Foresight & Future Design Lead

We are Nacar . A solution-first creative partner helping ambitious organizations shape and deliver the right products, services and experiences — with clarity, rigor and creative excellence. Rooted in Palo Alto, Barcelona , and with studios in Bilbao, Guadalajara, Porto Alegre and China, we're a global team of 130+ Nacarians from more than 23 nationalities . This role will be based in our Barcelona studio. Twenty years, 70 design awards and 10+ client ecosystems later, we've learned that creativity is only worth something when it turns into real solutions. That's why we work in a way that connects craft with systems — building things that don't just look right, but perform , scale and generate measurable value for our clients. A Nacarian is a creative orchestrator, shaped by Criteria , Adaptability and Ownership . Someone who reads complexity, anticipates what matters, and moves fast with intent. We come from different disciplines — strategy, research, industrial and digital design, brand, service, engineering — but we share the belief that great ideas only matter when they become real. Nacar is entering a new chapter. We're strengthening our capabilities, growing into new markets, and building the organization that will shape what's next. With a hybrid work model and flexible hours , we're powered by a culture of communication , collaboration and ownership — with the ambition of becoming the trusted creative decision partner for the leaders redefining the future of their industries. If you're excited by building — not just joining — this is a great moment to be here. Is this something you feel identified with? We're currently looking for a Foresight and Future Design Lead to lead our strategic vertical at Nacar. This is a role that combines two things that rarely go together: the ability to read the world before others do, and the discipline to translate that reading into rigorous and profitable projects. You'll lead with your centre of gravity in foresight: opening up territories of opportunity that others can't see. You'll be the strategic voice that clients look for when they don't yet know what to ask. -What will your day to day be like?- You will: - Act as the vertical's antenna — maintaining a live, first-hand reading of the landscape: trends, weak signals, emerging behaviours and technologies reshaping industries. - Own the Future Opportunity Radar methodology: opportunity radars, future scenarios, tech-to- value mapping and concept provocation cards. - Build editorial presence beyond decks — writing, speaking and publishing with your own voice to elevate the Nacar brand. - Lead the strategic quality of the services within the vertical: Future Opportunity Radar (your natural territory), Insight Engines (research that unlocks real needs)and Product Strategy (defining what to build, under what service logic, and how it evolves). - Provide strategic direction and elevate criteria in services where you're not the hands-on specialist — relying on strategists and researchers from the team to deliver. - Lead the most ambiguous projects within the vertical — those requiring reframing and vision , not just method. - Direct multidisciplinary squads activated by project, elevating the level of everyone working with you — leadership by gravity, not by hierarchy. - Ensure blueprints , roadmaps and research reports have real density and deliver actionable value. - Manage timelines , resources and expectations to keep the vertical profitable. - Act as a trusted advisor to C-level clients — sitting with CXOs, Heads of Strategy and Heads of Innovation, sustaining the conversation as an equal. - Open doors that the rest of the team can't. - Turn foresight findings into new service proposals — identifying where clients need more help before they ask. - Partner with the commercial team on pre-sales of strategic accounts, contributing brief reframing and methodological framing -What are we looking for?- - 5+ years of experience in strategic design or innovation consulting- Ideally with time spent at a generalist player that gave you fluency in business language. - Hybrid career path across the 3 disciplines of the vertical: foresight , user research , and product definition. You don't have to be an expert in all four — but you understand them deeply enough to lead and challenge. - Structural curiosity : you don't just read trends, you decode them. You connect seemingly disconnected signals and build solid arguments. - Authority without arrogance : you can hold your ground with a C-level client without needing to impose your view. - Editorial mindset — you have your own voice and you use it. - Operational discipline : you know that inspiration without delivery doesn't generate recurring business. - Proven leadership in complex projects — activating, challenging and elevating the work of more junior strategists and researchers. Leadership by gravity, not by hierarchy. - Fluent in English (written and spoken); Spanish is a plus. What this role is NOT: - Not a Product Manager or Product Owner. - Not a pure UX researcher. - Not a trend forecaster from a marketing agency. - Not a traditional strategy consultant without design sensibility. - Not a purely intellectual profile that doesn't get hands-on with projects. - It's the rare hybrid between a foresight strategist with their own voice, and an operational lead who sustains the quality of the vertical -Why should you join?- This is a unique opportunity for someone looking for a challenge in the strategy and foresight area and to be part of a center of innovation that is impacting clients all over the world — leading a vertical with real editorial and commercial impact 🙂 We also offer: 🔖Permanent contract. 💰Competitive salary 🏡Hybrid working model - you can either work from home or enjoy our beautiful studio (with free coffee and a great garden!). 🌈Join a dynamic +15 nationalities community and enjoy our team-building activities. 📚Keep challenging yourself with our Nacar Academy training program, aligned with the creation of personalized career paths. ✨26 paid vacation days. 💯Monthly allowance for internet costs and a budget for working-from-home materials. 🍎Health Insurance. 🚀Flexible working hours. 🆓Free tickets for the Palo Alto Market 😃