I am looking for information on thought leadership. more specifically promoting your enterprise as a thought leader, internally, and externally. white papers, webcasts, blogs, analyst relations, conference sponsdorships, etc etc are among the tools.
Just trying to find some good articles, best practices, strategy briefs on this topic.
Thanks
Re: thought leadership
bhaiyo aur behno
aik sawali ki madad kar doh, Allah bhala karay ga..
Re: thought leadership
Sawaal bhi to easy wala karna tha naa. Koi Mulla ki baat hoti ya Lal masjid ki behes hoti to koi aata. Itna mushkil sawaal aur wo bhi GS main. Good luck.
My knowledge about leadership is limited to John C. Maxwell’s books (really good reading, though). Go to his website, www.injoy.com. I am not sure if it helps you in thought leadership (what ever that is) but you can try.
Re: thought leadership
thank you janab, I think you are looking at more leadership in general.
I am looking at projecting a company's thought leadership using the tools that I mentioned and others.
I am waiting for Boston, Umar Talib, faisal and azkar to show up, never to be found when i need an answer :(
PS: yaar that mullah stuff is just to keep the forums going an interesting. I am a very non political seedha saadha insaan in real life.
Re: thought leadership
PS: yaar that mullah stuff is just to keep the forums going an interesting. I am a very non political seedha saadha insaan in real life.
I realized your talent about keep it going. Really, I mean it. You have the talent and guts :Salute: (that is it, I will never admit it again outside this thread so put a lid on your hopes)
On a serious note, good luck with your query and best wishes. :biggthumb
Re: thought leadership
hope this helps.
Source: http://www.elise.com/web/a/be_a_thought_leader.php
Be A Thought Leader!
Small companies have to work hard to get visibility, especially when the market is crowded with competitors all vying for the same business. In high tech they face the added dilemma that IT departments don’t want to buy from a small unknown vendor, and the vendor can’t become large and reputable unless it has major customers. So, how does a company become better known with limited resources? By becoming an industry thought leader.
What’s a thought leader?
A thought leader is a recognized leader in one’s field. What differentiates a thought leader from any other knowledgeable company, is the recognition from the outside world that the company deeply understands its business, the needs of its customers, and the broader marketplace in which it operates.
Trust is built on reputation and reputation is generally NOT built on advertising. It is built on what others say about you. Become a thought leader in your field and it won’t matter as much how big you are. Companies will look to you for insight and vision. Journalists will quote you, analysts will call you, websites will link to you.
How does one become a thought leader?
Before one takes the first actionable step, a fundamental shift in mindset is needed. Thought leadership requires a spirit of generosity - generosity of one’s time, intelligence and knowledge. It requires a trust that by being open with what you know, and by sharing your time and knowledge, the world will reward your efforts. With that in mind, here are steps that will help you on your way to being a thought leader:
Cultivate the press. Don’t leave it soley to your PR agency. If you are the CEO or the VP of marketing of your company, you should have a list of 20 writers and editors who regularly report on your market. You should be calling them, meeting with them, and calling them some more. Journalists are very busy people, often working on ridiculous deadlines. So, when you call you need to give them something that they can use to make their life better – a lead, a story, some insight, a quote, customers to whom they can talk for quotes. Warning. Journalists have a sometimes well deserved reputation for being incredibly curt, arrogant, and annoying. You may find this true or not. In any case, you need to treat them with respect. You need them more than they need you.
Write. White papers, case studies. Prepare lists of useful resources. Show that you understand and care about the problems that your customers are trying to solve. Assemble a valuable knowledge base of materials that demonstrate not only your expertise but also your commitment to solving your customers’ problems. Write industry specific pieces that have useful information for potential customers rather than sales pitches for your products.
Spread the word. Get what you’ve written into the hands of anyone who might care. Submit articles to editors of newsletters, trade magazines. Post them on your website. Make them free and easily accessible. Put your name on them and give them to anyone who will listen.
Speak. Identify trade shows and conferences that customers and industry influencers are attending and get on panels or lead workshops. Find out about the local associations that host speaking events and submit yourself for giving a talk. Again, focus on providing useful information. No one wants to listen to you pitching your product. You are there to inform and educate, to provide a unique perspective.
Use your website. Your website should be a source of useful information for customers, potential customers, and influencers. It is surprising that so many companies still view the web as a place to park their corporate brochures versus a dynamic, highly interconnected exchange of knowledge. The web is a marketplace of ideas, not a kiosk. Your website increases in value the more people know about it and link to it. The more reference-able your website is, the more it will be referenced.
Unlock your white papers! Don’t make people register to learn more about you. You want as many people to know about you as possible. If you want to do lead generation, use direct response ads rather than holding the information on your website hostage. Be generous with your expertise. Or the market will favor someone else who is.
Finally, 7. Make thought leadership a strategic imperative for your company. Ideas and insight do not require dominant market share or millions in capital expenditures. Your company does not need to be a leader in sales to be considered a thought leader (though of course it doesn’t hurt). In high tech especially, the rules of the game change so quickly that insight becomes currency. But becoming a thought leader does require work and commitment. It demands the often difficult task of looking at your company from the perspective of the world outside. Most companies fail miserably at this. Generating an ongoing effort towards thought leadership is the best way to ensure that it actually happens.
my company has a program to encourage thought leadership, and innovation in employees is rewarded. i never paid much attention to this until you brought it up :-\
Re: thought leadership
Namkeen, u got it, this is the type of stuff i was looking for. luckily my new hire starts on monday and UI can have her start doing the research.. unluckily my abstract for thought leadership strategy is due thursday :D
Re: thought leadership
Of the top of my head, I would recommend MIT Entrepreneurship Center. This site http://entrepreneurship.mit.edu/thought_leadership.php has a few good cases/links.
I am sure that HBS Press has some publications on it, if I am able to locate a good title, I am happy to forward it.
Re: thought leadership
thank mon ami
Re: thought leadership
Stanford has an “Entrepreneurial Thought Leaders Seminar” series. I think you can view some of the lectures online at
http://edcorner.stanford.edu/podcasts.html
Re: thought leadership
is thought leadership an altrnative form of political philosophy?
if it is, then ethics of a leader can be just as cool as ethics of a doctor.
different professions demand different rules but the end goal is making an improvement in everyone's lives.
service people have the biggest obligation towards this.
cheers!
Re: thought leadership
What a topic :) This is something I am constantly pushing and often I find myself either hitting the brick wall or being a marketing mouth piece.
Most recently the line between thought leadership and marketing has gotten blurry. Lots of Blogs and whitepapers, etc. that you see have a hidden marketing tone/agenda or they are flat out propaganda against their competettion.
A true thought leadership starts with RESEARCH. Just to give you an example, Microsoft spends 27 Billion in research, far more than anyother company. Some of the research is ground breaking and makes it into products but no one knows about these innovations. They are hidden behind the covers and are not conidered cool by the marketing genuises.
More later, now I gotta catch a flight back to home ... after a 2 week road trip :(
Re: thought leadership
Sorry Mr. Fraudia :( I just read that your abstract was due last Thursday and I am too late, as usual. Hope you found what you were looking for.
Cheers!
Re: thought leadership
Hey Fraudz…
Sorry ma man – I’ve been a little too busy lately to reply in detail to any topic. Wrapping up work in my current job – starting at the new place – brother’s wedding etc. – arrgh!
As per the topic at hand, although I’ve worked for companies where thought leadership is really emphasized as a good cross between R&D and Marketing, I’ve never really been involved in an initiative where I could claim first hand experience with it.
Anyways, your topic is something that interests me at a personal level more than anything else since I have experienced what it’s like to work with two people who I can truly call thought leaders. That’s the thing about thought leadership… it starts at a personal level and if carried through, it can transcend to the organizational level - eventually making its way to marketing collateral as the organization's distinctive competency.
Many thought leaders focus on small scale changes, including ideas for a new product or changes to an existing one, and it all boils down to the credibility of their ideas than their own credibility. Essentially, by virtue of their expertise in their professional domains, these thought leaders assert that they know of a better product or way of doing things than anyone else in the team or the organization or the industry. Consequently, thought leadership culminates in the target audience accepting the idea. Many times though, you’d find that thought leaders don’t involve themselves in the actual implementation of their ideas… this is what separates their style of organic leadership from that of the rest of the management’s mechanistic leadership.
Re: thought leadership
This is exactly the kind of management BS that I absolutely abhor.
Re: thought leadership
It is hardly management bull****....
this is what separates two companies if they were both at an equal level otherwise. A company or an individual who can excel in the thought leadership in a particular industry and then put all that into practice will definitely have a huge edge over the competitors (provided there are no stuff ups ofcourse).
Definitely starts at an individual level... call it a great business idea in a particular industry... or an innovative way of using some existing technology that gives you more edge over the others... can be a new innovative product... a new theory,... anything.... and yes that will then require appropriate actions to put the thought into practice to give you a fatter bottomline/a better brandname/recognition.
I can say that I'm witnessing some really cool thought leadership firsthand at the place I work...
An existing product has been modified and tweaked here and there to come up with a solution that caters for a different market segment, its more affordable and powerful than the competitors... and there is some active market campaign happening currently to let the world know it exists and how good it is... The product owner has been approached, patted and cuddled... given some powerful presentations and demo's... and the end result.... we are now partners sharing licensing percentage with the vendor as well, with the newly badged product which doesnt affect the current market the original product was meant for,, so a win win for both parties.
hardly management bull****. But ofcourse, not for everyone... one has to have that drive to start with and then resources and appropriate networking and marketting. Professional bodies, conferences, universities... even going to someone with the resources if you dont have them yourself to promote your idea/organization.
Strong networking... and letting your contacts know what the organization is all about and how fantastic you guys are in your respective area. Magazines.... white papers on the net and even relevant magazines... and if you have enough backing... airline magazines that all the executives will read onboard. flyers and brochures...
You first have to be on top of whatever it is that you do... you gota know how to talk the talk when it comes to that... active marketing... something innovative that might set you apart from the competitors... even if it isnt innovation.... one has to sense the opportunity to beat their competitors to some opportunity to put urselves out there... Conference sponsorships are great, conference presentations are great, golf days for people that are important to you... idea->implementation->marketing
Re: thought leadership
The term is a friggin Management jargon and a buzzword - just like hundred others which the so-called Management Gurus like Peter Drucker, Tom Peters, CK Prahlad, Hammer, Champy and the rest of the "academic" gang shower upon the gullible and credulous MBA wallahs (and by extension to the Corporates) with every book they bring to the market.
Nothing that have been described in the above posts is NEW by any means....they just have a NEW jargon for it....just so there can be seminars, conferences and presentations about it.
An MBA friend of mine is a "Knowledge Manager" - all he does is format content on the company Intranet Site - that nobody looks at.
It's a "I will scratch your back, you scratch mine" world.
"Thought Leader" - my behind.
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knowledge management and thought leadership are two TOTALLY different things... you might as well compare a kfc manager while you are at it.
no one is questioning its newness or oldness, you can call it something else (not knowledge management im afraid)... but no one can deny its importance.
Are you saying innovation, R&D and getting your organization out there to take edge over your competitors a management bull****?
like I said, not for everyone...
Its a very very competitive world out there... thought leadership in your area is basically about telling the world that you are the best in the business.. and are thinking ahead of the competition... grabbing on opportunities and ideas before you're competitors do... and ofcourse for that you can't be a maaja gaama... you need something before you can call urself a thought leader.
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knowledge management and thought leadership are two TOTALLY different things... you might as well compare a kfc manager while you are at it.
Where did I say they are the same ??
I gave an example to prove how these Management Labels is more hype than anything.
If it matters - I am an MBA myself.
Are you trying to say that products were not redesigned with new ideas until recently when the world woke up to the "discovery" of "Thought Leadership" ?
In the work place, these jargons only create a Dilbert-ish culture ...that's all.
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I think i'll just shut up. You are more than welcome to NOT worry about thought leadership... who cares right? its just management jargon. we wont innovate or worry about coming up with new ideas or products, cos come on! the whole world is doing it! its nothing new! lets just go have donuts instead and let the fools worry about this new word they have come up with to make money and fool us.