Why is thought leadership critical for sustainable business practices?

Credibility ??: Establishes expertise, builds trust, and enhances brand reputation. #ExpertVoice Innovation ??: Encourages forward-thinking, leading to new ideas and sustainable solutions. #FutureFocused Influence ??: Drives industry standards, guides stakeholders, and shapes policy decisions. #IndustryLeader Adaptability ??: Keeps abreast of evolving trends, enabling agile responses to challenges. #AdaptiveStrategies Engagement ??: Inspires and educates stakeholders, fostering a community for positive change. #CommunityImpact

Thought leadership is even more critical in today world than ever before. If you want to truly implement purpose driven business models, you need to demonstrate your expertise, credibility and vision for your industry. The importance of bridging the gap between having a purpose-driven mission – e.g. drive sustainability within your community – and build a business model for your organisation to amplify its impact has become core. And this can be achieved by providing relevant, timely and original content that educates, inspire and challenges all the stakeholders. To be the connector between businesses and other institutions (e.g. local authorities, universities) and bring intellectual clarity and purpose thought leadership is paramount.

Contrary to the definition that thought leadership translates industry trends and establishes standards/best practices, thought leadership involves investigating, collecting, combining, and communicating unique perspectives that challenge the status quo and empower others to reach beyond what they believe is possible. Advice and direction focusing on most companies in a given market soon become conventional wisdom and industry best practices—aka status quo. Most people can discern where a market is going. Thought leadership describes where an industry or market CAN go.

I've seen thought leadership described as simply being seen as an expert in your field. This has apparently led many to believe the aim of thought leadership is to be perceived as knowledgeable. But thought leadership isn't about showing off what you know, it's about empowering your audience to get more out of what you offer. Being recognized for expertise is like the paint on the house. It might look nice, but it doesn't go deep. The house needs a foundation. Package and apply what you know to empower your audience to get more value, make a smarter buying decision, or elevate the purpose of using what you offer. To have this positive impact, create the proper strategic instrument: a Thought Leadership Model.

Establishing thought leadership goes beyond self-promotion; it involves fostering a genuine connection with your audience by addressing industry challenges, sharing innovative insights, and actively participating in conversations. By consistently delivering valuable content, you position yourself as a trusted authority, creating a lasting impact on your audience's perception of your expertise.

The role of thought leadership in sustainable business practices is multifaceted. It involves not only promoting environmentally friendly operations but also encouraging social responsibility and economic viability over the long term. Thought leaders in sustainability help shape the conversation around what it means to be a sustainable business and provide guidance on how to achieve these goals.

I adamantly disagree with the premise that to become a thought leader, you must "stay updated and informed on the latest trends and best practices in your field or industry." This is Leadership 101. Best practices and industry trends are designed to standardize. If everyone follows them, where's the differentiation? Developing thought leadership requires a broad set of experiences, data sources, and diverse references from various unrelated fields and industries. To develop your thought leadership skills, expand your perspectives. Feed your curiosity. Grow your network and connect the dots from past, present, and future. Your insights will set the strategy for decades, not just tactics for 6 to 12 months. #ThoughtLeadership #ThoughtLeader

I think that this is fundamentally different to thought leadership. It's not about staying updated and informed on latest trends - that's following the herd and at the least it will sway your thinking. Thought leadership is ignoring the consensus, ignoring the typical approach and thinking "knowing what I know, could this be done in a better way?"

My perspective on measuring thought leadership is to combine quantitative data with qualitative assessments to get a comprehensive view. Measuring thought leadership is a multifaceted endeavor, as it involves assessing the impact and influence of an individual or organization in shaping opinions, initiating discussions, and leading innovation within a particular field. One tangible approach is to assess the tangible outcomes influenced by a thought leader. This could include changes in policy, the development of new industry standards, or the creation of innovative products and services.

On average, the CPM of a LinkedIn advertising campaign in $100 and cost per opt-in is anywhere between $15 to $50. If your thought leadership is bringing in thousands of new impressions & dozens of qualified leads, it is probably outperforming your advertising campaigns. That is the benchmark you can use to measure your thought leadership.

Thought leadership is not a requirement for all industries, nor every executive. Evaluate the meaningful business value and determine if there are other tactics that can drive greater results. Additionally, thought leadership can cover any number of tactics - earned media, contributor articles, social media profiles, speaking, awards, etc. etc. - so it is necessary to take a critical eye to each and determine what is right the organization, the executive and the business overall. For example, let's take a marketing leadership award. It is nice recognization for the person and can support a degree of reputation management and brand building, but it is unlikely to correlate to a new business win.