Advisory boards have long been used to help companies boost their strategies and growth potential, and thanks to a local initiative, the standard board structure now has a technological twist.
At
BOUNCE (which stands for Business Owners Unite: Networking, Coaching & Education), small business owners can join a team of five to six other owners. The group meets virtually every week, using tools like email, Skype, Google Groups, Twitter, Facebook and even text messaging to discuss a company's priorities and goal attainment.
The idea is to create an advisory board that doesn't take much in-person time � although the groups meet twice in their year-long membership � but still foster a sense of discipline and accountability in its members.
Founders Pam Kearney and Karin Khuhro started BOUNCE in early 2011, and have just put together the first group. They expect that as the system gets more traction, they'll be running several advisory boards concurrently.
"What we've seen is that small business owners and entrepreneurs sometimes need a team approach to help them stay motivated," says Kearney. "They can draw on the creativity and inspirations of others to make sure they stay true to their vision."
The model is similar to a CEO roundtable, she adds, with the use of technology added to increase communication among group members. Each person acts as an advisor to the others, and Khuhro notes that the teams will be made up of professionals from different industries, with varying skill sets.
"We're looking to attract people who have been in business for a couple of years, who have gone past the point of getting their feet wet," says Khuhro. "These will be professionals who want to focus on vision building, strategic planning, determining measurables."
BOUNCE will use the Entrepreneurial Operating System, a business management system that includes specific targets and processes, in order to keep an advisory board on track.
"We can teach people to get traction and solve issues," says Kearney. "We think this should be pretty exciting."
Sources: Pam Kearney and Karin Khuhro, BOUNCE
Writer: Elizabeth Millard