01 Nov

John Legere is not the type of executive that wears a suit and tie–at least, not unless it's magenta in color. The CEO of T-Mobile, one of the largest telecommunications companies in the U.S., is anything but your typical executive. He has cultivated 6.49 million followers on Twitter, over 75,000 followers on Instagram, and over 390,000 followers on Facebook.    John Legere is Mr. Magenta   If you do not recognize the name John Legere, you may be more familiar with his nickname: Mr. Magenta. It is a catchy phrase that perfectly describes Legere. On social media, he is often wearing the color, whether it is a t-shirt, sneakers, or even magenta hair for #NationalHairDay. This color choice is no accident as it is the same iconic magenta of T-Mobile's logo. It is a smart and subtle way of indirectly calling attention to the...

18:11 / Executive Spotlight
10 Oct

"The higher up you go in an organization, the less you actually know about how the organization *actually* runs. And the CEO is always the last to know." This type of candidness is what you can expect from Jason Fried, the co-founder and CEO of Basecamp. He is not one to mince words, whether it is in his articles about changing business culture, or his tweets criticizing the tech industry having “more worst practices than best practices.” His opinions on how to organize workflow, how projects should be managed, and emphasizing better, ethical business practices neatly ties into the Basecamp brand. At its core, Basecamp is a project management software that emphasizes organization and efficiency in an effort to keep tasks on track. It streamlines communication to increase productivity and helps make projects more manageable. Basecamp is aimed toward businesses that...

14:20 / Executive Spotlight
26 Jul

Known for growing his family’s wine business from $3M to $60M in just 5 years, Gary Vaynerchuk was named the top CEO in the digital marketing space in 2018 by Brand24. Now, Gary is the CEO of his own digital marketing and communications company Vayner Media, as well as sports agency Vayner Sports. Additionally, he is a “prolific angel investor and venture capitalist," investing in companies ranging from Facebook to Uber, a highly sought-after public speaker, and best-selling author.  Gary, also known as Gary Vee, has no plans on slowing down. On top of all that, you may have seen him on your Twitter, Instagram, or YouTube feed, where he has a combined following of over 11 million people, whom he provides with “wake-up call” advice. Often calling himself a purebred entrepreneur, Gary’s work-hard, play-hard attitude, and hunger for success are what...

20:33 / Executive Spotlight
07 Jun

Profile pictures are crucial to an executive’s social media presence. Not only do they serve as a form of digital identification for a brand or person, but they also serve as an unspoken first impression. For influential executives such as Rihanna, a simple change in her profile picture recently symbolized a progression in her image and career. With over 70 million Instagram followers and 90 million followers on Twitter, Robyn Rihanna Fenty has successfully used these two social media platforms to distinguish her two main brand identities: on Instagram, she brands herself as Rihanna, the pop icon, and on Twitter, she is Rihanna, the face of the Fenty fashion empire. Fans have witnessed the famous popstar’s ongoing success as she continued to take on diverse projects such as releasing the body-positive lingerie line Savage x Fenty, landing an acting role in...

20:55 / Executive Spotlight
09 Apr

Richard Branson says, “I don’t see any separation between work and play – it’s all just living, and I love sharing all of it,” and his LinkedIn profile clearly reflects that sentiment. Dr. Yes—as he is affectionately referred to at Virgin—is a self-proclaimed dyslexic thinker who loathes ties and believes in turning ideas into reality, as demonstrated time and again at Virgin. Branson’s professional LinkedIn profile effectively showcases each aspect of his identity, blending business, personal, and larger social topics to position himself as both a reliable source of information and an approachable person. Richard Branson is currently the number one rated LinkedInfluencer—an exclusive collective of 500+ of the world’s foremost thinkers—let’s shift our executive spotlight to Richard Branson and take a closer look at how he uses LinkedIn to position himself as a revolutionary thought leader. Visuals Richard Branson uses all...

06:00 / Executive Spotlight
30 Jan

In August 2018, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff made the decision to promote the company’s COO Keith Block to be its new co-CEO. Salesforce’s long-time founder was prompted to partner up with Block after taking a two-week-long digital detox last July. After this brief hiatus, Benioff told CNBC that experiencing such tranquility without his electronics made him realize one thing: he was too busy. With Block now helping Benioff run the 20-year-old cloud-based software company, Benioff has been focusing his attentions on passion projects to use his position of power for social good. By focusing on this aspect of his leadership, Salesforce has also seen the added benefit of having a positive and public face for the brand. From a quick glance at Benioff’s Twitter page, it is instantly clear what type of leader the Salesforce CEO and newly named owner of...

19:50 / Executive Spotlight
03 Dec

While many other sources are, at this moment, recording Polman’s professional legacy, in this edition of Executive Spotlight by Influential Executive, we’ll take a closer look at the former CEO’s Twitter legacy....

18:27 / Executive Spotlight
01 Nov

“I like forensic accounting, financial crisis hindsight, and kittens.” What Tracy Alloway has in her bio on her Twitter page is helpfully indicative of the type of content her followers can expect from her: a healthy blend of financial insights and humor. Formerly the US financial correspondent for the Financial Times, Tracy now works as Executive Editor for Bloomberg Markets. As the face of one of the largest financial magazines in the United States, Tracy positions herself as a thought leader within the financial news industry in order to promote both herself—and, by extension, Bloomberg as a whole—as a reliable provider of the most recent information and original insights. To this end, Tracy takes full advantage of Twitter’s fast-paced and discussion-focused nature, using it as her primary platform for leading the online conversation. Let’s shift the Executive Spotlight onto how...

15:43 / Executive Spotlight
08 Oct

If your company’s chief executive is in the news, you always hope it’s for a positive reason. In the case of General Electric (GE), the company’s CEOs have unfortunately had a tumultuous relationship with the media in the recent past. Only last week, GE’s CEO John Flannery made headlines when he was ousted from the company after only 14 months. Part of the reason for such a quick change may have been the large shoes that both Flannery and his predecessor Jeff Immelt failed to fill: those of influential executive Jack Welch. Jack Welch was the illustrious CEO for GE from 1981 to 2001, during which time he garnered the reputation of one of America’s greatest business leaders. Therefore, it comes as no surprise that his social media channels also serve as an excellent model for thought leadership. Now retired, Jack...

21:04 / Executive Spotlight