Manufacturers and Operating companies are the heart of the EACC: if we lose them as members, then the banks and law firms and other service providers that support them will have no reason to join the EACC. So, when manufacturers told us that they were looking for forums where their top executives could connect, grow their networks and share best practices, we launched our new Executive Roundtable series.
Roundtable groups for CEOs, CFOs, Human Resources professionals and Marketing and Sales leaders from manufacturing and operating companies are each led by a pair of co-facilitators. One is a service provider with deep experience and connections, and the other is a ‘practitioner’ who lives the reality of day-to-day operations in a manufacturing environment. Their primary role is just to keep the conversation going and encourage everyone to have their say. They also enforce our ground rules of confidentiality, no selling, no substitutions, and members only. The conversations are member-led and sometimes go in unexpected directions. For example, when the assigned topic for the HR roundtable was attracting new employees, the conversation pivoted when one participant noted it was cheaper to retain current employees than to hire new ones.
We’ll keep these groups small, limiting them to no more than 12-15 so everyone can engage fully – and may split groups if they grow beyond this. And we may add groups in different categories – such as Chief Information Officers or Chief Operating Officers (or their functional equivalents – we know that not all titles are the same). It’s worth noting that our CFO group was so excited at the concept they agreed to meet on a bi-monthly basis (our other groups currently meet quarterly).
If you are a senior leader in a manufacturing firm and want to grow your network with your peers, please contact EACC Executive Director Todd Schwartz to see if one of our Executive Roundtables might be a good fit for you!
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