We scraped thousands of LinkedIn profiles to find out more about people who self-describe as ‘thought leaders’ in either their title or bio.
Over the years, terms like ‘visionary’, ‘guru, ‘ninja’ and ‘game-changer’ have become popular and widely used descriptions in professional bios, but none polarise the modern business world as much as ‘thought leader’, especially when the title is self-proclaimed.
Whether it’s okay to call yourself one or not has been debated extensively, and alternatives for thought leader, like ‘maven’ or ‘opinion leader’ are often used to sidestep the issue. Some consider the term little more than obnoxious business jargon, while others argue that it’s a valid form of self-promotion.
Google searches for ‘how to become a thought leader’ were up 23% last year, which means more people than ever are interested in becoming one.
To find out more about the landscape, we took to LinkedIn.
The UK is the Biggest Thought Leader Hotspot
Comparing countries, the UK ranks head and shoulders above the rest, with a massive 40% of local professionals describing themselves as thought leaders in either their LinkedIn title or bio.
In the US, 18% of people consider themselves thought leaders, while South Africa ranks third with 8% of professionals using the term to describe themselves.
Our research shows that across most countries, the group most likely to consider themselves thought leaders are entrepreneurs, followed by those in the marketing, tech and health sectors.
Global Thought Leaders
Places with the fewest hits include Norway, Japan and Bangladesh, while the following countries rank in the top 10:
% of people who self-describe as thought leaders per country
- UK 40%
- US 18%
- South Africa 8%
- Italy 4%
- Netherlands 4%
- India 4%
- Germany 3%
- Canada 2%
- Australia 1%
- France 1%
Looking at the top three countries, London, Edinburgh and Birmingham have the highest concentration of thought leaders in the UK. In the US, New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco rank high on the list. While in South Africa, you’ll find that people in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban are more likely to self-promote as thought leaders.
More Men Call Themselves Thought Leaders on LinkedIn
Our research revealed that globally, 6 out of every 10 people describing themselves as a thought leader on LinkedIn is a man. Of all the profiles analysed, 63% belonged to men compared to 37% of women, with the results leaning heavily towards men across virtually every country.
In all of the countries in the top 10, the ratio of male thought leaders is higher compared to women. In the UK, 62% of men consider themselves thought leaders compared to 38% of women. In the US, a slightly higher percentage (78%) of men describe themselves this way, compared to 22% of women. In South Africa, 67% of men call themselves thought leaders compared to 33% of women.
The data also revealed that the men most likely to call themselves a thought leader are named David, Michael or Peter. For women, it’s Laura, Jessica or Kate.
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