Key Takeaways
- Business leaders benefit from having a confidential place to discuss challenges with peers who understand the pressures of leadership.
- Stepping away from day-to-day demands creates space to work on the business and consider problems from a different perspective.
- Candid feedback from experienced peers can be particularly valuable for executives who may not always receive it inside their own organizations.
- Strong executive groups provide more than business advice. Over time, they can become a source of perspective and support through professional and personal challenges.
- Long-term relationships and a mix of established and newer members have helped the Atlanta Executive Forum remain valuable for 20 years.
by Tim Ramsey
Business leaders spend a lot of time solving problems. What they don’t always have is a place to talk openly about those problems with people who understand what it’s like to be in their shoes.
For the past 20 years, the Atlanta Executive Forum has provided that kind of place for me and a small group of other Atlanta business leaders. I was a charter member and now serve as the group’s facilitator. We meet regularly to talk about our businesses, share ideas, hear from speakers and, just as importantly, step away from the day-to-day demands of running a company long enough to think about what we’re doing and why.
The idea originated with Ken Potalivo, author of Mindshare, who started an executive group in California. His twin brother, Bob Potalivo, brought the concept to Atlanta. Two decades later, several of our original charter members are still involved, while new members have joined us along the way.
Why has it lasted? I think a large part of the answer is that executives need a place where they can speak honestly with other people who understand the challenges they face.
A Place to Work On the Business
There is an old distinction between working in your business and working on your business. It may be an overused phrase, but that doesn’t make it unimportant.
Most business leaders spend their days responding to whatever needs their attention. There are clients to serve, employees to manage, financial decisions to make and problems that need immediate solutions. Even when you know you should step back and think about the bigger picture, something more urgent inevitably appears.
Having a recurring forum creates a reason to do it. Our conversations give us an opportunity to ask questions we may not make time for otherwise. Why are we doing something this way? Is it still working? What are other companies experiencing? How could we approach a problem differently?
Sometimes you need information, and other times, you need a group of experienced people to bounce an idea around with. The Forum gives us a place to do both.
Confidentiality Changes the Conversation
One of the Atlanta Executive Forum’s key rules is confidentiality: what is discussed in the group stays in the group.
Business leaders don’t always have many places where they can acknowledge that they don’t have an answer or talk candidly about something that isn’t going well. There are issues you may not want to discuss with employees, clients, or others who have a stake in the outcome.
Our membership is limited to actively working C-level executives with at least 10 years of experience in their industries, including both business owners and business consultants. We also limit membership to one person from each industry group. That brings different perspectives to the table and often gives us new ways to think about the challenges we’re facing.
There’s also value in having people who will tell you when they think you’re wrong. The. Higher you move in an organization, the harder it can be to get completely candid feedback. In this group, no one has a reason to tell you what you want to hear. If they think you’re looking at something the wrong way, they’ll tell you.
As the issues facing leaders evolve, so do the discussions. Today, for example, we spend considerably more time talking about group dynamics and how to build and maintain strong teams of employees and business partners.
Sometimes Business Isn’t the Biggest Challenge
Perhaps the best example of the value of the group came during COVID. Like everyone else, we suddenly had to adapt, moving our meetings from in person to Microsoft Teams. The technology allowed us to keep meeting, but it also reinforced how much we valued being together face to face. More importantly, we had a group of people to talk with as we worked through a period of tremendous uncertainty, both professionally and personally.
That support has been important at other times as well. Over the years, members and their families have faced health issues and other personal challenges. Being able to talk with someone who may have dealt with similar issues can provide valuable perspective when you’re working through it yourself.
Our conversations have even extended into health and wellness. At one point, we read Younger Next Year and used ideas from the book as the basis for several discussions. It may not be what you would expect an executive group to talk about, but our conversations have never been limited to what happens at the office.
Why the Group Has Lasted
There are more ways than ever for business leaders to network. We can attend conferences, join online communities, participate in industry associations, and connect with virtually anyone online. Those activities all have value, but networking and relationships aren’t necessarily the same thing.
Today, the Atlanta Executive Forum has 16 active members and one emeritus member, which is about as large as we want it to be. We’ve kept several charter members while intentionally bringing new people into the group as others have retired, relocated, or stepped away because of family or other demands. Departing members may recommend someone from their organization, and current members are always on the lookout for people who would be a good addition. I think that combination has served us well. Longtime members bring years of shared experience, while newer members bring fresh ideas and different points of view. It keeps the group from becoming static.
After 20 years with the Atlanta Executive Forum, I’ve received plenty of useful information and good business advice. But I’ve also developed relationships with people who have helped me think through decisions, challenged my assumptions, shared their own experiences, and been there during some difficult periods.
I’ve also had the opportunity to do the same for them. That’s probably the real reason I’ve stayed involved for two decades. No matter how much experience you have, there is value in regularly sitting down with people whose experience and judgment you respect and hearing what they have to say.