Thought leadership flatlined long before the AI era. So what matters now?

I've made a career of what I used to call "backup singing", helping leaders find their voice and deliver it across channels. But lately, I've been wondering if the whole concept of "thought leadership" has become a problem.

I'm guilty of throwing around "thought leadership" as much as anyone in this industry. When everyone on the internet becomes a thought leader – not just those credentialed or experienced enough to earn it – you can call it democratization if you're optimistic, or noise if you're honest (and yes, I’m self-aware enough to know I’m just adding to it!).

The thoughts being developed start to flatline. They converge. The difference between one post and another becomes indecipherable. And now AI can generate that noise at scale. It can mimic tone, structure arguments, even offer insight. It's equal parts brilliant and bullshit.

The differentiator becomes not whether you can create content, it's whether you can resonate. Whether what you're saying will actually connect to people. Whether you understand what's at stake and how it links to the baseline human reality: "How does this affect me?"

The Translator's Education

I never much enjoyed the limelight, but I loved seeing those I’ve supported show up and deliver.

I started as an editorial assistant, the invisible hand behind high-profile writers and editors. While they had the headlines, I scrubbed copy full of holes, fastened appropriately-sized binder clips, ran through hallways delivering manuscripts – all for the meticulously crafted feature story that would eventually carry someone else's byline.

Later, I translated those skills into different contexts: helping CEOs craft blogs and write speeches for conferences, town halls, earnings calls. I'd listen to founder stories, transcribe them, and craft what people called "narratives" that would "have legs". I'd convert introverts into “subject matter experts”, train engineers on crisis communication, and interpret leaders whose brilliance lived so far ahead of the conversation that no one else could follow.

I eventually realized this wasn't backup singing. Leaders had vision, conviction, strategy – they knew where the organization needed to go. But that understanding lived in their heads, complex and context-heavy. 

My job was translation: making the complex simple, the intellectual accessible, the strategic actionable. Finding the signal in the shift.

The Shift Without the Signal

Here's what happens in organizations undergoing change (spoiler alert: every organization is undergoing change):

The shift happens whether you're ready or not. New leadership. Merger. Restructuring. Market pressure. Product launch. The operational reality changes.

The signal is how that change is understood. It's the narrative that helps people make sense of what's happening and what they should do about it.

Most organizations get the shift. They execute the restructuring, announce the new strategy, roll out the initiative.

But they miss the signal. Or worse – they create noise instead.

They send seventeen emails that say nothing. Or worse, no emails, and hope for understanding through osmosis. They launch a values rollout that feels disconnected from reality. They have the CEO write a blog post that sounds like every other CEO blog post. They mistake communication activity for clarity.

And when the signal is weak or missing, people fill the vacuum themselves. They create their own narratives – usually the wrong ones. Alignment breaks down. Trust erodes. The shift that was supposed to propel the organization forward just creates chaos.

This is where actual leadership communication matters. Not thought leadership. Not content for content's sake. Leadership communication: the clear, consistent voice that translates change into something people can understand, use, and rally behind.

When the signal is weak or missing, people fill the vacuum themselves. They create their own narratives – usually the wrong ones

What Makes It Leadership (Not Just Noise)

If you're a leader of an organization, you need a voice. Period. I have heard leaders say they are allergic to "Town Halls" or hate Zoom. 

The medium is the dealer's choice – whatever you're comfortable with. But you need to figure out what it is and be consistent about it. And if you're not "good at it", well, figure out how to get good. Because communication to your employees, investors, and customers is the most valuable yet mostly undeveloped tool you have.

This isn't about having thoughts worthy of others' attention or putting a unique perspective into the world. You don't need to be Steve Jobs. You just need to be able to translate strategy into signal.

Here's the difference:

Noise sounds like: Generic inspiration. Buzzwords. Hype without substance. Things that could apply to any organization at any time.

Signal sounds like: This is where we are. This is where we're going. This is why it matters. This is what I need from you.

Noise is: "We're entering an exciting new chapter of growth and innovation."

Signal is: "We're restructuring the sales team because our current model can't scale. Here's what changes for you, here's what stays the same, and here's how we'll measure success."

Signal requires courage. It's specific. It's honest about the stakes. It doesn't hide behind corporate speak.

And here's what AI can't do: AI doesn't know what's actually happening in your organization. It doesn't understand that you've had to untangle several differences of opinion to land at the message you're delivering here and now. It doesn't know that when you ran this "up the chain", it was shot down and struck through, and yet still you decided to deliver it in these words because they "feel right".

It doesn't understand the unspoken context, the cultural dynamics, the boardroom battles, and the history that makes this moment different from every other moment. It can generate words, but it can't pretend to understand all of the human organizational slop because, well, it thrives on putting order to all that chaos. And sometimes it's that slop that resonates the most.

You don't need to be Steve Jobs. You just need to translate strategy into signal.

How to Find Your Signal

If you're a leader navigating change – and you are, because shift is constant – here's how to move from noise to signal:

1. Own your values

Not the values on the wall (or mousepad). The actual operating principles that guide decisions in your organization. What are the non-negotiables? What put you here in the first place? How do you want your people to show up every day? Don't just list them – show them in action. And if you can’t, then maybe it’s time to rethink them.

2. Have confident direction (even in uncertainty)

Signal doesn't require a crystal ball or perfect clarity about the future. It requires clarity about the next step and why you're taking it. Oftentimes, I find that leaders want to sit on information until they have "the answers." You don't need to know how the whole transformation plays out – you need to articulate what you're doing now and why it's the right move given what you know.

3. Be clear about expectations

This is where most leadership communication stumbles. Fear to be clear. e.g. "You need to come into the office a majority of the week" isn't the same as saying "We expect you to be in 4.5 days a week." If you're spending countless hours complaining about your people not delivering, there is a good chance the signal broke down.

4. Show up consistently (and often)

I often hear executives who say, ‘I’ve already told them this’. I remind leaders that just because they think they've delivered a message, doesn't mean their audience has received it. They have to repeat themselves over and over and over again in multiple forums for a message to stick. 

Listeners carry the baggage of distraction. Consistency matters. Whether it's weekly all-hands, monthly updates, or quarterly deep-dives, pick a cadence and keep it. People need to know when they'll hear from you. Silence creates vacuum. Vacuum creates anxiety. Anxiety creates its own narratives.

5. Test your signal

You don't have to guess whether your communication is landing. Ask. Create feedback loops. Check for understanding. The best leaders I've worked with don't just communicate, they verify that the signal made it through.

The Work of Translation

Here's the uncomfortable question: When you send that company-wide message, does anyone actually hear it? Or are you just adding to the noise?

If your communication is generic enough that it could apply to any company in any industry at any time, you're not leading. You're performing leadership. And your people can tell the difference.

You don't need to be a thought leader. You don't need more content. You need courage.

The courage to be specific. To own your values loudly enough that people know what you stand for. To communicate so clearly that someone three levels down can explain your strategy. To show up consistently even when you don't have all the answers. To say what needs to be said in your words, because only you understand what this moment actually means for these people.

This is the work of leadership. And if you're not doing it, you're letting the shift happen without the signal and wondering why nothing sticks.

Shift & Signal helps leaders translate strategy into signal when clarity matters most. If your message isn't landing the way you need it to, let's talk.