Vistage for Chief Executives:

There’s a lot riding on your decisions. The Vistage Chief Executive Program is designed to help you make more effective decisions that lead to powerful results. At the core, a confidential advisory group of peers helps you focus on what’s most critical. Led by an accomplished business leader, this unbiased group will help you solve problems and uncover opportunities. Take your business to the next level by connecting to thought leaders and 23,000 members across the globe.

We understand the challenges of chief executives and know how to address them.

You’re surrounded by stakeholders with competing agendas, and you make all decisions on your own without the benefit of unbiased advice. Get your decisions vetted by an ideal sounding board — an objective, experienced peer group who will offer unbiased advice in a confidential environment. You’re concerned that your current culture may be having a negative impact on business.  Vistage can help you learn the best practices on building an empowered, results-driven team by finding and fixing blind spots to advance your leadership ability. You’re not sure you have the best processes in place to scale up the business. We will provide models of success and expert advice to help you retool your long-term strategy without sacrificing current business performance. Finally, if you’re seeking guidance on how to fuel the next stage of growth, Vistage will give you fresh perspectives on complex issues to optimize business decisions and results.

The Chief Executive Program includes 12 full-day meetings per year with your Peer Advisory Board and 12 private Executive Coaching sessions per year, up to 2 hours each. In addition to learning from experts during advisory board meetings and sessions, you will be provided with up to 8 world-class speakers per year and have a 24/7 access to a community of 23,000+ members across 20 countries supporting one another.

Vistage for Key Executives:

You’re striving for excellence while navigating a complicated corporate landscape. The Vistage Key Executive Program connects you to an elite peer group with one goal: empowering one another to reach new levels. Confidentially address personal and professional challenges with the guidance of an accomplished business leader and leverage new insights and powerful resources to hone your leadership skills and push your career forward.

We understand the challenges of key executives and know how to address them.

You’re held accountable for your company’s results but feel only partially in control over how to achieve them. Learn how like-minded executives have been successful in achieving alignment and influencing the direction of their organization. You’re relied upon to provide leadership but feel mired in the urgent demands of running the business. Rely upon us and step out of the action once a month to focus on strategic planning that will help your team and business get to the next level. We recognize that you’re burdened with navigating competing priorities and conflicting, sometimes unreasonable, expectations. Surround yourself with high-performing peers who are committed to becoming extraordinary leaders – and helping you achieve the same. You’re challenged to perform at a high level while continuously adapting to changing environments. Unbiased, honest feedback will help you think critically about the most effective path forward.

The Key Executive Program includes 12 full-day meetings per year with your Peer Advisory Board and optional private coaching sessions. In addition to learning from experts, you will be provided with up to 8 world-class speakers per year and have a 24/7 access to a community of >23,000 members across 20 countries supporting one another.

WE CALL IT THE VISTAGE WAY.

Here at Vistage, we consider ourselves a unique organization designed to help members become better leaders, make better decisions, and get better results. In the following 14 “Fundamentals,” we outline the core behaviors that, when practiced consistently, create a truly extraordinary Vistage group, and with it, truly extraordinary leaders. If you are interested in learning about The Vistage Way, read about what factors we believe make up exceptional leaders.

1. Create a safe and trustful place for the group.

Hold group confidentiality sacred. Treat every discussion as important; it is to the person who initiated it. Try not to diminish conversations with potentially inappropriate humor and demonstrate trust by honoring commitments, being reliable, and being there for each other. Always have each other’s backs!

2. Create an intentional wake.

Strive to have a positive influence on everyone around you. Recognize that, as a leader, you have the ability to create a wave that impacts the world. Set an example for others by being the change you want to see.

3. Promote learning from your Vistage experience.

Take ownership for finding and delivering value. Choose to learn from others and choose to share your own wisdom as well. Take at least one nugget of knowledge or wisdom from every 121 and group meeting. Become a teacher of Vistage learnings in your organization. Share with the group ways that you’ve implemented Vistage concepts in your company.

4. Be care-frontational.

Seek and give feedback graciously, for the success of the group depends on feedback. Demonstrate that you care about your fellow members’ business and personal lives, and know that they care about yours. Challenge the status quo with respect and urgency. If you disagree, do it visibly, elegantly, and in the moment.

5. Be genuinely curious.

Seek first to understand the story behind your fellow members’ beliefs that are stopping or guiding them. Take pride in asking revealing questions that clarify the issues, rather than offering solutions disguised as questions. Remember that the quality of the answer is directly related to the quality of the question. Challenge your own truths, beliefs, and reality, as well as those of others. Most importantly, listen generously. Listen for the contribution in each other’s speaking vs. listening from your own assessments, opinions, or judgments.

6. Think greatness.

Create a world-class organization and high performance team at Vistage and in your company. Push beyond “good enough” in every interaction. Have the courage to be bold and set high goals. Always challenge yourself to find a better way.

7. Be a model of accountability.

Demonstrate accountability by following up on all commitments. Use Personal Action Summaries effectively by stating them in the form of a verb, noun, and specific date. Seek updates from others on their actions from previously processed challenges, and provide updates to the group on your own. 

8. Check your ego at the door.

Take yourself lightly. You don’t have to be the smartest person in the room, and you don’t have to be right. Be vulnerable. Have the courage to let people see your imperfect, authentic self. All feedback is a gift. Accept it as such. 

9. Respect time: yours and others’.

Arrive before the meeting starts so others don’t have to wait for you. Return from breaks on time and stay until the meeting ends so that no one misses your insights. Show respect for the speaker and your fellow members by staying present and engaged and by not checking electronic devices. Let the group know at least 2 days in advance if you’re unable to attend a meeting.    

10. Strengthen the group.

Seek and recommend candidates, with the goal of having at least 16 members, that will improve the quality of the interactions in the group. Ask yourself, “Who is missing?” and then work with the members and the chair to fill that void. Regularly provide feedback on how the group is performing and suggest ways to improve. Assist with the integration of new members by volunteering to be their “buddy” for the first 3 months.

11. Be prepared and intentional.

Know your goal. Have a plan for every meeting (121 and group). Read the agenda in advance and always prepare with a question, opportunity, or challenge to share or discuss. Share monthly rates of change so that fellow members know your organization’s KPIs. Share your Annual Business Plan “One Page Summary” so the group can help you reach your goals. Use meetings as a time to be strategic; discuss how to work ON the business, rather than IN it.

12. Know your group members.

Get to know your fellow members intimately, both their business and their personal lives. Devote 5 minutes during each group meeting to get to know something personal about another member. When being the host, share intimate details about your business and personal life. 

13. Be mindful about conflicts of interest.

While it’s OK to respond if a fellow group member asks for help with their business, never directly solicit business from other group members. In the event that a substantial business relationship develops with another member, advise the rest of the group to be sure that the relationship doesn’t prevent you from sharing your deepest and darkest secrets 

14. Have fun at every meeting.

Participate in appropriate and respectful humor when we’re together. Demonstrate caring by avoiding sarcastic remarks and ensuring that humor is not at another member’s expense. Find joy in every day.