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FEE-BASED PEER MENTORING GROUPS: HOW DO THEY WORK?
Rey Carr, Ph.D.

Networking has always been considered a powerful tool for improving business prospects, advancing a career, and developing ideas. Other than some brief, structured events, networking has been mostly informal and inexpensive if not completely free. But membership is growing in many formal, long-term networking groups, and so is the price tag.

These groups are not groups for generating sales leads, nor are they places where indviduals can drop-in to gain quick advice on an immediate challenge. Instead, members meet regularly and are expected to share their expertise as well as receive ideas from others. Groups can include top CEO's, business executives, and established entreprenuers as well as struggling business owners and those just getting started in business.

Members typically sign non-disclosure agreements that not only prohibit sharing the content and composition of the group with outsiders, but also prohibit using the content to gain a competitive advantage over other peer group members. Groups often include an experienced facilitator or coach and use a structured discussion method to ensure air time for all participants. Some groups include additional features such as noted speakers and one-on-one coaching.

The growth of these peer mentoring groups as well as their cost has made the decision to become a member both more likely and more difficult. For the last year I became a member of a CEO peer mentoring group to understand first hand how the group worked, gain and share business ideas for Peer Resources, and assess the outcomes.

Other than anecdotal evidence and a few testimonials from group members, there does not appear to be much evidence of the effectiveness of peer mentoring groups. This does not mean they are not effective, but it does mean that potential members of such gold-plated groups must use caution when signing up for a group to make sure the group is right for them.

In an effort to provide some preliminary guidance we have revised and expanded a chart of peer mentoring groups that originally appeared in Inc. Magazine (July, 2008, p. 49).

GROUP	MEMBERSHIP	SERVICES	ANNUAL FEE ($US)
American Small Business Coalition theasbc.org	370 U.S. government contractors around the world	Ten events monthly, focused on networking, professional development, and market intelligence. CEO's of larger companies can pay more and get one-on-one networking help and attend private meetings with other members and sometimes, government officials.	Up to $15,000
Breakfast Network breakfastnetwork.com	Entrepreneurs and professionals; all clients must be approved by founder	Hundreds of breakfast and cocktail meetings a year, as well as one-on-one meetings.	$8,000 and up
The Alternative Board TABBoards.com	USA- & Canada-based CEO's, entrepreneurs, business owners	Meet monthly for half-day in peer groups of 10-12 with facilitator using structured method. Members also receive monthly 1-2 hour coaching session.	$450 initial fee and $3,000/year
Entrepreneurs' Organization eonetwork.org	Members must have reached $1 million in sales by age 50	Monthly chapter meetings and smaller monthly discussion forums of eight to 12 peers.	$2,500-$3,000
Vistage International vistage.com	CEO's of companies of any size (formerly called "TEC" - The Executive Committee) located in 15 different countries	In the most expensive programs, members attend monthly, full-day forums run by a paid facilitator, and up to 10 talks by Vistage speakers. At the lower fee level, the forums are shorter with fewer workshops.	$2,820-$13,000
Global Executive Forum Group globalexecforum.com	Executives, owners of non-competing industrial firms with minimum sales of $500,000	Monthly, facilitated, half-day meetings of 10 members followed by a speaker. Groups use structured learning exercises as well as discussions on specific issues of members. One-on-one meetings for 1-4 hours each quarter. Membership fee includes two people from a company. Virtual meetings are possible.	$6,000
Ocular Forum boldvisionconsulting.com	Business owners, independent professionals, senior managers, entrepreneurs all from non-competing areas	Initially one full-day meeting. Groups limited to six members. Monthly, half-day meetings led by business coach. Each meeting includes brainstorming, business development, and personal development. Speakers are sometimes included. Members receive two private coaching sessions.	$2,314 for 12 months; $1,709 for six months
Inner Circle International innercircle.com	Business owners from wide variety of businesses in the USA (one franchise in Canada)	Members meet in groups of 10-12 once a month for three hours and use a strucured model for discussion. (Franchise-based model.)	Fee data not available at press time.
Renaissance Executive Forums executiveforums.com	Chief executives from non-competing businesses and separate group fro direct reports of executives (USA and Canada)	Groups of 8-12 top executives meet for half-day monthly that includes focused peer review, a roundtalbe discussion, and an educational component. Once a quarter or monthly members meet one-on-one with meeting chairperson. A two-day workshop on success strategies is also included. Four to six times a year, direct reports of executives meet with peers from other non-competing companies. These meetings include an educational component, case studies, and diagnostic instruments and tools.	Fee data not available at press time.
Maverick Business Adventures maverickbusinessadventures.com	Entreprenuers with revenue of $1 million and up, or successful business people who earn at least $250,000/year	Group provides several business trips a year in which members can meet other entrepreneurs and partake in sessions with well-known business owners. (A recent trip was to Mexico.)	$10,000
Women Presidents' Association womenpresidents.org	Leaders of companies with sales of at least $1-$2 million/year, depending on the industry	Monthly three-hour forums led by trained facilitators, an annual conference, two or more regional meetings a year, and chapter retreats.	$850 to $5,000
Young Presidents' Organization ypo.org	CEOs who have built companies with $8 million in sales by age 45; chapters in 100 countries	A forum moderator guides 8-10 peers who meet 10 times per year. A spouse forum, young adult forum, couples forum, and family forum are also available.	$7,000-$8,000 depending on chapter
The CEO Connection ceoconnection.com	C-level executives of organizations with revenues of $500 million or more; must be nominated by existing member, and have shown leadership in field.	Initiates with full-day bootcamp with 12 member maximum. In-person and online half-day forums; private briefings with top leaders	Fee data not available at press time.
The Board Forum TheBoardForum.com/	CEOs, presidents, company owners and C-level executives primarily in the New England area.	Members meet monthly for a half-day in groups of 8-12 with two facilitators. Members present challenges and receive feedback from the group. Guests also provide additional expertise and members receive one-on-one attention between meetings. Each group also has an annual 1-3-day retreat.	Fees vary depending on the group and business size; the range is $1900-$12,000 per year.
Training Summit www.thetrainingsummit.net	CLOs, executives and people associated with training management	Monthly teleseminars led by noted business leaders and training executives.	$1000.00 per year.
PeerPower Business Support Network www.peerpower.co.za	Non-competing business owners, entrepreneurs in South Africa; members matched by level of business development and diversity of skills and experience.	Group of seven meet two hours, twice a month with facilitator. Monthly evening networking meeting plus special interest workshops	R800 per monthly session; minimum commitment is six months
Canadian Association of Family Enterprise www.cafecanada.ca	A not-for-profit national organization established for family-run Canadian businesses. Chapters are available throughout Canada.	Personal advisory groups are formed of 10-12 persons. No competitors in any group, and family members are in separate groups. Groups meet every 4-6 weeks for 3 hours. Two-to-three day retreats at remote locations are scheduled for once or twice a year.	Fees are not published.
Innovators Allliance www.innovators.org	Primarily serves the province of Ontario, Canada and composed of CEO's whose companies exceed $2 million in revenue.	Monthly 2-3 hour meetings with a focus on innovations and how they can be applied in member businesses. Each member is required to do a 20-minute presentation to their peers at least once a year.	For companies with revenues less than $5m: $2,050.00; companies with revenues between $5 - $10m: $2,374.00; companies with revenues in excess of $10m: $2,807.00
Presidents of Enterprising Organizations www.peo.net	Canadian organization that provides four types of executive, peer to peer advisory boards. Membership based on size of organization and executive role in company.	Monthly three-hour meetings with a top advisor. Annual 2.5 day retreat; enhanced annual physical exam; right to participate in special executive conference series. Some elements require extra fees.	Depending on group, fees range from $5700/year to $12,000/year.
Communitech Peer 2 Peer Connections www.communitech.ca	A Canadian organization that provides peer connections for a variety of specialized job role groups in the Waterloo, Ontario area only.	Group membership includes coaching from experts-in-residence	Fee depends on size of company and can range from $300/year to $5,000/year
Insight Council www.insightcouncil.net	Founded in 2008, this group provides CEO advisory boards in Canada (Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver, and Toronto) with plans to offer groups in other North American cities.	Up to 12 non-competing CEOs meet together monthly in a structured format with a leadership coach, called a "Council Chair." Members receive one-on-one coaching between meetings. The goal of all meetings is to assist individuals to develop the adaptive capacity of their businesses and themselves through a disciplined process.	Fees are not published.
MaGa Coaching Groups www.magacoaching.co.uk	A U.K.-based organization that provides group coaching for owners of high tech industry businesses. (First group created in 2010.)	A monthly face-to-face, three-hour meeting of between 6-12 business leaders plus a monthly one-hour conference call. The group is run by a trained business and executive coach and follows a structured format to maximize insights and business improvement. Suggested minimum participation is six-months. Participants work as peer buddies in between meetings.	Each group can have two kinds of members, founders (those who start the group) and regular (those who become members of an existing group). Fees depend on level of commitment and of service for the member, and range from $108/month to $232/month.

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