The Entrepreneur Circle 2009 Award Winners

Congratulations to our 2009 Award recipients

Voted in by their peers, these 3 Business Owners will be honored at our annual Holiday party December 15.

The Entrepreneur Circle Entrepreneurial Success Story:  

This award goes to The Entrepreneur Circle Member that has demonstrated the most entrepreneurial spirit.  
1.      Most creative idea
2.      Followed their business/plan
3.      Turned a concept into reality 

Susan Nolte, owner of May Cookie Company was bitten by the “Entrepreneurial Bug” several years ago, but it wasn’t until May 2008 that she began to put the pieces in place to launch May Cookie Co. Prior to starting her own enterprise, she spent 12 years in HR as a Recruiter and Recruiting Manager for two different staffing firms. The earlier part of her career was spent in Education, first as a teacher and then in the development and management of professional development programs designed for educators. She holds a BA in Education and Psychology and a Masters in Organization and Management. She loves being a business owner!

The Entrepreneur Circle Member of the Year:

This award goes to The Entrepreneur Circle Member that achieved/exceeded their business goals for 2008.
1.      Demonstrated business growth
2.      Accomplished set goals
3.      Innovative thinker
4.      Persistence/Drive

Gregory D. Guay, founder of Stellar Ventures, graduated from the University of Connecticut (Magna Cum Laude) with a degree in Finance. He possesses extensive experience in commercial lending, portfolio management and merchant banking. As a former Associate with Venture Partners, Ltd. (a private investment and merchant bank), Mr. Guay managed the firm’s merchant holdings as well as its loan portfolio. His responsibilities included, but were not limited to, financial modeling, development and implementation of turnaround strategies, due diligence investigations, asset-based lending and problem resolution.

Prior to joining Venture Partners, he was a Vice President with DAP Financial Services (a commercial finance company that specializes in non-prime borrowers). During his tenure, Mr. Guay evaluated portfolios of both non-performing and sub-performing commercial debt and managed 300% growth in the portfolio over two years; at the time of his departure, he was managing a $30M portfolio.  

He also specializes in negotiating critical business transactions, which include mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, license agreements and long-term leases. He has represented creditors, debtors and investors in both debt and equity transactions. In addition, Mr. Guay has drafted various forms of business plans, private placement documents and other securities offerings.

The Entrepreneur Circle Champion of the year:  

This award goes to The Entrepreneur Circle Member that went above and beyond the call of duty to help out others.  
1.      Accessibility to members in need of advice
2.      Mentoring
3.      Support

Parker Elmore, President & CEO of Primoris Benefit Advisors, Inc.  Parker has been in the employee benefits consulting field for over 20 years.  In 1998, Parker realized that many small to mid-sized organizations were struggling with the complexity of their employee benefit programs. He founded Primoris Benefit Advisors to simplify their programs without forcing them to accept simple or “one-size fits all” solutions.  Rather, he decided to scale the solutions he had seen in the large organization market and find ways to deliver them to all.  He began with traditional retirement plans and expanded to include 401(k) plans in his offerings.  Primoris Benefit Advisors has continued to evolve by offering various insurance services and valuation of medical plans for municipalities.  With well over 200 clients in 37 states, the company continues to grow. However, the mission remains the same – provide custom solutions with simplicity to all types of clients.

Event Details

Peer Advisory Boards: Discussion Protocol Part 4

In order for your Peer Advisory Board to be effective, 3 very important things need to occur:

1. Communication
2. Listening
3. Action

This becomes a delicate balancing act.  In order for true change to occur all three must take place. 

 com·mu·ni·ca·tion (k -my n -k sh n)

n. 1. The act of communicating; transmission.  2. a. The exchange of thoughts, messages, or information, as by speech, signals, writing, or behavior .b. Interpersonal rapport.

lis·ten (l s n) intr.v.

1. To make an effort to hear something    2. To pay attention; heed

ac·tion ( k sh n) 

1.  The state or process of acting or doing  2.  Something done or accomplished; a deed.  3.  Organized activity to accomplish an objective  4. The causation of change by the exertion of power or a natural process

Communication is relevant for both the individual presenting his/her situation and the board members contributing to him/her. 

The Presenter

The Presenter should be clear on his or her objectives and outcome.  They should come to the meeting prepared to state his/her challenge or opportunity.  We recommend that the presenter write out their situation, then meet with someone from their board (buddy) to help them clarify the issue at hand.  Preparation in advance allows the most success for the presenter.  Once the presenter has presented their issue, their job is to listen, create an action plan, and take action.  Without action, the presenter will not be able to affect change, and attain results.

The Group

It is essential that the group come prepared to help the presenter create an action plan.  They should also come with the understanding that the presenter is the focal point of the discussion and may start to feel overwhelmed, defensive, or uncomfortable if they are given too much information or advice.  We find the best results occur when the board communicates through sharing experiences, and asking questions.  It is also important for the board members to intently listen to the presenter through their verbal and non-verbal clues.   It is the job of the Board participants to support and help the presenter feel secure enough to present their situation.  The group is not there to judge the presenter or “fix” the problem.  They are there to listen and provide useful information so that he/she may form their own plan of action on their terms.  We have been given advice and told what to do our whole lives, we have a book shelf full of books, and have had encountered many folks that are more than willing to tell us how we should do something.  In my experience the true change comes from the personal decision to take the action, the best action plan is the plan created by the individual.  Therefore it is the responsibility of the board to help the presenter create his/her own action plan, and hold them accountable to take the necessary steps.

All parties come to the table with the intention to help one another grow, change and see their business in a different way.  This can and does occur when the parties involved come to the table ready to communicate, listen, and take action.

Next time we will discuss the importance of assigning roles.

Previous entries

Choosing the members of your Board

Commitment

Organization

Wealth Building Lunch & Learn Recording

09/02/09 The Entrepreneur Circle Lunch and LearnWealth Building:  Getting to $1 Million in Business Revenue. 

Presenter Ted Hsu President Horizon Services Company

Summary:  If you would like to build a company that is not dependent every day upon the owner, marketable for sale, and generates personal wealth: then growth is the answer.  Business growth is always the lowest risk option when compared to now growth or retracement.  The first challenge is generating your first million dollars in revenue. 

To Listen click links below

Part one 

Part Two

Part three

Part Four

Peer Advisory Boards: Commitment Part 2

We have been providing the step by step guide to creating your own peer advisory board.  This post is dedicated to commitment.  The last post was dedicated to choosing the members of your board

To recap, a Peer Advisory Board is a team of carefully selected team of like-minded peers that will provide for you:

• Accountability
• Brainstorm ideas, introduce new concepts
• Guidance
• Work through business challenges

A team is a group of people that work together to accomplish something.  What would a baseball team be without someone at first base?  How could a football team function without it’s quarterback? 

The Peer Advisory Board is no different.  Without all members present, the group cannot accomplish it’s mission.  All members are critical to the success of the meeting.  The group was deliberately chosen to provide insight, experience, and wisdom to each other. Without them, everyone will miss out, including the member not present.  Each member has a role to play at the meeting.  The presenter (individual with the challenge) is looking to the group to provide information to help them create a solution. Without their team, they won’t have the benefit of collaboration.  The other members of the group also benefit from the presenter and feedback shared at the meeting.  If anyone isn’t present, that person’s contribution is missed. 

How do you create a committed team?

There are 2 ways:

First, upon conception of the group,  each person you choose must understand what they are committing to and the value of participation.  Some red flags would be someone who tells you that they can’t  predict their schedule and they will do the best they can.  Or, “I’ll be there unless I have a chance to meet with a prospect.”  These are not qualified board members.   Every member needs to be at every meeting.  Reschedule when a conflict arises, rather than conduct the meeting without them.

Second, fulfill on the value of the group.  Stick to the agenda. Begin and end on time. Keep conversations on track. Assign responsibilities to other members in the group and make sure members come to the meeting prepared. 

A committed group will thrive and grow together.  When commitment isn’t present, the group will eventually lose interest and cease to exist.

Next time we will discuss the importance of the pre-set schedule.

Check out our video brochure

Business Planning Resource Page

Thank you to everyone who helped us compile our list of resources.  Check out our

Business Planning Resource Page

Looking for Resources for Business Planning

 We are in the process of compiling a resource list for our clients and other business owners.  This week we are looking for resources on Business Planning.  Please share with us any tools that you have used to be successful in your own business planning.

We are looking for:

• Sofware
• Books
• Articles
• Vendors
• Classes

All recommendations will be considered thank you in advance for your help.

Create an Action Plan

 Ray Silverstein  president of PRO: President’s Resource Organization  has become one of my favorite bloggers.   Today I came across this article on Planning.

Create an Action Plan Now

When business is tough, goal setting is critical. If you don’t want to get sucked into the downward spiral, you need to head for higher ground. More important, you need to know how to get there.Make an Action Plan
This is the number one secret to effective goal setting; regardless of what your goal is, the key to reaching it is always the same. The best, perhaps the only, way to turn an abstract goal into an attainable reality is to create an action plan; a nitty-gritty, no-nonsense action plan. Many small-business owners are wishful thinkers, full of big ideas. They spend hours talking and dreaming about what they’d like to accomplish, but never in concrete terms. They repeat the same ineffective activities over and over, and then wonder why they’re not getting anywhere.  Read More

Great Article on Peer Advisory Boards

I found this great article today on Peer Advisory Boards.  Thank you Ray@propres.com for writing it.  

Article:  Is a Peer Advisory Group Right for You?

Peer Advisory Boards

We’d like to hear from you!

1.   Share with us your experience/perception of a mastermind group or peer advisory board. 
2. What drew you to participate in the first place.
3. Or, what has kept you from participating

All responses will be published both positive and negative.