The Roving Entrepreneurs Spoof on Geico

Top TED Pick of the week

Top TED pick of the week

Enjoy!

What is your favorite TED talk?

TEDx Glastonbury April 29

The excitement is rising as the date draws near.  TEDx Glastonbury has come together so wonderfully.  It all started with our committee how readily they stepped up to the plate to help, and the help and generosity of our venue The Gallery .  Second, we had a blast choosing and corresponding with our Presenters, it was tough to narrow it down, but we were able to choose some pretty amazing folks.  In addition to all of this we were touched and inspired by the generosity of local businesses who have offered their services to help with TEDx Glastonbury’s success.  HB Group  is helping us with our AV needs by providing their expertise and donating the equipment to use for the day.  Jegas, LLC donated their expertise to create a website (turnaround time 1 day).  And Seshu Photography  has offered to photograph the event.  They all took action because they believe in and are inspired by TED.  Because of all this we were able to keep to our modest budget of $5000.00.

On April 29 we will be spreading our own ideas, tickets are currently available. Visit us at www.tedxglastonbury.com to reserve your spot.  If you have any questions feel free to contact us at tickets@tedxglastonbury.com or call us 860-781-7005 http://tedx.posterous.com/tedx-glastonbury-april-29

The Word on the Street; E Circle Testimonials

Business Mind Special Edition: Lean Business Principles Presented by Yaron Lew

 

Have you ever wondered how you could implement systems like Kaizen and Six Sigma into your Small Business?

Full Video Presentation:  How to make your business run leaner and more effective

Photos from our Holiday Party

2010Holiday Party Slide Show

Thank You to Fox Laminating Company for providing the Award Plaques

Yesterday’s Start with Why Event

Yesterday we held our second “Start With Why” session. Attendance was great, and the discussion was even better. It’s great when you have a group of people that are truly interested in helping one another solve a problem. Thank you to everyone that attended! Stay tuned we will have more of these in the future.

Peer Advisory Board: Group Charter, the final chapter

This is the final part in assembling your own Peer advisory board.  In this post  we will discuss creating a group charter.

A group charter acts as the operating agreement of the group.  Decisions are made in advance about the rules and boundaries of the group.  This document officiates the commitment of the group you have brought together.  Some might say that this is going over the top.  Maybe so, but it sure does keep a group together.  Little things like sporatic attendance, tardiness, or the ole “I have to leave early today” can be a distraction, and unfair to the other members of the board.

It has been my experience that when groups create their charter, they like to leave a lot of leeway.  Leniency is just as bad as not having a charter at all.  Each line item should be very clear, see example below.

(Strong)

Meeting attendance: All meetings are mandatory.  In an Emergency situation, the member will be excused from the meeting.  If member is coherent they must call the facilitstor to notify her of the emergency.  One unexcused miss is allowed, if the member exceeds one miss they will be dismissed from the group.

Fine for unexcused absence = member will bring Coffee and donuts to the next meeting.

(Vague)

Meeting Attendance: Members are required to participate in 10 out of 12 meetings per year.

When a group has to decipher the charter, at the time of an offense, it creates lots of conversation, takes up a lot of time and can cause bad feelings within the group.  When the charter is clear, there is no room for discussion.  If this happens then we will do this.  Period, no further discussion.

When creating your charter, write it as though you have to implement it today.  Say what you mean and mean what you say.  The intention is not to be harsh or impose rules, it is in place so everyone maintains the commitment, is respectful of time, and understands the boundaries.

Below are some items we suggest to include in your charter:

Officer Roles & Term
Discussion Protocol
Confidentiality Breech
Meeting attendance
Punctuality
Romantic Relationships
Business Dealings  (think carefully about this one, the mask comes off here)
Member Participation and Commitment
New Member Selection/Integration
Departing Members
Rescheduling Meetings
Emergency Meetings
Mobile Phones
Virtual Meetings

Previous Posts

assembling your own Peer advisory board
choosing the members
commitment
setting the agenda
assigning roles
confidentiality

For Immediate Release: The Entrepreneur Circle :Hires New Facilitator to Accommodate Continued Growth

For Immediate Release:

February 2, 2010

The Entrepreneur Circle, a Glastonbury, CT based company that assembles and facilitates peer advisory boards for business owners, is very pleased to announce the hiring of a new facilitator, Sally White. Sally will be facilitating Roundtables in northern CT and the greater Springfield, MA area.

“We are excited to have Sally on our team”, said Mike Keiser, Managing Member of The Entrepreneur Circle. “Sally brings with her a tremendous amount of experience and enthusiasm”. “As an adjunct college professor, a trained facilitator, and the Managing Partner of LeBlanc Associates, there was no question that we wanted someone of her caliber to work with us as we continue to expand”.

Sally will continue as the Managing Partner of LeBlanc Associates, a firm that provides training and leadership development in the areas of marketing and business strategies, performance management systems, generational management consulting, team coaching and training, and conflict management and resolution. In addition, Sally was recently voted “Volunteer of the Year” in the Enfield, CT Chamber of Commerce.