*Leading Via Thought Leadership: The Expert's Edge (McGraw-Hill, 2008), by Ken Lizotte, asserts that thought leaders--"the go-to authorities in their fields"--make more money
than their competitors. The book, which cites strategies for obtaining thought-leadership status, also identifies a number of key studies that offer statistics to underscore
importance of said status:
-
One study by Kennedy Information, a management-consulting think tank, found that less than 1% of management consultants make more than $500,000 a year, and that "those
highest-revenue producers are the ones who regularly publish articles and books," according to a Kennedy principal.
-
Professional services marketing expert Suzanne Lowe's research on which marketing tactics are most successful revealed that thought-leading is a significant competitive
differentiator.
These studies highlight the importance that thought leadership plays for public relations professionals, who stand to gain credibility within their organizations and industries
if they publish articles, speak at industry events and host seminars.
Source: The Expert's Edge, by Ken Lizotte
*A Shift in Advertising Models: According to "The State of the News Media, 2008," a 700-page report on the state of American journalism by PEJ (a project of the Pew Research
Center) and The Pew Charitable Trusts, advertising models are shifting due to the decreasing reliance on traditional mass media. Among the report's conclusions:
-
News is shifting from being a product--today's newspaper, Web site or newscast--to becoming a service that raises the question: How can you help me or empower me?
-
According to an analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics data by Advertising Age, as of October 2007, the number of jobs in advertising and marketing services was down 1.1%
from its peak during 2000, the year the Internet bubble burst;
-
News organizations and news Web sites are no longer final destinations; and,
-
The prospects for user-created content, once thought to be central to the next era of journalism, for now appear more limited, even among "citizen" sites and
blogs.
Source: PEJ and The Pew Charitable Trusts
*Creativity Is Hard to Come By: There seems to be a gap between what those who prepare future professionals for the workforce teach, and what employers are actually looking for
in potential job candidates--and that gap seems to center around creativity. At least, according to a survey conducted by The Conference Board and Americans for the Arts, in
partnership with the American Association of School Administrators. Among the findings:
-
99% of the 155 surveyed school superintendents and 97% of the 89 surveyed employers believe that arts training--and, to a lesser degree, communications studies--are
crucial to developing creativity. Yet there is a fundamental gap between understanding this and putting it into meaningful practice. Findings indicate that most high schools and
employers provide such training and studies only on an elective or "as needed" basis;
-
70% of superintendents presume employers seek "creative thinkers" over "technically skilled" individuals. Employers are evenly split (49/51, respectively);
-
85% of employers concerned with hiring creative people say they can't find the applicants they seek. These employers use job interviews as their primary tool for assessing
creativity, and they mostly look for spontaneity and creative responses to hypothetical scenarios;
-
83% of educators and 61% of employers responded that they feel responsible for fostering creativity; and,
-
Only three from a list of 12 creativity-promoting educational activities/experiences are part of the curriculum in half of the surveyed schools. Of a comparable list of
eight employee activities/training options, less than one in 10 employers surveyed said they provide seven of them to all their employees.
Source: The Conference Board, Americans for the Arts and American Association of School Administrators