Thought Leadership in the Era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution: Current Perspectives and Future Considerations for Public Relations

The fourth industrial revolution is changing many aspects of professional life.The technologies at the heart of this revolution, in particular, are having ever-larger impacts.The public relations industry is not immune to this revolution and the changes that it is creating.Thought leadership, an increasingly important area of public relations, is evolving as communication practitioners deal with the changes being brought about by the revolution.This research report presents the findings of a study examining the ways in which thought leadership is perceived within public relations in the era of the fourth industrial revolution in order to begin understanding the extent to which the industry is responding to rapid technological developments in its approach to thought leadership.The results indicate that public relations professionals are increasingly coming to terms with key aspects of the revolution, especially the changes being brought about by digital technologies, in connection with thought leadership.At the same time, there is room for more extensive and sophisticated consideration, on the part of the industry and its professionals, of the ways in which the developments in the fourth industrial revolution are increasingly impacting thought leadership.