Journal Screenshot

International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences

Open Access Journal

ISSN: 2222-6990

Demystifying Thought Leadership in the Malaysian Service Industry

Ong Choon Hee , Yeo Hui Ying

http://dx.doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v9-i5/5873

Open access

It is worth to have further in-depth discussion with the emerging importance of the term: Thought leadership. Creating a thought leadership culture is beneficial. Thought leaders are the trusted sources who play important role in inspiring people with the realization of innovation ideas. Time passes, thought leaders provide transformational influence on the industry, focus niche or even across the entire world. Today, thought leadership is not possessed by an individual, but also tied with the organization. Some companies embraced thought leadership qualities and had been recognized as thought leadership companies. There are differences between thought leadership and traditional leadership, especially in the aspects of authority level, leadership style, information sharing and way of solving issues. Looking at and analysing the largest industry contributor to the Malaysian economy: Services industry, there is a lack of revolutionary and visionary thought leaders. This highlights the sense of urgency in taking drastic measures in cultivating thought leadership in the service industry. Ways of implementing thought leadership has also been mentioned such as stand out from the talent pools and grab industry experts’ attention. Several common mistakes that companies should prevent were also highlighted such as copying others, lack of strategy, delivering low-quality content, misleading self-perception and emphasis on self-promotion.

Alhaddi, H. (2014). The relationship between thought leadership and innovation: a look at strategy. Journal of Business Administration and Education, 6(2), 57-65.
Alhaddi, H. (2015). Innovators or thought leaders: what do organizations need? International Journal of Managerial Studies and Research, 3(2), 54-58.
Ang, J. (2016). Malaysian firms are struggling to develop leaders. Retrieved from https://www.humanresourcesonline.net/leadership-top-priority-business-leaders-sea/
Arham, A. F. (2014). Leadership and performance: the case of Malaysian SMEs in the services sector. International Journal of Asian Social Science, 4(3), 343-355.
Brendel, D. (2017). It is time to revisit the concept of thought leadership. Retrieved from https://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-brendel/its-time-to-revisit-the-c_b_9979600.html
Brockmeyer, M. (2016). Thought leadership is different in tech. Here’s what to do about it.
Davis, N. (2015). Five ways of understanding the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Retrieved from https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2015/11/5-ways-of-understanding-the-fourth-indust real- revolution/
Department of Statistics Malaysia, (2018). Malaysia economic performance third quarter 2018.
Dolan, G. (2018). The benefits of thought leadership for companies. Retrieved from https://www.theceomagazine.com/business/management-leadership/the-benefits-of-th ought- leadership-for-companies/
Fallon, N. (2016). What is thought leadership, and why does it matter? Retrieved from https://www.businessnewsdaily.com/9253-thought-leadership.html
Forbes Coaches Council. (2017). 10 mistakes you’re making when building thought leadership. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescoachescouncil/2017/01/17/10-mistakes- you’re-making-when-building-your-thought-leadership/#11cdb42e45a5
Gibbins-Klein, M. (2011). Winning by thinking: how to create a culture of thought leadership in your organization. Development and Learning in Organizations, 25(1), 8-10.
Hall, J. (2014). How to create a company of thought leaders. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/johnhall/2014/06/15/how-to-create-a-company-of-thought- leaders/#5812297e44d8
Israel, S. (2012). What makes a thought leader? Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/site s/shelisrael/2012/03/05/what-makes-a-thought-leader/#22 d4d5165c45
Llopis, G. (2014). Thought leadership is the new strategy for corporate growth. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/glennllopis/2014/08/18/thought-leadership-is-the-new-strategy- for-corporate-growth/#29deca0e2b43
Marx, W. (2018). Thought leadership strategy: the 10 biggest mistakes you need to avoid. Retrieved from https://www.business2community.com/leadership/thought-leadership-strategy-the-10- biggest-mistakes-you-need-to-avoid-02047612
McCrimmon, M. (2005). Thought leadership: a radical departure from traditional, positional leadership. Management Decision. 43(7/8), 1064-1070.
Prince, R. A. (2015). The two key benefits of thought leadership done well. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/russalanprince/2015/06/08/the-two-key-benefits-of-thought- leadership-done-well/#6958db6e4aaa
Steffens, R. (2018). A step-by-step guide to creating thought leadership content. Retrieved from https://www.bluleadz.com/blog/a-step-by-step-guide-to-creating-thought-leadership-content

In-Text Citation:(Hee & Ying, 2019)
To Cite this Article: Hee, O. C., & Ying, Y. H. (2019). Demystifying Thought Leadership in the Malaysian Service Industry. International Journal of Academic Research Business and Social Sciences, 9(5), 325–334.