Sustainable Best PracticeMastermind group

The recent Sustainable Best Practice Exchange left a number of people wanting more. More opportunities to share best practice and profit from other people’s experience and knowledge.

From that has come SBPMg, the mastermind group for building better business on a foundation of sustainable best practice.

The mastermind concept is a well-established technique for planning and problem-solving through group learning. As a member you will discover how others develop operational excellence and will gain insights and ideas to share with your team.

External experts and thought leaders will provide introductions to cutting edge techniques, to global trends and economic imperatives. Fellow members will offer their practical experience and learn from your own wisdom.

Our objective is to help you as a member to make your organisation best in class on sustainability, on operating costs, on carbon footprint and on energy and resource use.

The Chatham House rule applies. Nothing may be discussed outside the group without specific permission from the member(s) concerned.

Member Profile

Group membership is by invitation only and is confirmed following the orientation and selection programme described below.

SBPMg is for directors, executives and business owners from both the private and public sectors. It will include senior decision-makers with responsibility for functions such as sustainability, social values, energy, workplace skills and supply-chain security. It will appeal to open-minded executives willing to learn, to teach and who want to discover the most effective paths to success.

What makes SBPMg different?

SBPMg is about organisational development. We expect group members to already have mature business and leadership experience, ready to discuss tactics as well as global and strategic issues. Only by assessing future scenarios can we plan to ensure that our organisations will be among the future leaders.

This group, and subsequent groups which will follow, will not be hidebound by a franchise format or a transatlantic template. It has grown from the Sustainable Best Practice Exchange and the realisation that most of the change that managers are now managing stems from sustainability or from one of its components: the management of energy, of supply chains and of an increasingly skilled, and increasingly scarce, workforce.

It’s about improved efficiency, growth and profitability.

Format

The core of the SBPMg process is the bi-monthly 24-hour retreat (R24). Held in one of the UK’s leading hotels, you will find a professional atmosphere which insulates you from day-to-day concerns and supports you with comprehensive facilities and service. You will be able to focus solely on the issues before you.

You will join a group of around eight people and begin the R24 with a private dinner. An invited speaker will make a 45-minute presentation followed by questions and discussion. Experts and thought leaders will present on topical economic, demographic and geopolitical issues affecting our organisations. Several of the speakers at the recent Sustainable Best Practice Exchange have expressed an interest in taking part.

The following morning you will rejoin the group for breakfast and an early start to the day’s activity.

The session begins with comments on the previous evening’s presentation and a review of news and events with specific relevance to members’ organisations. Following the established mastermind model you and your fellow members then each have the opportunity to table a topic of concern to you or to the whole group. A facilitated discussion leads to conclusions and an action plan. Discussion continues over a working lunch and the afternoon concludes with a roundtable feedback segment. You will comment on what you have gained, what you would like from future sessions, and the actions you will commit to as a result of the day.

In the intervening weeks between the 24-hour sessions your group facilitator, Anthony Day, will be in touch with you individually to review the meeting, your actions and your plans. There will be at least one group webinar between R24 events to reinforce the process.

As the group evolves you will develop an enduring relationship with your fellow members and an understanding of their organisations. The operation of the syndicate session and subsequent activities will evolve in parallel, to embrace strategic issues as well as tactical decisions.

Orientation and Selection (O&S)

Prior to the event participants will be invited to undertake a psychometric profiling.

O&S will match the regular R24 event format as closely as possible, but will not include an evening dinner or an overnight stay. The day will open with a guest speaker, Q&A and discussion. For the rest of the day there will be facilitated presentations by each participant, concentrating on what you expect to gain from the group, what you can offer the group and an outline of your organisation. Participants will be observed by the facilitator and colleagues to assess the cohesion of the group and compatibility of the individuals. We will establish whether there are any potential conflicts of interest or competitive issues between the participants. Participants will be asked to provide a brief written commentary on the day, before we disperse. The decision on whether or not to confirm membership will be communicated within 48 hours.

Once the group is established, future new members will be required to go through an application process. This will be either a series of individual interviews or an orientation and selection day. A key stage of this is for the applicant to attend one of the regular R24 events. The applicant will only be admitted with the agreement of all existing members. A single veto will be sufficient to reject an application.

Please get in touch to find out when this one-day session will next take place.

Potential members will have significant responsibilities within their organisations. Independent professionals will not normally be invited to apply for membership.

Anthony Day - facilitator

Anthony Day is a Chartered Management Accountant and a Member of iema, the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment. He is chair of the Sustainable Best Practice Exchange and presenter of the weekly Sustainable Futures Report.

Previously he has worked in engineering, computer services, local government and the NHS in England and Scotland. His Brussels-based training company served the hospitality industry in 18 countries across Europe.

He is an experienced conference chair and webinar facilitator. Publications include “Will Climate Change Your Life?” and “The Business Detective’s Casebook”.

Venue

The Grand Hotel in York is a recent conversion of a listed building which was originally the headquarters of the North East Railway Company. It is now one of the best hotels in the UK. It is close to the city centre and 3 minutes’ walk from York station.

York is readily accessible from all parts of the country. Direct trains serve London (under 2 hours), the Midlands, the south coast and the South West, as well as the North East and Scotland and the North West including Leeds, Manchester and Liverpool. The city is close to the M1, A1 and M62.

There is a direct train link to Manchester Airport and Leeds Bradford Airport is just 30 miles away.

Fees

Once you have been accepted for membership there is a monthly fee of £625 + VAT. There are special terms for quarterly or annual payments.

Should you for any reason decide to withdraw from the group, we request two months’ notice.

The fee for the Orientation and Selection Day is £625+VAT which includes the joining fee. If after attending the Orientation Day we both agree that SBPMg is not for you then this fee will be refunded in full. If you register for the O&S day but do not attend we will retain a 25% administration fee.

All fees are payable in advance.

CONTACT

Anthony Day on 07803 616877 or mail@anthony-day.com

Cyber Associates Ltd - Registered in England No. 03271401 - VAT 663 6845 02

Please walk the sustainable talk - if it’s printed, please recycle