March 24, 2000

Broomfield’s Advisory Board fills gap for smaller firms seeking direction

BROOMFIELD – For many small business executives, the weight of the world seems to be squarely on their shoulders. Busy schedules and multi-tasking means these folks are short on time and long on responsibilities. And most don’t have a board of directors to turn to for advice, planning or even venting.

One program trying to fill that void is the Advisory Board for Business, a venture in its second year at the Broomfield Chamber of Commerce. The board consists of owners, managers, or key executives of small and medium-sized businesses that meet regularly to discuss problems or exchange ideas on planning, leadership, human resources or even just to network.

The chamber has two groups meeting regularly this year as Advisory Boards. The chamber’s executive director, Emily Waite, calls the program a peer support group. “We bill it as your own private board of directors,” she said.

SPONSORED CONTENT

Business Cares: March 2024

WomenGive, a program of United Way of Larimer County, was started in Larimer County in 2006 as an opportunity for women in our community to come together to help other women.

At Advisory Board meetings, Waite says participants can bare their souls about some of the problems they’re having with taking their businesses to the next level. And boards are not limited in their scope. According to Waite, they address everything from personnel issues to taxes.

Group members agree to hold information discussed in meetings in strict confidence, and the program takes pains to ensure members of a group are not from firms that compete directly with each other. Each member is expected to host a meeting of the group, usually lasting two hours, at his or her place of business.

The chamber launched the program two years ago at the request of its members. Diana Smith of Royce Arbour, a management consulting firm, is the volunteer coordinator for the program. She was involved with a similar program at the Boulder Chamber in the past.

“It’s the one thing I do for myself every year,” she says. The program puts Smith in contact with other business owners allowing them to learn from each other. “It’s like mainlining your honey,” she said. “You get this rich, concentrated insight from people who, in their business, sit in the same place you do. It’s not something you can get from staff, customers or mentors.”

The cost is $75 per participant, including a get-acquainted dinner at the beginning of the program. Meetings are held about once a month. They begin in late winter and last until September or October, according to Waite.

Amy Gibb, a new participant in the program, echoes Smith’s praise for it. A business banker with Norwest in Broomfield, she also volunteers as the chairman of the Broomfield Chamber.

Gibb says participating in the program is probably the least-expensive, least time-consuming and most valuable thing she has done. It’s not just members of her group that help solve problems; it’s the extended network of professionals that each board brings to the table that produces solutions.

“The people in my group have a vast field of resources beyond themselves,” she said.

“So if I have a specific question, say, on workmen’s comp, they may not know the answer, but they may know someone who does.”

And while members of each board often come from a diverse set of firms, the issues that arise in their businesses are common to many, if not all. For Gibb, the greatest benefit of the program is “building a group of people that understands your business and understands you.”

Another participant in the program, Jeff Ditges of Source Communications, likes the collaborative feel of the Advisory Board meetings. “Bigger companies have their board of directors, telling you what to do. What’s nice about this is it’s not really somebody telling you what to do; it’s just someone sharing experiences,” he said.

BROOMFIELD – For many small business executives, the weight of the world seems to be squarely on their shoulders. Busy schedules and multi-tasking means these folks are short on time and long on responsibilities. And most don’t have a board of directors to turn to for advice, planning or even venting.

One program trying to fill that void is the Advisory Board for Business, a venture in its second year at the Broomfield Chamber of Commerce. The board consists of owners, managers, or key executives of small and medium-sized businesses that meet regularly to discuss problems or exchange ideas on planning,…

Categories:
Sign up for BizWest Daily Alerts