Follow the Leaders
CEO Roundtable Experience: 5 Frequently Asked Questions
VACEOs Roundtable group holds meeting at beach location.
Virginia Council of CEOs is a nonprofit organization serving small and mid-sized CEOs and entrepreneurs in Richmond, Charlottesville and soon, across Virginia. The primary way we serve our CEOs is through our highly structured, peer-to-peer Roundtable experience. Here are the five most asked questions about that experience! Want to learn more? Contact us or view our Facebook Live video: “VACEOs CEO Roundtable Experience FAQs” today!
1) How many are in a Roundtable group, and how do you decide who is in?
A: There are 8 to 10 people in a group. Scot McRoberts, the Executive Director of Virginia Council of CEOs, matches new members with a Roundtable. “Your Roundtable will not include competitors, business partners, relatives, clients, or investors. The group is impartial and is created to work for your best interest,” says McRoberts.
2) What exactly happens in a Roundtable? How do the meetings work?
A: Roundtables consist of 8 to 10 members who meet once a month to share what is going on in their lives and in their businesses. The Roundtable experience sharing is about addressing the CEO as a whole. The information that is shared in the meeting is confidential. There are two parts to each meeting. Each member gives a general update at the beginning of the meeting. The updates can range from: “I have a new acquisition I’m looking at,” OR “I have a teenager I don’t know how to deal with,” OR “I’m facing an issue with my health.”
Then, the group takes a deep dive into one or two of the members’ challenges. Following the Gestalt Language protocol, meetings are highly structured and only experiences are shared. No advice is given.
3) What are some of the types of questions or challenges that my Roundtable can help me with?
A: In general, discussions tend to be about how to become a more successful CEO. Our members are looking for processes or information on how to be a better leader and look for what’s next, instead of being in the trenches with everyone else.
4) How often do the Roundtables get together?
A: Roundtables meet once a month. Meetings follow a strict protocol and structure and usually last between 3 1/2 to 4 hours. Regular attendance is expected, and because members gain so much from the experience, attendance statistics typically reach over 90% for all groups.
5) Is the Roundtable experience really valuable?
A: Yes! One member says: “What I have gotten out of my Roundtable experience is I have been able to identify a successor, craft a very specific Exit Plan. I have been able to develop a Long Term Incentive Compensation Plan to retain top talent, and I’ve dealt with issues working with my spouse. Through experience, hearing from others and understanding the experiences that have worked and have not worked, I have been able to develop a very effective Growth Plan and sales organization. It has allowed me to rise above the day to day grind and allowed me to work on my business instead of in my business. That has led me to double digit growth over year after year…. I was a corporate guy for so long, and had never been in my own business before, and I realized after my Council and Roundtable experience it’s all about who you hang around with. There’s a lot I didn’t know. Now I know a lot more.” – N. Lappe, CEO, WebStrategies.
Posted by Staff at 4:18 pm
Love this. Would love to participate in a round table.
Thanks for reading our article Amber! We humbly serve CEOs of companies with more than $1 million in revenue and five employees. If that sounds like you, you would find great value in our Roundtable experience. We frequently hold “Get to Know VACEOs” events where we go into more detail about the benefits of membership. We update our events listing regularly. You can find it here: http://www.vaceos.org/events. Thanks again for reading and commenting on our post!