your location, and knowing your interest, your computer may suggest a trip to an amazing aquarium. While you’re there, you and your computer can discuss the latest advances in fisheries research.

As the keynote speaker at a recent Communications Media Management Association (CMMA) meeting, Rogers addressed the challenges innovation brings. While the call is for companies to cast a wide net for new ideas, those ideas won’t reach fruition unless they are provided a clear path for development. Some new ideas are so far from traditional comfort zones that they trigger an organization’s “immune system.” “People like new and improved,” says Rogers, but “they don’t like totally new.”

Find out what the future holds for your media group. Visit cmma.org