December 15, 2014
You’re in good company
Jacki Hart and Tim Kearney.
By Jacki Hart CLP
Prosperity Partners Program Manager

Jacki HartThe newest resource offered to business owners by LO’s Prosperity Partners program is the Peer to Peer Network.

Tim Kearney and I will launch this new program on Warm Up Monday at Congress 2015. Already, there’s a buzz in the registration office. Last month I introduced the Peer to Peer Network basics, and promised a peek in this month’s column on how it will roll out.

The Peer to Peer Network will use the common denominator of the Prosperity Partners language as the base onto which we will add new business owner resources and tools. This includes aligning business discussions with the five Prosperity Partners Pillars: Financial Health, Professional Operations, Sales Success, Leadership and Developing Customers for Life.

The Business Navigator we lean on follows this sequential premise:
  • Every business is an expression of who the owner is (Leadership)
  • This personality drives the style of game plan deployed (Professional Operations)
  • The game plan applies critical skills with processes (Sales Success)
  • This converts company resources into goods and services (Customers for Life)
  • The delivery of which produces financial results (Financial Health)
We overlay the above premise, with the concept of preferences, strengths and blind spots. When combined with the maturity factor of a business, business owners have a snapshot of their current reality, and starting point for improvement throughout their business.

The clarity achieved for hundreds of business owners using this system is amazing. What’s even more amazing is how helpful it is to reassess using this analysis tool once a year. By understanding the key concepts in Prosperity Partners, Peer Group members will have a clear understanding of what their mission-critical issues are — and will engage with peers with clarity, purpose and a results driven focus.

At our Peer to Peer launch, participants will review these Prosperity Partners concepts briefly, and reassess their own current reality by using our updated gap analysis tool. This process will help form the roadmap for each member to identify key objectives within their group.

Groups will be formed using a cross-section of participants by intermingling sectors with regional locations and business maturity.

One of the most exciting parts of this network is that just like in any other LO event, seasoned veterans will rub shoulders and exchange ideas with newcomers, with everyone gleaning fresh perspectives, new resources, creative ideas and honest input from peers.

Some of my most poignant ‘aha’ moments have come from start-up entrepreneurs asking great fundamental questions that I’d long since ploughed through and forgotten about. And, some of the best advice I’ve had in business has come from owners whose businesses are in a different sector than mine.

We all have the challenge of being entrepreneurs!

In this Peer Group, we will:
  • Connect — using a variety of technologies together
  • Share — challenges, discussions, ideas, creativity
  • Learn — new techniques, styles, information, resources
  • Rise — to a new level for ourselves and our businesses, side by side
  • Inspire — pick up and dust each other off, move forward with renewed enthusiasm and hope
In addition to group discussions and facilitator support, LO plans to offer four facilitated Peer to Peer Network sessions in 2015. We hope to hold one each in London, Milton, Oshawa and Ottawa. Dates and locations are yet to be determined. These sessions will be daytime ticketed events, offering new tools, candid discussion and take-away objectives to keep moving forward.

We are really excited to be launching this new initiative, and looking forward to a great dynamic session next month with everyone interested in taking their businesses and careers to the next level. You will be alongside peers who ‘get it’ and want to engage for mutual improvement.

For more information on the Peer to Peer Network at Congress, go to http://gfl.me/x2j0.
 

Free prosperity tool: Best Practices Checklist for Financial Health


Are your habits effective when it comes to financial management? Do you wonder if there are simple ways you could improve cash flow? This easy checklist helps you take a look at best practices for finance; if it generates even one improvement in your process, it is worth your time.
Download this checklist and a wealth of other free Prosperity resources at
horttrades.com/prosperitytemplates. The templates are organized by Prosperity
Pillar, and can be customized to suit your business needs
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Jacki Hart may be reached at info.peertopeer@landscapeontario.com.