Originally published in the January 2004 Issue of Link & Learn. 

Ever wonder how every teenager in every high school can simultaneously know when it's time to stop wearing last year's fashion and start wearing this year's wardrobe must-haves? Welcome to the age of W.O.M. - Word of Mouth - and a new way of looking at change, influence and the spread of ideas.

In The Tipping Point, Gladwell, a writer for The New Yorker, has combined a broad knowledge of social phenomena with modern theories of epidemiology to persuasively argue a unique theory of how change really comes about. Case in point: Hush Puppies was a dying brand in 1994. One year later, wearing the crepe-soled, brushed suede shoe had become a national craze, and sales were up 143%. What accounted for the meteoric turnaround? A few young, hip, downtown New Yorkers thought the shoes were cute and funky, which, in turn, prompted half a dozen hip fashion designers to use them in shows. And suddenly Hush Puppies were the must-have footwear for millions of twenty-somethings.

Gladwell calls out three characteristics that account for the seemingly sudden rise of an idea or adoption if a trend:

1) New ideas, fads and fashions spread like epidemics - hand-to-hand, one person to the next in a viral-like manner;

2) Little changes can cause big effects. The right person with the flu can close a school and the right person wearing the right shoes or espousing the right idea can cause a rage; and

3) Change happens in a hurry. Bandwagons are real, and acceptance of ideas or movement to a fancy is not slow and gradual. Not if the change is to be a big one.

Fundamental to Gladwell's thesis are three actors who spread ideas through their actions:

1) Connectors love to tell others of their most recent experiences and pass along the latest, greatest, and the least likely to be known, to people in their networks.

2) Salespeople are idea-mongers on a mission - persuasion. They are sophisticated communicators whose stock and trade is changing peoples' minds, influencing their actions and persuading their points of view.

3) Mavens are people who accumulate knowledge. Mavens are valuable because they are seen and respected as fonts of the "right" information. If there is a "best buy" they know where. If there is a best connection, they know who. Others copy and emulate them.

The marketing implications of Gladwell's revelations are obvious. More subtle is the possibility of applying them to organizational changes from the adoption of new technologies to the rapid dissemination and acceptance of support of a new strategic initiative.

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Susan Zemke is a Senior Consultant with Linkage, Inc., a global organizational development company that specializes in leadership development. She has demonstrated expertise in strategic competency modeling; the design, development and facilitation of leadership development programs; and facilitating team development interventions for management teams. Susan's clients have included McDonald's Corporation, Sallie Mae, Federated Department Stores, Payless ShoeSource, Ralston Purina, DaimlerChrysler, Allstate Insurance Company, and Minnesota Lawyers Mutual Insurance Company. Susan has over twenty years of experience in a variety of human resource positions, including college relations, staffing, compensation, and training and development. Previously, Susan was Organization Effectiveness Manager for The St. Paul Companies where she led the organization in developing and implementing competency models for leadership, and core business processes (Underwriting, Claims), and implemented a competency-based 360º feedback process and an executive-taught leadership development program for middle managers. Susan also supported several business unit integration teams during the acquisition of USF&G Insurance Company.