The farmers didn’t lead us through the industrial revolution. Instead, the future was reshaped by industrialists through their innovations, such as steam engines and assembly lines.
Today, as we confront the ongoing technological revolution and its impact on our economy and communities, a crucial shift in leadership is needed — placing more of the mantle on the innovators of today to help carve our path forward.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, visionaries like Henry Ford and Andrew Carnegie spearheaded change, much as contemporary innovators are doing in today’s technology revolution. Just as farmers embraced industrial innovations by replacing mules with tractors and employing threshing machines in place of laborers with flails, today’s industrial giants leverage advanced tools such as software, robotics and AI to stay competitive.
However, it is crucial to understand, like the farmers before them, the industrialists are not leading the revolution today.
Many communities cling to the incumbent leadership model, hesitant to empower the very architects of the digital age, fearing risks in installing innovators on economic-development boards or giving them a voice in community meetings. I suggest the real risk is in not doing so. Unfiltered and highly informed insight is precisely what is needed.
The past teaches us that progress often emerges from those unafraid to challenge the status quo. Letting innovators lead the dialogue, not just participate, can generate fresh perspectives,
ensuring that our strategies for economic development are not just reactive but visionary and bold.
Embracing the risk of elevating innovators to economic-development and community-leadership roles is about future-proofing our communities. It’s the technology innovators who hold the keys to navigating this era of change. Let their unfiltered insights help guide economic development forward boldly, paving the way for progress in the digital age.
To thrive in the transformative era ahead, business and community leaders must recognize that the architects of progress are the innovators. After all, history teaches us that they are the true leaders whether we recognize it today or not.
— John Moore is a principal with Momenteum Strategies, an Upstate-based consulting firm specializing in helping communities and their economic development organizations build thriving, impactful innovation ecosystems.
