The paper presents the relevance, conceptual foundations, and operational measure of an important motive of professionals, and one that may be critical for socio-economic transformation. It is labelled the pioneering-innovating (PI) motive. The strength of the PI motive is assessed vis-a-vis five other motives for a sample of 750 professionals and professionals-in-the-making. Five hypotheses concerning the PI motive are tested. Four are supported while one receives mixed support. Several implications of the findings are discussed.