Thought Leaders. Opinion Leaders. Who are they? What are they?

Mention the words and images of Mr Nelson Mandela come to the fore. Not only was he a man of high calibre but his presence lend credence to any campaign that he was involved in, be it the Aids Action Campaign or our World Cup Soccer bid at the time.

In other spheres of life there are people who stand out, whose words and actions are deemed important. On Social Media lists of these influencers and authors are published annually.

Key to identifying these stakeholders is their influence.

What is influence? This quote by Jim Rohn summarises it nicely: “There are two parts to influence: First, influence is powerful, and second, influence is subtle. You wouldn’t let someone push you off course, but you might let someone nudge you off course and not even realize it.” –

That’s the power of thought leaders and why they need to be carefully profiled and engaged.