To remain successful in the future, innovation is important for every company. In todays markets many companies are considering more active strategies towards innovation, mainly because of globalisation, internet, technological- and social developments. However innovation is a complex phenomenon whereby companies need to understand the future of the business and have the ability to create and deliver products and services competitively. In a more active innovation strategy, companies will have to be engaged in all sorts of thought experiments to imagine how the future of the business will change and how to prepare for that future. Thought leadership is becoming an important skill for organizations to ignite imagination, illuminate new paths but also to get rid of old beliefs. The aim of thought leadership is to get a better understanding of the uncertain future and how to best prepare for it.
In the new edition of the Journal of Business Administration and Education there is an interesting article about the importance of thought leadership and the relationship between innovation and strategy, called “The Relationship between Thought Leadership and Innovation: A Look at Strategy”.
The article also confirms that thought leadership is not a role, a position or a person. It is much more an initiative, which I have formulated as an organization skill.
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Norbert Bol 