A passionate marketer, CEO at iResearch ServicesTechInformed & GivingforGood.
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Until the pandemic broke out, few would have thought that movie releases would be sent straight to streaming. Brave leaders took a risk on the home crowd and turned the movie industry upside down. But it was bold leadership that ensured the success of this courage by anticipating industry change in the midst of a global health crisis.
Three years later, this bold decision has changed the way audiences consume entertainment (according to PwC, time spent streaming has increased nearly 75% in 2020 and the number of streaming subscribers in the United States has doubled). Video streaming, like other technologies, required a bold leadership mindset to ensure the success of its future in the midst of a pandemic. Forward-thinking leaders counted the numbers, predicted the straight-to-streaming model was profitable, and implemented it, confident in its ability to generate revenue through more subscriptions.
Now, bold leaders are driving the success of video streaming as other technologies evolve, with technology industry visionaries already sharing insights about what the future of streaming might hold. By subscription video on demand and the use of artificial intelligence for live video streams to the role of new over-the-top monetization models and free ad-supported television in blog posts, white papers and other content types – there’s a lot going on.
Whenever an industry – or the world for that matter – is going through a significant change, it is wise to listen to the voices of thought leaders. The question is: what does that voice sound like?
Three defining characteristics of decisive leadership
Now that I’ve been in the thought leadership field for a while, I’ve identified three characteristics that bold thought leaders have in common.
1. The ability to recognize failure early
Backed by extensive market research findings, it was hard to imagine technologies like the Amazon Fire phone And Google Stadia would fail. But they did, and Amazon and Google recognized these failures relatively early—a defining characteristic of bold leadership.
With a potential recession on the horizon, bold thought leadership will be even more important for identifying failures and reflecting on and growing from these experiences. Reviewing internal processes and determining whether a company can survive in such a case is vital. By generating regular reports and using analytical software, you can detect trends at an early stage.
2. The ability to reframe
Albert Einstein is often credited with saying, “You can’t use an old map to explore a new world.” It is indeed a new world we live in today. Our lives have been digitized. Artificial intelligence and machine learning are increasingly at the heart of everything we do.
Bold leadership isn’t a web of rhetoric and vision – it’s about offering real solutions and anticipating challenges others haven’t even considered. Again, reporting and analytics can help leaders achieve this goal and move smoothly in unexpected circumstances. An external advisory board can also guide leaders in an ever-evolving business landscape, as well as reach out to customers to gauge consumer behavior across multiple scenarios.
3. The ability to inspire others
Bold opinion leaders in particular need to have the ability to rally others behind the initiative. Businesses can do this by sharing social issues they believe in on social media and other online platforms and increasing engagement with customers.
In conclusion, we need more decisive leadership to challenge the status quo. The pandemic provided plenty of examples. Bold leadership proved invaluable as countries closed their borders and restricted freedom of movement. In an effort to contain the virus, people were forced to work from home, attend school online and wait for their supplies to be delivered. Bold leaders adapted to these changes by investing more in work-from-home technologies, distance learning, and food delivery services like DoorDash.
It was an acute health crisis that transcended borders. And as the brave tried to navigate the crisis, bold thought leadership called for leaders to make real change. In between, their successes were celebrated and their failures criticized. But they prevailed. With a humble character, they built on their successes and learned from their failures. As we look to the future and the challenges ahead – including a possible recession – we can learn from the past and work to embody the hallmarks of decisive leadership.
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Janice has been with businesskinda for 5 years, writing copy for client websites, blog posts, EDMs and other mediums to engage readers and encourage action. By collaborating with clients, our SEO manager and the wider businesskinda team, Janice seeks to understand an audience before creating memorable, persuasive copy.