Ed. Note: In our
September cover story we looked at executive-only retreats and meetings. While these can be planned around shared industries or roles, many effective events target CEOs in a particular region. We look at a few of those here.
Events can put the emphasis on the city or region where the leaders are doing business in order to encourage local networking and foster a sense of community. For example, the Atlanta CEO Council holds CxO Executive Receptions about every six weeks at which local business leaders from all types of industries are invited to network, with no vendors allowed.
“When executives come, they know they will be meeting with a peer group,” says Harriett Hollis, executive director of the Atlanta CEO Council. “You’re not dealing with folks trying to sell you something.”
These events usually draw 125 to 150 attendees, and include pre-event talks meant to get attendees thinking on topics that might not be on their radar. For example, the July event brought together academics who talked about the commercial implications of artificial intelligence. Past speakers have included business leaders like Scott McNealy, chairman and co-founder of Sun Microsystems, and Chuck Phillips, president of Oracle Corporation.
“We try to partner with [people] whom we think of as thought-leaders,” says Hollis. “We work with one of the TED groups, and they have been a great resource for speakers.”
For years, almost all of the group’s events have taken place at The Ritz-Carlton Atlanta, which Hollis appreciates for its easy accessibility and top-notch service. Because of the property’s size and range of offerings, it makes an easy venue for attendees to set up pre-event meetings, or to head to the restaurant after the mixer to continue over dinner.
“Being a CEO, particularly a startup CEO, is a lonely job,” says Glenn McGonnigle, general partner at TechOperators, LLC, a longtime attendee of Atlanta CEO Council events who now serves on the board of the council. “I’ve found the events to be valuable because the attendance was vetted and the number of non-CEO participants was limited.”
The CEO Council of Tampa Bay also targets local leaders and entrepreneurs in the area with social events as well as an annual retreat each year. This event is aimed at helping members of the board to develop their skills and create a plan for the next year.
Last year’s retreat, run by Geoff Dyer, founder of LifeTime Fitness, took place over two days at the Hyatt Regency Clearwater Beach Resort & Spa and included teambuilding activities and a strategy session conducted by Dale Carnegie Training. Not on the agenda: downtime.
“You have some really powerful leaders in the room, so it’s discussing strategy of membership, of customer experience, of giving and philanthropy,” says Rick Gallegos, the group’s program chair this year and upcoming vice chair. “It’s tied to how connected the person is to the [CEO Council], so we are really trying to engage them in the board.”