“I’ve never had a bank that listens like this.”
— Advisory Group Member
“It’s clear that our ideas are fed directly into your products.”
— Advisory Group Member
“We’ve learned far more than we’ve shared.”
— Advisory Group Sponsor
“When we see our ideas turned into action at the bank, we’re motivated to bring more ideas.”
— Advisory Group Member
“We thought ‘functionality first’ but our council said ‘usability first.’ We followed their lead.”
— Advisory Group Sponsor
“Our CEO keeps asking me, “Did you run this by the advisory council?”
— Advisory Group Sponsor
“We can help you build better products.”
— Advisory Group Member
“Our CEO keeps asking me, 'Did you run this by the advisory council?'"
— Advisory Group Sponsor
“The board members are by far our best references.”
— Advisory Group Sponsor
“I feel very heard. I am engaged and willing to help create change.”
— Advisory Group Member
“These meetings are my visit to the armory – I pick up bullets to use.”
— Advisory Group Sponsor
“Our product roadmap has truly been influenced by our board.”
— Advisory Group Sponsor
“The advisory council confirmed for me that I’ve chosen the right bank.”
— Advisory Group Member
“For me it’s been self-serving. There’s a lot we didn’t know. We’ve grown 300-400%. The challenges we faced wouldn’t have been solved as smoothly. The board has given us ideas that have saved us thousands of dollars.”
— Advisory Group Member
“We want genuine customer advice before we make decisions, not after.”
— Advisory Group Sponsor
Hartsema Group Fact
As of 2019, we have managed more than 125 advisory group meetings.
It Began With Putting The Best Customers At The Table
The Hartsema Group's core strategy was developed after we saw the incredible synergy that occurred when a company's management team sits at the table with its best customers. Over the years, we facilitated a number of these meetings and tried a variety of strategies for developing agendas that inspired productive conversations and yielded actionable suggestions. Some didn't work. Others worked very well.
We've held on to the best lessons and ideas from our meetings, and we've used them to develop our current process.
Some of the lessons we've learned include:
- How to select the right board members
- The importance of a well-prepared agenda
- Why it matters where you meet
- How much you need to listen
- The value of follow-up
- And more
Take a minute to explore Our Process.
