Future Design School
Future Design School is a Toronto-based education transformation organization partnering with K-12 schools, districts, and corporate clients across 65+ countries to deliver strategic consulting, professional development, student programs, and proprietary frameworks like the Portrait of a Future Ready Graduate and AI Roadmap Diagnostic.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2015
- HeadquartersToronto, Canada
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Future Design School does
Future Design School is an education transformation organization that partners with K-12 schools, school districts, higher education institutions, and corporate clients to deliver strategic consulting, professional development, and proprietary frameworks for future-ready learning. Founded in 2015 and headquartered in Toronto, Canada, the company operates across 65+ countries and has reached over 100,000 educators and 1 million students. Its core offerings are organized into four pillars: Strategy (strategic plan development, community consultation, data strategy, operational roadmaps, leadership retreats), Professional Development (keynotes, cohort programs, certifications and microcredentials in design thinking, AI literacy, and entrepreneurship), Student Programs (entrepreneurship, leadership, design thinking, and the Future Prize Challenge), and Tools & Resources (Data Dashboard, School Scorecards, the Portrait of a Future Ready Graduate framework, Journey Based Assessment methodology, and the AI Roadmap Diagnostic). The company also publishes an annual Future of Education Report and operates the Future Design School Network as an accredited partnership model for implementing schools.
Underlying technology is built around a set of proprietary frameworks and tools rather than a single software product. The Portrait of a Future Ready Graduate framework organizes learner development into five interconnected domains (Wellbeing, Social Emotional Learning, Learning Skills, Character Development, and Future Ready Skills) with developmental continuums. Journey Based Assessment is a methodology that captures student thinking, engagement observation, and iterative work over time to move beyond content-recall testing. The Data Dashboard and School Scorecards provide disaggregated trend analysis for school and district leaders. The AI Roadmap Diagnostic assesses institutional AI readiness across 10 domains. The company runs a Shopify-based e-commerce storefront for curriculum resources and certifications, with products priced in CAD (e.g., Certified Design Thinking Educator at $850 CAD, curriculum units at $295 CAD).
The business model combines multiple professional services and content revenue streams. Strategic consulting and professional development are delivered through direct enterprise sales led by senior strategic advisors who serve as trusted partners to school and system leaders, with quote-based pricing on multi-year engagements. Certification programs (Design Thinking, AI Literacy, Entrepreneurship) and stackable microcredentials are sold through both direct school cohorts and association partnerships, with subscription-style multi-session pricing. E-commerce product sales provide a lower-ACV self-serve channel. The company has expanded into corporate advisory with named engagements for Google, PayPal, and Intuit, and reports key corporate clients alongside its K-12 base. Customer segments are K-12 independent schools, public school boards and districts, higher education institutions, education governments and systems, and corporate clients.
Future Design School firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Future Design School
- Legal name
- Future Design School
- Website
- https://futuredesignschool.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2015
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Future Design School is a Toronto-based education transformation organization partnering with K-12 schools, districts, and corporate clients across 65+ countries to deliver strategic consulting, professional development, student programs, and proprietary frameworks like the Portrait of a Future Ready Graduate and AI Roadmap Diagnostic.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Future Design School industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Education Consulting and Professional Development Services
- NAICS
- Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services (5416), Other Specialized Design Services (54149)
- SIC
- Services-Management Consulting Services (8742), Miscellaneous Publishing (2741)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Instructional Delivery & Pedagogy (School-Led) (EDAJAFAB)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Curriculum Design & Scope/Sequence (School-Led) (EDAJAFAA), Innovation & Design Thinking Programs (EDAMAHAD), Career Readiness & College Prep (In-School) (EDAJAFAM), K–12 Instructional Design & Curriculum Development Services (EDAGAKAA), Career & College Readiness Platforms (Guidance, Planning, Scholarships) (EDAJAMAO)
Keywords
Where Future Design School is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Toronto
- HQ country
- Canada
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Future Design School business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Strategic Consulting & Professional Services: End-to-end strategic consulting engagements including strategic plan development, community consultation, data strategy, leadership retreats, and operational roadmaps. Delivered by senior strategists as trusted advisors, combining one-time project engagements with ongoing support relationships.
- Professional Development Programs: Sustained professional development programs for educators including keynotes, workshops, cohort-based growth programs, topic-based leadership workshops, and coaching/mentorship. Offered virtually and in-person with flexible pathways.
- Certifications & Microcredentials: Certification programs (Design Thinking Certification, AI Literacy & Application Certification, Entrepreneurship Certification) and stackable microcredentials. Available for school-based cohorts and association partnerships. Certification programs provide deep expertise and internal implementation leadership.
- Student Programs: Immersive student programs including entrepreneurship, leadership, design thinking, and Future Prize Challenge. Delivered as workshops, full-week intensives, or ongoing engagements. Tailored to curricular goals or as signature program design.
- Licensing & Curriculum Resources: Licensable digital resources and tools that support educators in facilitating exceptional learning experiences, including design thinking and inquiry-based approaches. Sold through their e-commerce platform (Shopify-based storefront). Products include Curriculum resources, advisory program frameworks, and learning tools.
- Product Sales (E-commerce): Direct product sales through their Shopify e-commerce storefront, including curriculum resources, certifications, and program materials. Examples: Certified Design Thinking Educator ($850 CAD), Design Thinking for Elementary School, Career Readiness for High School ($495 CAD).
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Certified Design Thinking Educator Program |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Design Thinking for Elementary School |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Design Thinking for Grade 1 Science |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Career Readiness for High School |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | AI Microcredentials Program |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Professional Development - Custom Engagement |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels9 records
Future Design School product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Future Design School partners with K-12 schools, districts, and higher education institutions to deliver education transformation through strategic consulting, professional development, student programs, and proprietary assessment frameworks. The company sells strategic plan development, Portrait of a Future Ready Graduate design, certifications (Design Thinking, AI Literacy, Entrepreneurship), data dashboards, scorecards, and licensable curriculum resources to school and district leaders. Programs are delivered virtually and in-person across 65+ countries.
Product overview
Future Design School operates as an education transformation organization offering a integrated platform of strategy consulting, professional development programs, student experiences, and assessment tools. The portfolio includes Strategic Consulting services (strategic plan development, operational roadmaps, data strategy, leadership retreats), Professional Development pathways (design thinking certification, AI literacy certification, journey-based assessment training, brain-based strategies), Student Programs (entrepreneurship, leadership, design thinking, Future Prize challenge), and proprietary Tools & Resources (Data Dashboard, School Scorecards, Portrait of a Future Ready Graduate framework, AI Diagnostic). The company also publishes the annual Future of Education Report and operates the Future Design School Network as an accredited partnership for schools.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Portrait of a Future Ready Graduate: A research-backed framework for developing skills that endure in students, structured as five interconnected domains: Wellbeing, Social Emotional Learning, Learning Skills, Character Development, and Future Ready Skills.
- Journey Based Assessment
- Future Prize Challenge
- AI Roadmap Diagnostic
Products and services
- Strategic Consulting End-to-end strategic solutions for schools and districts, including strategic plan development, community consultation, data strategy, leadership retreats, and operational roadmaps to translate vision into measurable outcomes.
- Professional Development Programs Sustained professional development pathways for educators covering design thinking, journey-based assessment, AI in education, inquiry-based learning, brain-based strategies, and instructional leadership. Delivered virtually and in-person.
- Student Programs Immersive student programs including entrepreneurship, leadership, and design thinking workshops for K-12 students, available as workshops, full-week intensives, or ongoing engagements tailored to curricular goals.
- Design Thinking Certification In-depth experiential program supporting educators to develop mastery of the design thinking process and facilitation skills for leading design experiences with students. Available for school-based cohorts and association partnerships.
- AI Literacy & Application Certification Certification supporting educators to explore ethical use, classroom applications, and future implications of AI for responsible integration across programs.
- Entrepreneurship Certification Certification focusing on opportunity recognition, value creation, and real-world problem solving through entrepreneurial thinking for educators.
- Future Prize Challenge Middle school competition where students identify local challenges, develop solutions, and pitch ideas in a single-day immersive entrepreneurial experience.
- Data Dashboard Proprietary leadership tool for school and district leaders to explore historical data, filter by stakeholder groups, and uncover trend lines that inform smarter, more equitable decisions over time. Supports disaggregation by grade levels, student subgroups, and staff roles.
- School Scorecards Transparent monitoring tool enabling leaders to track progress against strategic priorities over multiple years. Balances academic, operational, and culture-based indicators including student learning, engagement, attendance, staff capacity, and family trust.
- AI Roadmap Diagnostic Diagnostic tool that assesses a school's AI readiness across 10 critical domains: Leadership & Strategy, Governance & Policy, Assessment & Pedagogy, AI Literacy, PD & Capacity Building, Privacy & Security, Human Agency & Critical Thinking, Equity & Access, Efficiency & Innovation, and Data & Insight. Delivers a personalized report with actionable next steps.
- Portrait of a Future Ready Graduate Research-backed holistic framework defining five interconnected domains of learner development: Wellbeing, Social Emotional Learning, Learning Skills, Character Development, and Future Ready Skills. Each domain includes specific skills supported by developmental continuums.
- Advisory Resources Program frameworks, scope and sequence, ready-to-use lessons, and advisor tools for designing purposeful advisory systems aligned to Portrait of a Graduate.
- Journey Based Assessment Assessment methodology that transforms assessment from a hurdle into the engine of future-ready learning, using three interwoven sources of evidence: student thinking, real-time engagement observation, and iterative work over time.
Quantifiable outcome
- 65+ countries served worldwide with operational footprint
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Future Design School
Customer profileNamed customers9 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
Future Design School technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability2 records
Feature6 records
Future Design School partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- GoogleminorFuture Design School has developed transformational strategy for Google as part of its broader work with leading organizations. This relationship provides unique insight into future of work and corporate innovation that informs the company's education transformation methodology.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Future Design School competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Pearson Education: Global education services giant with K-12 assessment, curriculum and PD — overlaps with FDS in assessment transformation (Journey Based Assessment competitors), curriculum resources and district-level consulting at far larger scale.
- Learning Forward: National PD association for educators offering standards, certifications and consulting on professional learning — directly overlaps FDS's educator PD and PLC positioning.
- Solution Tree: Large K-12 PD provider running national conferences, on-site PD and PLC programs focused on school improvement — competes with FDS for the same district PD budgets at higher scale.
- ASCD: Established educator association serving K-12 leaders with professional development, publications and whole-child frameworks — overlapping PD buyer base with broader institutional scale.
- Corwin (SAGE Publishing): Major K-12 professional learning publisher selling books, PD conferences, coaching and certifications to educators — incumbent in FDS's PD and certification lane but bundled with SAGE's broader publishing catalog.
Direct peers
- New Pedagogies for Deep Learning (NPDL): Global education transformation partnership focused on deep learning, student agency and partnership pedagogies — shares FDS's project-based, future-ready-skills orientation and global school network.
- 2Revolutions: Education design and consulting firm that works with schools and districts on future-ready learning models, competency-based education and innovation strategy — overlapping design-thinking and transformation thesis.
- BetterLesson: K-12 professional development and coaching provider that sells PD, coaching and curriculum design services to districts and schools — overlapping buyer, overlapping PD/coaching offering, differentiated by BetterLesson's heavier virtual-coaching model.
- Battelle for Kids: Non-profit education consultancy that pioneered the 'Portrait of a Graduate' framework and works with districts on strategic planning, leadership development and competency-based education — directly mirroring FDS's core methodology and target buyer.
- Education Elements: Education transformation consultancy that partners with districts on strategic planning, personalized learning and leadership PD — a closely comparable boutique consulting peer targeting superintendents and system leaders.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Future Design School social profiles
Digital presenceFuture Design School financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Future Design School leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
Future Design School funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Future Design School M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Future Design School
What does Future Design School do?
Future Design School partners with K-12 schools, districts, and higher education institutions to deliver education transformation through strategic consulting, professional development, student programs, and proprietary assessment frameworks. The company sells strategic plan development, Portrait of a Future Ready Graduate design, certifications (Design Thinking, AI Literacy, Entrepreneurship), data dashboards, scorecards, and licensable curriculum resources to school and district leaders. Programs are delivered virtually and in-person across 65+ countries.
Is Future Design School a public or private company?
Future Design School is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Future Design School founded?
Future Design School was founded in 2015. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Future Design School based?
Future Design School is headquartered in Toronto, Canada, in the North America region.
How does Future Design School make money?
Six revenue lines are on record. Strategic Consulting & Professional Services are the primary driver. The others are professional Development Programs, certifications & Microcredentials, student Programs, licensing & Curriculum Resources and product Sales (E-commerce).
Who are Future Design School's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Pearson Education, Learning Forward, Solution Tree, ASCD and Corwin (SAGE Publishing). Direct peers are New Pedagogies for Deep Learning (NPDL), 2Revolutions, BetterLesson, Battelle for Kids and Education Elements.
Does Future Design School have an API?
No public API is recorded for Future Design School.
What industry is Future Design School in?
Future Design School's product category is Education Consulting and Professional Development Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAJAFAB, Instructional Delivery & Pedagogy (School-Led), with a secondary code of EDAJAFAA, Curriculum Design & Scope/Sequence (School-Led). Its NAICS code is 5416 and its SIC code is 8742.