Wicked Labs for a Wicked World: Welcome

Designing futures. Orchestrating systems. Accelerating solutions.

We design and accelerate solutions to wicked problems at the intersection of civil society, academia, industry, and public policy.

Explore our programmes

Our Mission: Why We Exist

Born in London. Operating globally. Focused on wicked problems.

Wicked Labs is a global innovation lab. We design tools and programmes to address complex, systemic challenges at the intersection of academia, industry, policy, and civil society.

In a world facing interconnected and uncertain challenges, we believe in harnessing collective imagination to create a better tomorrow—today.

Through our roots at Imperial Business School and the Royal College of Art, we are on a mission to envision, orchestrate, and accelerate responses to the most pressing issues of our time.

By working with us, organisations also build lasting capability to tackle not only wicked problems but more “tame” and simpler problems with greater clarity, speed, and confidence.

what we do

Designing solutions to grand challenges and wicked problems

We tackle global grand challenges by designing, testing, and deploying innovative programmes, tools, frameworks, and initiatives.

Our work spans systems thinking, stakeholder mapping, futures and foresight, business model design, sustainability, impact entrepreneurship, and deep-tech acceleration. We lead global programmes that address complexity head-on and develop the methods and tools required to move from insight to action. We apply these toolkits to different ‘wicked problems’ around the planet, including, but not limited to:

Energy Transition & Decarbonisation

Ocean Health and Sustainable Ports

Misinformation and Inclusive Media in the Age of AI

Healthcare in war conflicts and rapidly aging populations

Food security and water pollution in Africa

Connected Cities

HOW WE DO IT

Our work is structured around a clear, repeatable approach that transforms uncertainty into actionable steps.

Envision
We use collective imagination, stakeholder mapping, and strategic foresight to envision desirable futures. This allows us to move beyond incremental change to explore bold, novel possibilities for positive systemic change.
Orchestrate
We orchestrate ecosystems, resources, and talent by uniting diverse stakeholders, including innovation managers, founders, policymakers, and industry leaders. This enables collaborative, system-level problem solving.
Accelerate
We accelerate implementation with practical tools, training, coaching, consulting, and education. Our services include digital collaboration workflows, playbooks, toolboxes, executive education, and undergraduate and postgraduate modules. We support BA, MBA, and Executive Education programs to develop real-world problem-solving capabilities.

Programmes & Projects

We apply our wicked toolset through impactful programmes, courses, and initiatives across industry, civil society, academia, and policy.

See all programmes

Discover how our unique tools and methods have helped tackle real-world Wicked Problems.

Drop your email below to get instant access to valuable frameworks, playbooks, and in-depth case studies.

Substack

Stay up to date with our latest news, approaches, and tools by subscribing to our Wicked Innovation Labs Substack. You’ll get exclusive access to our newest tools, methods, and frameworks delivered directly to your inbox.

Unpacking Innovation: Why Large Companies Struggle & How to Fix It

By: Mike Pinder, Wicked Labs Co-founderJust before the holidays we hosted a phenomenal Masterclass on “Explore vs. Exploit” innovation modes from the brilliant minds of Steve Blank and Ale...