1. Personal Leadership Growth

Each month, you will receive executive education that helps you run your business better. Our material is designed to be practical, application-oriented content that represents the best of the Christian and secular sources. When the leader grows, the entire organization grows.

In addition to the monthly Business Forums, you will meet with your C12 Chair for a private one-on-one consultation called a Focus60. You get to design this time to fit your needs. It is equivalent to an executive coaching session.

2. Organizational Development

Many of the curriculum topics discussed each month are designed to improve your organizational health. We will talk through organizational development, alignment issues, strategic planning, people management, business development, sales/marketing, and many more topics that will help you improve your performance. Furthermore, all of the content developed by C12 is available for you to share within your company. This becomes a training resource for your employees.

3. Annual Business Review Presentation

Every forum agenda includes time for a member to present his/her Core Business Presentation (CBP) at least once a year. This is similar to a board presentation. The member will receive multiple benefits.

First, insight will be gained when hearing how other leaders are running their companies.

Second, the template used in the CBP will address the foundations of a well-run business: the team, spiritual and economic benefit of the company’s existence and trajectory.

Third, the presenting member will gain valuable feedback on questions posed to the Forum for their input and perspective.

Finally, the presenting member provides an update on takeaways and execution commitments 90 days later to help promote accountability; in other words, the CBP is meant to produce a bias towards action and results

4. Confidentiality and Camaraderie

This might sound like a touchy-feely benefit of limited value unless you have experience running a company. Most CEOs know the cliché: “it’s lonely at the top.” We offer a safe and confidential environment to be transparent with peers that understand what you are going through. You will find that you do not have to be alone. In due time, our members establish life-long trust and accountability that is truly wonderful!

Most C12 members usually join because they need business help—not because they are looking for a Bible study, networking group, or guest speaker forum. They are struggling with issues that they have typically faced alone: growth or layoffs, hiring or firing, strategy or execution, ramp-up or succession. They have missed out on learning from others who have been there before. When members join C12, they often see their blind spots for the first time, and in many cases, they find the accountability, benchmarking, and eternal perspective they have been missing.

Our format is designed to offer you a retreat and reflection day every month. We gather in our Forums to discuss topics like revenue generation, financial management, operations management, organizational development and ministry expansion (what we call the 5-Point Alignment Matrix). Few of these topics get much attention within a busy workday. However, being out of the office and gathering with peers promotes the discussion and perspective that is essential for today’s business owner/CEO. It is a time for members to strategically assess their corporate direction and results.

It may sound difficult to take a day “off” each month, but we promise that you will find it useful from the beginning. Later, you will see the day as essential to growing and maintaining a healthy business.

Most businesses that join C12 are private companies without a board of directors. Even those with an existing board find that a Christian peer advisory group offers unique feedback and perspective that is found nowhere else.

Your Forum comes to know you and your business well. They know what makes you tick, where you struggle, and the dreams that you have for your work and family. You will find it is a safe place to “let your hair down” and to receive valuable comments from peers dedicated to your success.

Once a year, you will do a Core Business Presentation (CBP). That comprehensive presentation will cover all aspects of your business. During and after the presentation, you will receive verbal and written comments from every member. This is invaluable.

In the months when you are not doing a CBP, you may present issues for the group to discuss. They will help you think through the various dimensions and then give you concrete opinions about what to do next. You will learn as much or more from the issues presented by other members than you do from your own issues.

The CBP is a powerful opportunity for a C12 member.

1. The act of preparing for the CBP is very valuable.

Gathering, organizing, and reflecting on the information that goes into a CBP is incredibly valuable. Many CEOs have no other group or opportunity that requires a comprehensive description of their results and plans. It is not unusual to spot gaps and resolve problems before the presentation to the group occurs.

2. The verbal explanation to the group helps develop your presentation and analytical processing skills.

Something magical seems to happen when someone says aloud what they have been thinking to themselves. The availability of an attentive audience and a prescribed format clarify their thoughts. You will see that the act of expressing important information in a safe atmosphere is powerful.

3. The member comments, questions, and feedback are insightful.

During and after the presentation, the other members are asking questions, offering ideas, and giving encouragement. For almost any topic, someone in the room has experienced something similar to every issue raised by the presenter. The members will share lessons-learned, solutions that worked, and confidence about the future. They write their comments and give them to you for follow-up actions.

4. Helping others helps you.

The surprising thing about a CBP is the other eleven months of the year when someone else presents their business. You will see in them some of the same issues that you are facing. As you give them suggestions for their issues, you will begin applying the same suggestions to your business. More importantly, the sense that you are not alone will reassure you. Often members decide to meet outside of our C12 Business Forums to further discuss challenges they face.

The CBP is your opportunity to comprehensively present your business to CEOs and business owners that know you and want to help you succeed.

Our template covers topics like situation analysis, organization development, operational processes, financial management and ministry. We look back at what has happened and forward to what we hope will transpire. The CBP also looks at your personal leadership progress, not just the business metrics. This holistic picture will give you an idea of the presentation’s scope.

Every business owner knows the importance of accountability. Great leaders build accountability into their culture to make sure that employees know expectations and can be evaluated accordingly.

Most Owners/CEOs know they need accountability, too. It is not just for business operations. We need someone that cares about us asking hard questions about how we treat our family, our relationship with God, and our spiritual responsibilities as a Christian.

At C12, we will ask this at every meeting. You will find it safe to share your answers honestly with the Forum members (and you will hear their answers, too). You will be encouraged where you are struggling. You will hear ideas from your peers describing their approaches. Mostly, you will begin to grow as a person and as a leader.

Each month, you will identify specific SMART goals to accomplish before the next Forum meeting. Every member will read their list aloud. At the next Forum meeting, you will report on how you accomplish (or not) each item.

The last thread of accountability comes in your one-on-one meeting each month with your C12 Chair. Your Chair will ask you questions about what is important to you. This is a great time for prayer.

Every C12 member has a one-on-one meeting with their C12 Chair each month. These meetings last between 60 and 90 minutes. The agenda is driven by the member. It can include asking for consulting or coaching help. Sometimes the topics are relational issues and the C12 Chair functions as a mentor. Usually, the C12 Chair explores the member’s spiritual status. Often the meeting is used to personalize the lessons from or applications of the content discussed at the last group meeting. We always pray for one another.

The one-on-one meeting deepens the relationship between the member and their Chair.

Imagine having focused attention each month of an experienced business and Christian leader dedicated to your success. Typically we look at what happened in the last 30 days and what is expected to happen in the next 30 days. We then identify the gaps or obstacles that need to be addressed. Sometimes, we can have an agenda for a Focus60 that needs to be set aside because an urgent matter comes to the surface. In such cases, we will address the urgent matter! The key is that the Focus60 is driven by the member for the member’s benefit.

As an example, in one month you might need coaching for a vexing management issue. Another time, you might need counsel with your strategic plan. It is not unusual to need a sounding board so that you can talk through what is happening around you. Maybe you need help to connect to the right resources or other members. Or, you might need someone that will give you a “kick in the pants.” And, sometimes, all of this can happen in one meeting!

We think the idea of BaaM applies to every Christian CEO and business owner. We believe that the Bible explains that what we do in all aspects of our lives, including our businesses, matters to God. And, though it might sound unusual, we believe God is actually the true “owner” of our businesses. If He is the owner, then we are stewards. A “steward” is accountable to the owner for the performance and priorities in the business.

All that means is that we ask questions like, “What would God want me to do?” and “What are God’s purposes?” We understand there are answers to these questions which directly affect what we do as leaders. Probably the simplest statement is to say, “people matter to God.” The implication, then, is to intentionally affect the lives of people that come into contact with our businesses. Turns out, for most businesses, there are thousands of people each year potentially affected by what you and I do.

We go beyond the basic concept. At every Forum meeting, we spend time discussing practical things to do. We have, for instance, a book listing 102 ideas for ministry in business. We also talk about building “strategic plans for ministry.” Don’t worry if this sounds overwhelming, we will ease you into the thought process. Our experience is that, over time it will become very clear and very rewarding.

We believe in the power of prayer so it is a part of every meeting. We have times when members are paired-up to pray. There are instances where we pray as a Forum. Your C12 Chair will regularly pray for you.

Don’t worry about being put on the spot. We recognize that many folks come to C12 without a public praying habit. That is okay. Just let us pray for you. It is a privilege for us to do so.