Thought Leadership Programme Runner

thought-leadership-programme-runner

Agent: PR and Communications Manager

L2 PR and communications manager (1x) responsible for earned media, press relationships, crisis communications, thought leadership programme, and executive visibility.

Department ethos: ideal-marketing.md

Skill Description

Manages the executive visibility programme -- securing byline placements, podcast guest appearances, conference speaking slots, and panel invitations to establish company leaders as category authorities.

When to Use

• When building or refreshing the annual executive thought leadership calendar.
• When a new executive joins and needs a public profile established in the market.
• When competitor executives are gaining disproportionate share of voice at industry events and publications.
• When a product launch or market shift creates a timely opportunity for executive commentary.

Workflow

1. Define thought leadership themes: Align with executives on 2-3 core themes that connect their expertise to company positioning and market trends using the Authority-Building Framework in references/framework.md. Ensure themes differentiate from competitor executive messaging. Map each executive to ICP segments per the Audience Relevance dimension. Deliverable: approved theme brief per executive.
2. Build opportunity pipeline: Research target publications accepting bylines using the publication tier model in references/framework.md. Source open CFPs for conferences using the speaker pipeline management timeline. Prioritise by ICP audience overlap. Deliverable: opportunity pipeline with deadlines and submission requirements.
3. Produce content: Ghostwrite byline articles following the pitch protocol in references/framework.md. Use references/checklist.md Checklist 2 for each byline from briefing to publication. Route through executive review for voice and accuracy. Deliverable: submission-ready content per opportunity.
4. Pitch and place: Submit bylines to editors, pitch executives to podcast producers, and apply for conference speaking slots. Leverage existing media relationships for warm introductions. Use references/checklist.md Checklist 3 for each speaking opportunity. Deliverable: pitch tracker with status per opportunity.
5. Amplify placements: Apply the PESO model from references/framework.md to amplify each placement -- owned, shared, earned, and paid channels in sequence. Track engagement and reach against programme health metrics. Deliverable: amplification report with reach metrics.
6. Run quarterly programme audit: Use references/checklist.md Checklist 1 to review executive engagement, content pipeline health, speaking pipeline fill rate, and metrics. Deliverable: quarterly programme health report with gap-closure actions.

Anti-Patterns

• Executive ghost town: Building a programme without securing executive time commitment for reviews, interviews, and appearances. Why: thought leadership stalls when executives deprioritize it, leaving ghostwritten content unapproved and speaking slots unfilled.
• Company-first messaging: Writing bylines that read like product pitches instead of genuine industry insight. Why: editors reject self-promotional content, and audiences disengage from thinly disguised ads.
• Spray submissions: Submitting the same byline to multiple publications simultaneously without exclusivity management. Why: editors who discover non-exclusive submissions blacklist the author and the PR team.

Output

On success: Produces an executive thought leadership calendar with theme briefs, an active opportunity pipeline, submission-ready content, and amplification reports. Executives have regular placements in target publications and events. Delivered to VP Marketing and executive team.

On failure: Report which placements were declined and why (topic mismatch, timing, competition), what executive availability gaps blocked production, and recommend theme or target adjustments for the next cycle.

Related Skills

• media-relationship-builder — Warm editor and producer relationships increase placement success rates.
• content-marketing-operations — May support distribution and repurposing of thought leadership content.
• earned-media-monitor — Tracks the reach and impact of thought leadership placements.