Thinkers360’s 2026 annual ranking places the marketing and CX strategist at the top of a 50-person global list, with a perfect normalized score of 100.
Greg Kihlström has been named the #1 Global Thought Leader and Influencer on Customer Experience for 2026 by Thinkers360, marking the third consecutive year he has topped the ranking. The annual leaderboard, released on May 17, 2026, recognizes the 50 individuals Thinkers360 identifies as the most influential voices in the customer experience field worldwide.
Kihlström, who is associated with The Agile Brand, earned a normalized Thought Leader Score of 100 — the top mark on the list. He placed alongside a roster of widely recognized CX figures, including Tiffani Bova of The Futurum Group, Marsha Collier of The Collier Company, Steven Van Belleghem of Nexxworks, and customer service authority Shep Hyken.
For enterprise marketing leaders, the recognition is notable both for its consistency and for the methodology behind it. Thinkers360 positions its leaderboards as a measure that looks beyond social media metrics. According to the organization, its rankings are based on members’ personally authored content and accomplishments curated from across the web, rather than follower counts or hashtag activity that can be more easily manipulated. The platform evaluates thought leaders across multiple roles — including academic, analyst, author, consultant, entrepreneur, influencer, and speaker — and across the range of content they produce.
Thinkers360 describes the leaderboard as a live and annual ranking driven by a patented algorithm intended to provide a holistic measure of thought leadership and authentic influence. The company notes that participation is open to everyone who signs up, with no difference in how rankings are calculated between free and paid members, and that the standings evolve daily as members add content to their profiles.
The 2026 customer experience list reflects the discipline’s continued breadth, spanning practitioners focused on CX strategy, customer loyalty, employee experience, behavioral science, and the growing intersection of customer experience with AI and data. Customer experience remains one of more than 100 business, technology, and sustainability topics Thinkers360 tracks across its leaderboards.
For marketing leaders evaluating partners, advisors, or speakers in the customer experience space, repeat placement at the top of a participation-based, content-driven ranking offers one signal of sustained output and visibility in the field. Kihlström’s third straight year in the top position places him consistently ahead of a deep field of established CX authors, consultants, and analysts.
The full Top 50 Global Thought Leaders and Influencers on Customer Experience 2026 ranking is available on the Thinkers360 website: https://www.thinkers360.com/top-50-global-thought-leaders-and-influencers-on-customer-experience-2026/
