Biography

Francis Gonzales works as a Strategic Foresight Specialist at Autodesk, where he balances the creative side of foresight with rigorous strategic thinking. He joined Autodesk because he sees a unique opportunity to design and make a better world. In support of that mission, Francis brings design and business skill sets that enable him to assess customer needs today and identify the business opportunities of tomorrow. He’s constantly scanning for weak signals and loves telling stories about the future that inspire, provoke, and ultimately catalyze change.

Francis is the architect of the Strategic Foresight team’s burgeoning Quant practice, which leverages quantitative data and trend forecasts to describe the direction, velocity, and impact of key drivers of change. Francis also brings a foresight lens to the Strategic Technology Priorities project, which identifies potentially disruptive technologies that Autodesk deems critical because they are valuable to our customers and our competitive separation.

Prior to joining Autodesk, Francis worked at the intersection of technology and innovation for social good for 10+ years. He managed a $10M grant fund while at the United Nations Foundation and worked in over 15 emerging economies.

Francis holds an MBA in Design Strategy from California College of the Arts (CCA) and a Bachelor of Arts in International Development from Brown University.