This is the third year that The Ophthalmologist has run the Power List. In 2014, we asked you to nominate the names of the people in ophthalmology who you believe make the biggest impact to our field – your “key opinion leaders.” Those nominated didn’t have to be ophthalmologists; research scientists, industry executives and even venture capitalists were all welcome, and some from every category made the list. Last year, we asked for your “rising stars” of ophthalmology in our Top 40 Under 40 Power List – celebrating those that are doing the work today that will change the face of ophthalmology tomorrow.
What’s interesting is the impact it’s had on the careers of those on the lists. I’ve managed to bump in to many Power List alumni since 2014, and it’s humbling to see what being on that list has done for them. Some – particularly the Top 40 Under 40 – have received job offers that I’m told have been purely on the basis of the list. Others have felt that it’s made the difference between research grant applications being approved and declined (although unless the grant reviewers have told them this I don’t know how they’d know). A few have said that it had made them the go-to media contact in ophthalmology in their region – and I think a lot of power a person has is reflected in (and derived from) their media profile. Despite the rise of the bloggers and the purported decline of traditional media formats, the Fourth Estate still wields considerable influence over society. There are many media outlets in medicine in general, and ophthalmology in particular – from the most learned of journals to the sparkliest of iPhone apps – and I think it’s the interface where the lay press and the trade press meet where some of that power is generated. The Power List concept is something that gets picked up by the “normal” media. It’s an idea that a lay readership can easily understand and get behind, it has a great narrative, and if a journalist or news researcher is making inquiries into something eye-related, the Power List pops up at the top of their search results. This means that not only are the Power Listees having their achievements celebrated by ophthalmologists, but often the public too. If we were trying to market a new product or a service provider with some deliberate clickbait gimmick, the pageviews and column inches provided by the Power List would probably be worth a fortune in marketing terms. It wasn’t deliberate, but that’s what’s happened. I think that exposure has helped those worthy recipients of a place on the list. Perhaps in 2016, that exposure could help you too. To have a chance of being on the Power List, you first have to be nominated – which can be done here: http://top.txp.to/powerlist-2016.
Mark Hillen
Editor
