Who's Who in the Influencer Zoo

The full gamut of corporate influencers runs from bankers, investors, regulators, lawyers, accounting rule-makers and politicians to industry players, incorporating the organizations, opinion leaders and media players that control the worldwide distribution of information.

The influencers in society have been receiving considerable attention from public relations and marketing folk over the past few years, in recognition of the crucial role they can play in shaping consumers' choices. "In a marketplace where consumers are deluged daily by 10,000 to 30,000 commercial messages and 200 or so personalized messages, key influencers increasingly help shape how products and services are bought, perceptions formed and trends launched," writes strategic communications expert Paul M Rand in his 2002 book Identifying and Reaching Influencers.

"Influencers have become the Holy Grail for today's marketers. Nearly every organization acknowledges the value of and feels the impact of influencers . . . In a world where success can be defined as much by who one knows as what one knows, the evolving dynamics of influence show that both are important equally to the success of a program or brand."

However, the CEO and members of the board may also be listening to the aforementioned "tech-fluentials" - a new breed of influential, technology-driven opinion leaders who seamlessly connect their work and personal lives while transmitting information about companies, brands and products. All-powerful chat rooms, Web sites, digital cameras, discussion boards and blogs are the tools of the trade for these influencers, who can create or change opinions, establish trends, build buzz for a brand and sway stakeholders.

"Tech-fluentials are self-appointed marketers and newsmakers who try products first and actively network to share their information far beyond the scope of their individual contacts," says Dr Leslie-Gaines Ross, Burson-Marsteller's chief knowledge and research officer worldwide.

"I think identifying influencers is becoming easier, especially online," says self-described "media guerrilla" and high-tech blogger Mike Manuel from US company Voce Communications.

"Several new technologies have emerged that make the discovery and identification process much more manageable," Manuel says. "For example, I think specialized search engines like Technorati, PubSub and Feedster, and RSS readers like Bloglines, Newsgator and Rojo, can be very useful for helping executives discover and track mentions of their products, companies and industries. They can also be very helpful with the identification of the most vocal authors, be they proponents or detractors, and how they're shaping perceptions and spreading opinions around a topic - that is, influencing."

CEOs, Lend Me Your Ears!

When external influencers seem to be overriding the voice of the CIO, observers say, it should be taken as a sign of trouble. "If your CEO is going to an external source, the chances are that there isn't a strong enough relationship of trust and that you're talking more IT than business benefits," says Jonathon Morse, general manager of the IT division of Talent2.

That the CEO is using an external soundboard might be a sign that you are being insufficiently business-oriented and too "tech-centric", Morse says. Under those circumstances a conscientious but not particularly tech-savvy CEO is likely to see it as only logical and good practice to use an external sounding board just to ensure the CIO is not pulling the wool over their eyes.

"That external source could be someone as basic as a mate, but either way, spy tactics won't get a CIO anywhere. Nurturing the relationship and working towards getting the CEO's buy-in is the best way ahead - especially from the CIO's career perspective."

Mitsubishi Motors Australia IS general manager Tony Newman agrees. Newman says he has seen CEOs and board members unduly swayed by external influencers at times over the years (with the articles in airline magazines having proved a particular culprit - he really dislikes those simplistic articles in airline magazines). But he says today this is much less of a problem to him and his group than it might once have been because of the "head of steam" the group has achieved in raising its credibility. "Because we are perceived as not being too bad as an IT department, then we don't get a lot of people second-guessing us."