Content written by Rodney Alsup and published by the MBA News Digest.

Yesterday, I made a webinar presentation, “Emerging Trends in Graduate Business Education Curriculum – A Retrospective Look at 2017 + What to Look for in 2018,” sponsored by the MBA Roundtable. While preparing for the presentation, it occurred to me that I should survey the individuals that had registered for the webinar. Monday afternoon, I emailed over two hundred people that had registered for the webinar, asking them two questions:

  1. What are your top two concerns?
  2. What do you think I can do to help address those concerns?

The well thought out responses suggest the respondents have been thinking about what concerns them for a while. My presentation likely addressed about 50% of the concerns shared.

My challenge, how should I respond to the other 50%? I thought of two ways. One is to write practice management blog articles addressing their concerns. The other, is to create a program manager’s mastermind group. My goal with this article is to introduce you to the concept of a mastermind group and to see if there’s enough interest from News Digest subscribers to form a Program Managers’ Mastermind Group.

What is a Mastermind Group?

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Napoleon Hill introduced the mastermind concept in his 1925 book, Think And Grow Rich. “A mastermind group is a peer-to-peer mentoring concept used to help members solve their problems with input and advice from the other group members.” Group size can vary but research indicates that “groups limit their size to 8-10 participants that meet regularly with rotating leadership.”

How Do We Start a Program Managers’ Mastermind Group?

The starting point is to find the 8-10 participants. I will start the selection process by asking all MBA News Digest subscribers to express interest in joining the group. The level of interest determines the next step. If there’s a large response, then we may want several groups.

Who Should Consider Joining the Program Managers’ Mastermind Group?

The web is full of articles describing the attributes of individuals that are a good fit for a mastermind group. Generally, good candidates are people with a similar drive and commitment, diverse skill sets, and are problem solvers. My experience is that MBA News Digest subscribers fit this profile.

How Do We Run the Program Managers’ Mastermind Group?

It may be a bit premature to consider this question. But, here are some general ground rules for running a mastermind group.

  1. The group will meet via Zoom, regularly and precisely – normally once per week for sixty minutes.
  2. Each member of the group will have equal time.
  3. Don’t interrupt.
  4. Prepare an agenda when needed.
  5. Decide if the group needs a facilitator.
  6. Capture what happened during the meeting.

Once formed, the group can adopt their own set of ground rules.

Interested in Joining the First Ever Program Mangers’ Mastermind Group?

You can click here or email me at RGAlsup@MBANewsDigest.com to express your interest.

Rodney

References:

  1. How to Start and Run a Mastermind Group
  2. How to Launch a Successful Mastermind Group
  3. Join a Mastermind Group? Here’s What You Need to Know
  4. Why You Should Build A Mastermind Group

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