LinkedIn has become an incredibly powerful platform for building a personal brand and influencing others. With over 560 million users, it is the largest professional social network and continues to grow rapidly. For individuals and companies looking to expand their reach, LinkedIn provides unparalleled opportunities to connect with relevant audiences.
Influencers on LinkedIn have the ability to shape opinions, spark discussions, and drive real impact across industries. But who are the biggest influencers on LinkedIn today? Let’s take a closer look at some of the standout thought leaders and experts dominating the platform.
What Makes a LinkedIn Influencer?
There are a few key factors that characterize the top influencers on LinkedIn:
- Large follower base – The most influential profiles have tens or hundreds of thousands of followers.
- Engagement levels – Quality content that sparks discussion and reactions.
- Thought leadership – Positioned as an expert in their field with unique insights.
- Content frequency – Regularly post new long-form content and commentary.
- Company affiliation – Often affiliated with well-known brands and organizations.
While follower count is a basic metric for identifying influential users, engagement levels reveal how much their audience actively interacts with each piece of content. The top influencers are recognized thought leaders who provide valuable perspectives that resonate with their followers.
Let’s look at 10 of the current biggest influencers on LinkedIn influencing various industries through their content, personal branding, and network.
Bill Gates
Followers: 13,800,000+
Bill Gates, the co-founder of Microsoft, is the most followed person on LinkedIn by a massive margin. Gates provides his take on global issues from public health to sustainability. While no longer involved in Microsoft’s day-to-day operations, his commentary draws from his incredible business career and philanthropic work.
Richard Branson
Followers: 18,900,000+
Richard Branson, the British entrepreneur behind Virgin Group, is one of the most prominent voices within the business community. Branson shares his advice on leadership, management, entrepreneurship, and more. His personal approach helps him connect with audiences well beyond his own companies.
Barack Obama
Followers: 15,700,000+
The 44th president of the United States continues to actively engage audiences on LinkedIn. Obama provides insights on leadership, politics, and social issues. As one of the most admired public figures in the world, Obama’s perspective and analysis are highly valued by the LinkedIn community.
Sundar Pichai
Followers: 7,300,000+
The CEO of Google and its parent company Alphabet, Sundar Pichai is highly influential within tech circles. He shares his vision on topics like artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and self-driving technology. Pichai provides an inside look at innovation happening at one of the world’s leading technology companies.
Arianna Huffington
Followers: 1,900,000+
Co-founder of The Huffington Post, Arianna Huffington shares her insights on sleep, mental health, women in leadership, and more. She draws from her diverse career as an author, media mogul, and founder of Thrive Global. Her life experience combined with personable voice helps her connect with professional women.
Melinda Gates
Followers: 1,100,000+
As co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Melinda Gates is a thought leader in philanthropy and global development. She shares her passion for a more equal world for women and girls. Her leadership helps drive the Gates Foundation as the largest private charitable organization fighting poverty, disease and inequity.
Bernard Marr
Followers: 867,000+
Bernard Marr is an internationally best-selling business author and keynote speaker. He is one of the most influential people in data and AI today. Marr provides actionable insights on data analytics, technology trends, and performance improvement. His commentary helps organizations leverage data more effectively.
John Maxwell
Followers: 1,700,000+
John Maxwell is a leadership expert and best-selling author who coaches some of the world’s biggest companies. With decades of experience training leaders, Maxwell provides practical leadership advice that helps professionals advance their career. His insights on boosting influence are extremely popular.
Jack Welch
Followers: 729,000+
Jack Welch is the legendary former CEO of GE who helped revolutionize the modern corporation during the 1980s and 90s. He shares lessons from his management philosophy and provides perspectives on leading companies in challenging times. Welch has incredible credibility on business leadership.
Laszlo Bock
Followers: 397,000+
Laszlo Bock is the former Senior Vice President of People Operations at Google. He provides rare insights into talent management, people analytics, recruiting, and creating a high-performance culture. Bock is deeply influential for anyone in HR or people operations roles.
Top Influencers by Industry
Beyond broadly influential leaders, LinkedIn also has influencers who are prominent voices within specific industries or subject areas. Here are some top influencers across different sectors:
| Industry | Influencers |
|---|---|
| Technology | Satya Nadella, Elon Musk, Marissa Meyer, Sheryl Sandberg, Jeff Weiner |
| Entrepreneurship | Gary Vaynerchuk, Guy Kawasaki, Rachael Ray, Tim Ferriss, Tony Robbins |
| Marketing | Seth Godin, Ann Handley, Jay Baer, Neil Patel, Gary Vee |
| Leadership & Management | Simon Sinek, Brené Brown, Daniel Pink, Marshall Goldsmith, Liz Wiseman |
| Future of Work | Jacob Morgan, David Heinemeier Hansson, Andrew McAfee, Ravin Jesuthasan |
| Social Impact | Jane Goodall, Melinda Gates, Tim Cook, Michael Porter, Michelle Obama |
| HR & People Operations | Laszlo Bock, Patty McCord, Lars Schmidt, David Green, Ben Eubanks |
| Sales | Jill Rowley, Max Altschuler, SaaS Sales Method, Trish Bertuzzi, Lars Nilsson |
| Recruiting & Talent Acquisition | Lou Adler, Jim Stroud, William Tincup, Joel Cheesman, SmartRecruiters |
Why Thought Leadership Matters on LinkedIn
Building a strong personal brand and thought leadership presence on LinkedIn can transform careers and dramatically amplify reach for professionals of all levels and industries. Here are some of the key benefits:
- Position yourself as an industry expert and authority.
- Increase your professional credibility and trust.
- Connect with potential high-value clients and useful connections.
- Showcase knowledge and achievements.
- Gain more opportunities and exposure.
- Influence perceptions and decisions.
- Drive engagement and website traffic.
- Establish loyalty and trust with an audience.
Thought leadership builds authority that opens new doors. It establishes you as a trusted advisor who can help colleagues, clients, and peers succeed. For companies, thought leadership also boosts brand awareness, credibility, and lead generation.
How to Build Your Influence on LinkedIn
Here are some tips for developing thought leadership and influence on LinkedIn:
- Establish your niche. Determine your unique perspective and angle you can own. Don’t try to appeal to everyone.
- Create high-value long-form content. Publish posts, articles, videos that provide tactical advice.
- Engage consistently. Post regularly to stay top of mind with your audience.
- Participate in discussions. Comment on other posts and join relevant LinkedIn groups.
- Use multimedia. Mix up articles, videos, live videos, SlideShare, etc.
- Leverage analytics. See which topics resonate most with your audience.
- Collaborate and cross-promote. Partner with relevant influencers to expand reach.
- Promote content off LinkedIn. Share your LinkedIn posts on other platforms.
With its unmatched professional audience, LinkedIn provides an incredibly powerful platform to demonstrate thought leadership. By consistently creating high-value content and engaging your niche, you can build influence that takes your career to new heights.
Conclusion
LinkedIn has become the epicenter for thought leadership and influence within the professional world. The platform’s most followed influencers like Bill Gates and Richard Branson have millions of engaged followers. Leading experts across all industries use LinkedIn to share ideas, shape opinions, and make an impact.
Beyond the famous CEOs and public figures, LinkedIn provides opportunities for professionals of all levels to establish thought leadership. By consistently creating content that provides value to your niche, you can elevate your personal brand and career opportunities. LinkedIn thought leadership allows you to connect with the world’s professionals on a deeper level.
The influencers highlighted above are models to emulate. While becoming one of LinkedIn’s top influencers presents a major challenge, the platform makes it possible for anyone to leverage their knowledge and experience to make an impact in their industry and beyond.
