Peer to peer advisory boards de-mystified

Author: Leslie Woodcock, TAB Facilitator

Over the past 6 years I have facilitated more than 100 TAB Peer Board meetings. I facilitate these meetings in my capacity as the business owner of The Alternative Board (TAB) Guildford, Woking and surrounding areas.

At the heart of what TAB members experience is a Peer to Peer Advisory board comprised of non-competing, forward-thinking business owners and leaders.

What has prompted me to pen this piece is that when I have met with or talked to other business owners, I would say that only about 1 in 5 are familiar with the concept and benefits of Peer to Peer Advisory boards. This means that as many as 4 out of 5 business owners and leaders could be missing out on an invaluable resource for them and their business.

Because the TAB Peer Board concept now runs through my veins, I tend to take for granted the power that this business advisory format gives to business owners and leaders.

So, guess what? I am going to attempt to de-mystify the Peer Board concept. Here goes:

Well, what an advisory board isn’t:

It isn’t - full of theoretical management stuff

It isn’t - for business people who think they have all the answers

It isn’t - for the faint hearted

It isn’t - for those who wouldn’t welcome external accountability

It isn’t - for those that think their business challenges and opportunities are unique

It isn’t – just a talking shop – we have a proven process!

So, what an advisory board is:

• A place to be with 6 or 7 like-minded, forward thinking people
• A safe-haven and a break - away from the pressures of your business - no employees, no politics
• A place to learn by tapping into up to 150 years’ worth of combined practical business experience
• A place to shed your “front” and be yourself
• A place for business leaders who are prepared to admit “they don’t know what they don’t know”
• A place where you can give your experience-based advice to others like you, without any axe to grind
• A place to be generous, honest, frank, sometimes brutal, but to always be caring

And … who an advisory board is for:

• For those who see value in time spent working on and not in their business
• For those who want to preserve or improve their mental well-being
• For those seeking a better work/life balance
• For those who see that spending on their personal learning and development is an investment, not a cost
• And, core to the TAB philosophy, for those who are prepared to define and share their personal vision of their future and then focus their business on getting them there

So why The Alternative Board (or TAB)?

• TAB has a heritage, probably second to none, of successfully providing Peer to Peer Advisory Boards across the globe for more than 30 years
• TAB Board Meetings are facilitated by a, dedicated, and experienced TAB certified facilitator

If the above resonates, then enjoy a peer board first-hand

There are a number of ways to experience the magic of a peer board and get a first-hand taste of what they are all about:

• Join in a short format TAB “Taster Board” with other curious business owners and leaders, or
• Join in at a full format “Trial Board” with carefully selected and hand-picked business owners – potentially your future TAB board colleagues