Will Higham

Will is a global authority on Innovation and Strategy, predicting how future customers are going to think and behave, and recommending the best strategies clients should use to reach them.
He’s the man who warned the drinks industry about the New Sobriety, saw the Wellbeing Consumer coming a mile off – and championed Strictly Come Dancing (Dancing With The Stars) to the BBC.
His engaging and inspiring talks leave audiences excited to face the future: armed with new, smarter ways to handle tomorrow’s consumers; and an arsenal of opportunities for innovation-led growth. His keynote talks have inspired thousands globally: from conferences organised by the Financial Times and Harvard Business Review to corporate events for Walt Disney, Barclaycard, Philips and Primark.
Will runs strategic consultancy Next Big Thing, helping clients from Amazon to HSBC, Sainsbury’s to MTV understand what their customers (and employees) will think, do, expect, demand and buy in future: and how to adapt accordingly.
By continually researching the latest shifts in consumer tastes, new products, innovations in marketing and communications, William builds a picture of the key issues an organisation will have to address in the coming years. He looks into the issues likely to affect an industry or sector, from internal cultures and employee expectations to retail and marketing: and offers strategic and tactical advice on reaching tomorrow’s customer.
He wrote the first practical handbook for trend strategists: ‘The Next Big Thing: Forecasting Consumer Trends For Profit’ (Kogan Page, 2009), which has since been translated into five languages. He’s been interviewed across media: BBC to Bloomberg TV, Fast Company to The Times. He has presented a TV show for CNBC, and written for The Economist, Advertising Age and Huffington Post. He’s taken part in academic programs like Cambridge University Open Innovation Forum and been a judge on prestigious panels such as WARC and IoD innovation awards.
Will made his name in the music industry. Working at Sony, Virgin and Universal, he marketed artists from Michael Jackson to The Rolling Stones. His fascination with music fans led him to the research industry, as a consumer trends consultant for brands from Levis to BT: and later as managing director of research company OnePoll, whose clients include Kelloggs and Findus.