From Mutation to Mutuation

In an era characterized by unprecedented volatility, complexity, and systemic disruption, traditional models of organizational change based on linear planning and reactive adaptation have become insufficient. This paper introduces the concept of mutuation as a novel paradigm of enterprise transformation. Unlike mutation—which implies passive, stochastic adaptation—mutuation denotes a relational, anticipatory, and design-enabled mode of change that aligns internal transformation with external co-evolution. Drawing on a transdisciplinary synthesis of dynamic capabilities, futures literacy, corporate foresight, and systemic design, the study positions design as a critical infrastructure for orchestrating collective anticipation and distributed execution. Through the empirical lens of the SFIDA project, conducted within the Made in Italy Circolare e Sostenibile (MICS) partnership, the paper explores how design routines and speculative artifacts can build anticipatory capacity, foster inter-organizational collaboration, and catalyze strategic coherence in SMEs. The findings illustrate how a Distributed, Open, and Continuous (DOC) model of execution—enabled by design—can foster shared imagination, institutional learning, and sustained innovation. Ultimately, the paper argues for repositioning design as a reflexive and infrastructural agent of mutuation, capable of mediating meaning across human, organizational, and technological systems in the pursuit of futures-driven transformation.