I'm in the midst of switching jobs and have gotten reflective on writing, marketing, and the state of thought leadership in particular. Here's what's been on my mind:
Thought leaders: Some have a calling. Others campaign.
When I was freelancing for CNET TechRepublic, I would describe the way I came to choose sources as consultative. I wanted experts for my articles that could speak to my readers. I would imagine bringing them into a conference room and introducing them to my client at the time to help solve a pressing business or technology problem.
I like how the Thought Leadership Lab defines thought leaders:
Thought leaders are the informed opinion leaders and the go-to people in their field of expertise. They are trusted sources who move and inspire people with innovative ideas; turn ideas into reality and know and show how to replicate their success. Over time, they create a dedicated group of friends, fans, and followers to help them replicate and scale their ideas into sustainable change not just in one company but in an industry, niche or across an entire ecosystem.
There should be no romance about being a thought leader in my perspective. The goal of any thought leader should be to leave readers with the thought they should hire that person, their company, or purchase their product or service to solve their business problem.
When I got involved with IDG TECHtalk — an influencer network sponsored by IDG Communications — I got exposure to a wide cross-section of influencers. It’s a group that still challenges me as a writer and thinker. Hanging with this group through tweet chats and corporate-sponsored articles has helped me crystallize my own positions about the cloud, DevOps, and security that I write about.
There are people who identify themselves as thought leaders on Twitter and LinkedIn. I call these people campaigners. They want to shout from the hilltops, “I’m a thought leader!”
He who talks the longest isn’t the thought leader
Nobody likes or believes a thought leader who talks too much, it means they aren’t educating and worst of all they aren’t listening.
Thought leaders know the balance between talking and listening.
There’s an unscripted dance in article interviews between the interviewer and the subject (corporate thought leader) when each asks the other one what they’ve been seeing, hearing, and who’ve they’ve been talking in the market. It’s done because a thought leader must have their eyes and ears open to what’s changing and what might come along in the ever-changing technology world.
Companies need to cultivate thought leaders
Both during my time as a writer and working in a corporate growth group I came to see that companies need to cultivate their thought leaders, especially those not on the management team. I'm just not sure that the marketing department is the right group to cultivate thought leadership. Here’s why:
- Marketing departments have little client contact, nor are they technologists by trade
- Thought leadership comes from lessons learned at work not talking about the work
- You need to find a true believer and technologist who can balance the message and client realities
Cultivating thought leaders inside a company could benefit from some marketing participation. It needs to be a joint effort. You do want to involve employees where IT is more than just a paycheck for them. Look for employees involved in the open-source community, blogging, and the conference speaking circuit.