Thought Leadership

A thought leader is someone who has innovated or evolved knowledge in a particular space. Thought leaders go beyond using existing knowledge to actually creating new knowledge. To be viewed as a thought leader is highly desirable in the corporate world. Traits they might have are: intelligence, ability to see trends and innovate, change agents, collaborative, adaptive, research-oriented, expert communicators and educators. Josh Bersin is widely considered a thought leader in the HR arena.

When I think of "thought leadership" I think of someone who is knowledgeable on a topic, stays current, and shares with others. For example, I am an education advocate. I have a degree in education as well as years of experience in both teaching and corporate education. I continue learning and sharing what I have learned with others, which then helps put me in the position of being a thought leader as I am able to analyze, synthesize, and then share to support others. It isn't simply saying did you see that webinar on micro-credentialing? It is saying I saw this webinar on micro-credentialing and I think if we were able to apply that concept here we would be able to see benefits x, y, and z specific to our problems a & b.