Thought leader

For other uses, see Thought leader (disambiguation).

A Thought Leader is an individual or firm ascribed the quality of ‘Thought leadership’. Thought leadership is influencing a narrative by understanding what needs to be done. A Thought Leader can be recognized as an authority in a specific field and whose expertise is sought and often rewarded, that can be an expert, a historical figure, or a 'wise person' with worldly impact.

Meanings

Go-to-Expert

From the perspective of a Thought Leader as the ‘Go-To-expert’ being a thought leader means to consistently answer the biggest questions on the minds of the target audience on a particular topic. Thought leaders are commonly asked to speak at public events, conferences, or webinars to share their insight with a relevant audience. In a 1990 article in the Wall Street Journal Marketing section, Patrick Reilly used the term "thought leader publications" to refer to such magazines as Harper's. The Go-To-expert perspective on thought leadership is expressed by Joel Kurtzman (1994), editor-in-chief of the magazine Strategy & Business, who said that “A thought leader is recognized by peers, customers and industry experts as someone who deeply understands the business they are in, the needs of their customers and the broader marketplace in which they operate. They have distinctively original ideas, unique points of view and new insights.” In the previous decade, the term was revived and re-engineered by marketers. Thought leadership is important for both Consumer and B2B companies. Thought leaders need to inspire consumers to act and to take the next step in their journey. Influencing a narrative by understanding what needs to be done – thought leadership – refers in business and marketing to a potentially winning strategy. It is seen as a way of increasing or creating demand for a product or service. High tech firms often publish white papers with analyses of the economic benefits of their products as a form of marketing. These are distinct from technical white papers. Consulting firms frequently publish house reports, e.g. The McKinsey Quarterly, A.T. Kearney Executive Agenda, Strategy&'s Strategy and Business, or Deloitte Review where they publish the results of research, new management models, and examples of the use of consulting methodologies.

Examples of Go-To-Expert Thought Leaders

Thought Leaders can come from any source; executives, customers, product managers, designers, customer service reps, salespeople. You could be a thought leader in your local community, a thought leader on Instagram, a thought leader in politics at large, or even ‘just’ a thought leader within your group of friends on Facebook. As a result, the concept of building influence has become a hot topic, and rightfully so. Influence, we are learning in our hyper-connected society is tremendously valuable. . Many influencers seek to build their thought leadership. But even though influence is relative, it is also the foundation of building something truly impactful. Some great thought leaders of the past two decades have used new media platforms and channels to take their knowledge and build empires that stretched far outside their originally tight-knit niches. The Oxford English Dictionary gives as its first citation for the phrase in 1887 description of Henry Ward Beecher as "one of the great thought-leaders in America." The term had earlier (1876) been applied to Ralph Waldo Emerson, who was said to manifest "the wizard power of a thought-leader."

Thought leaders from the past have determined the future. Dr. Joel N. Myers, Founder, Chairman, and President of AccuWeather, has been recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine’s Encyclopedia of Entrepreneurs book as one of the greatest entrepreneurs in American history. He is a proven visionary leader, founding the company in 1962 and successfully establishing AccuWeather as the largest and fastest-growing source of weather forecasts and warnings as well as a global leader in digital media and big data. Dr. Myers is a futurist and sought-out expert in international business and digital media. True thought leadership is entrepreneurism in action. Manish Chandra is the founder and CEO of Poshmark, driving the vision, strategy, and growth for the company. Manish became an entrepreneur at a young age; everywhere he looked, he saw things he could change and improve, which sparked his drive to fix things and help people. Both of the companies he founded have had a simple focus: to change something that is hard or impossible to do, and by doing that, help millions of people achieve their goals. Manish’s background is in technology and has applied his 20+ years of experience building and scaling companies to build a new class of fashion marketplace where the deep connections between users fuel massive engagement and growth. Under Manish’s leadership, the company has grown to become the largest social marketplace for fashion in the U.S.

Criticism Expert perspective on Thought Leadership

While thought leadership is often thought of from the expert-perspective, research from Edelman and LinkedIn demonstrate that it does a lot more. It builds business and opportunities. According to a survey by Edelman and LinkedIn, thought leadership is the key to gaining decision makers’ attention. It also generates more opportunities, increases admiration, and helps close more deals. Thought leadership impact is the case of study from a three years research, conducted by Edelman and LinkedIn. According to this research: “companies with the best ability to produce timely, thought-provoking thought leadership content are much more adept than their competitors at capturing their customer’s attention and turning that attention into positive results.” Thought leadership is not about effective change-strategies or impressive results or management. That could be called ‘success’. Thought leadership is much more meaningful, impactful, and profound.

Historic Thought Leaders

Centuries before the term was coined, certain historic individuals determined the course of things based on their vision. Like Suffragettes were feminists ‘avant la lettre’.While these women can be labeled ‘feminists’ now, the word "feminist" did not exist during their era. Historic thought leaders ‘avant la lettre’ have had a significant impact based upon their view on things. They are considered to be thought leaders because their vision was piled in such a way we still can tell how they influenced the course of things or how those were thought upon. They influenced a narrative by understanding what needed to be done.

Examples of Historic Thought Leaders

The past gave us many examples of historic thought leaders. Here are some: Nelson Mandela government’s focused on dismantling the legacy of apartheid by tackling institutionalized racism and fostering racial reconciliation. Helen Keller's efforts were to improve the treatment of the deaf and the blind were influential in removing the disabled from asylums. She also prompted the organization of commissions for the blind in 30 states by 1937. Maria Montessori provides a prepared environment where children are able to develop independence, her education is unique in its profound respect for a child's sincere desire and ability to learn, and in its recognition of his need for independence. Steve Jobs had audacious self-belief and imagination, he changed the culture of technology. his company's products and services revolutionizing the way people work, communicate and live their lives. Desmond Tutu is one of South Africa's most well-known human rights activists, winning the 1984 Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts in resolving and ending apartheid. Socrates was a classical Greek philosopher who is credited with laying the fundamentals of modern Western philosophy. He is known for creating Socratic irony and the Socratic method He has had a profound influence on Western philosophy, along with his students Plato and Aristotle. Galileo Galilei is considered the father of modern science and made major contributions to the fields of physics, astronomy, cosmology, mathematics, and philosophy. Galileo invented an improved telescope that let him observe and describe the moons of Jupiter, the rings of Saturn, the phases of Venus, sunspots, and the rugged lunar surface. Frederick Barbarossa was one of the greatest monarchs of medieval Germany, and his strong rule set many patterns of future development. He was renowned for his wars against the Pope and his allies in Italy, as well as for his participation in two crusades.

Thought Leadership as a worldly proof of wisdom

Thought Leadership meaning to influence a narrative by understanding what needs to be done allows for the third meaning of thought leader. Besides the expert- and historic-perspective there is the philosophical perspective of Thought Leaders

The German Buildung movement follows this idea that by reflection and cultivating one's mind the one becomes a force for good in the reality of one's life.

The philosophical perspective on Thought Leadership aligns with Daniel D. Drezner's criticism of many ‘expert-thought leaders’. He takes an objective view of the thought leader as a new kind of intellectual who fulfills a function different from that of the public intellectual, though an equally legitimate one. It is noteworthy, he writes, that strong demand has emerged for new ideas and vibrant ways of thinking about the world. Thought Leaders’ claims generally are more of a marketing principle than a philosophical insight. Drezner explains that thought leaders are optimists, inductive reasoners, and prioritizers of experience, whereas public intellectuals are pessimists, deductive reasoners, and prioritizers of expertise. According to his view, intellectuals cultivate opposing views and ambiguities while thought leaders "develop their own singular lens to explain the world, and then proselytize that worldview to anyone within earshot". This need for depth on the one hand and worldliness on the other is a classic problem stressed out by Plato. Plato represents the focal point of the West’s first philosophy, Philosophia as the love of wisdom. Plato implies that phronesis is necessary to complete Sophia, which, is primarily an interpersonal type of virtuous wisdom. Phronesis does so by encompassing not only theoretical, philosophic knowledge, but for the first time, a new version of practical, political knowledge. For Plato, this strikingly broad view of wisdom is consistent with a life-long effort to articulate common links between practical and theoretical knowledge, on the one hand, and virtue on the other. The possession of philosophical wisdom always involves more than knowing that something is true, good, and just, and even more than knowing why. The possession of practical wisdom necessarily involves the ability to implement this knowledge in practice in one’s own life and in human society. He intended to inspire any human being to cultivate knowledge of the self and wisdom in order to do the right thing.

Put in contemporary words, we can look at Jake Dunlap, founder CEO of Skaled. He said that thought leaders draw on the past, analyze the present and illuminate the future to create a comprehensive, unique, and impactful view of their area of expertise. They possess an ability to contribute to the conversations happening today while also being able to speculate on what is going to happen tomorrow, and rather than chime in on every topic, they set the pace for the industry, and offer intelligent insights and informed opinions.

The creative force from Thought Leaders grows the significance of their philosophical wisdom and depth. As Socrates puts it: ‘Only when the powerful become wise, problems of humanity will cease to exist’. Grant Cardone provides his thought on thought leaders: “the successful are called thought leaders for designing the future by forward-thinking”.

Levels of Thought Leadership

We can distinguish four levels in building thought leadership, becoming a thought leader.

Natural Thought Leadership

Natural Thought Leaders have an innate quality to think, having a reflective character, and sometimes a philosophical inclination. Mostly they go unschooled in thought leadership, yet are thought leaders on a microlevel like personal life, work, social, and community.

Active Thought Leadership

Active Thought Leaders are consciously reflective, cultivating one's ideas, mindset, and vision. Here one is consciously structuring one's dialogue with oneself and others through writing, reading, and talking. A lot of learning in personal development takes place here.

Expressive Thought Leadership

Expressive Thought Leaders move towards or are expanding their Go-To-Expert-status. They are finding or setting out to find recognition. Strengthening the position of being or becoming an authority. This level shows an acceptance of the significance of the ideas cultivated. Expressive Thought Leaders take on the ambition; they publish white-papers, podcasts, books, magazines, websites, videos. They are or aspire to be commonly asked to speak at public events, conferences, or webinars to share their insights with a relevant audience.

Accelerative Thought Leadership

Accelerative Thought Leaders combine active and expressive Thought Leadership. The reflective and expressive natures are aligned. Both realms reinforce one another: often both in numbers and in meaning. Accelerative Thought Leadership is accelerating both: Wisdom or insight of what needs to be done causes growth in quantitative success and recognition. Growth in quantitative success and recognition causes new triggers in the realm of ideas leading to faster growth in the mind and insights. Accelerative Thought Leaders have a distinctly positive impact on a narrative.

Criticism of the phrase and concept

The phrase "thought leader" is identified by some writers as an annoying example of business jargon, and appeared in Forbes magazine's 2013 annual "tournament" of "corporate America’s most insufferable" business buzzwords and clichés. Kevin Money and Nuno Da Camara of the John Madejski Centre for Reputation at the University of Reading's Henley Management College write that the nebulous nature of the phrase (the unclear nature of "what is and what is not thought leadership") contributes to its reputation among cynics as "meaningless management speak." Some writers, such as Harvard Business Review contributor Dorie Clark, have defended the phrase while agreeing "that it is very icky when people call themselves thought leaders because that sounds a little bit egomaniacal." New York Times columnist David Brooks mocked the lifecycle of the role in a satirical column entitled "The Thought Leader," published in December 2013.

A parody on the term was published in 2016 by Chris Kelly on Canadian television's This is That program. In the process of the discussion, imitating TED talks, Kelly elicits responses from the audience that exemplify the effect he describes as the result of applying well-known marketing techniques to achieve the impression of being an erudite speaker.

External Links: Thought Leadership Blog https://www.theblacksheep.community/thought-leadership-blog/

See also

• Opinion leadership
• Creative class
• Futures studies

Further reading

• Brosseau, Denise (2014), Ready to Be a Thought Leader? (Wiley/Jossey-Bass)
• Karin Frick, Detlef Guertler, Peter A. Gloor, (2013), Coolhunting for the World's Thought Leaders, Presented at COINs13 Conference, Chile, 2013 arXiv
• Acharya, Nupur (2011-06-20). "Infosys, Tata Brands Beat Google and Apple". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2012-01-11.
• Myslewski, Rik (November 25, 2009). "Apple tops Google as UK 'Thought Leader'". The Register.