Table of Contents - BNIbnifranchise.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/bni_ebook-copy-1.pdf · Table of...

Table of Contents

WHY BNI®? 3

THE BNI® STORY 5

ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE 7

REVENUE MODEL 9

MEMBERS SUCCESS STRATEGY 11

MEMBER PERSONA 13

FRANCHISEE COMPOSITE 15

BUILDING BUSINESS 17

FRANCHISEE SUPPORT STRUCTURE 20

FRANCHISEE FINANCIAL SUCCESS 22

STARTUP COSTS 23

WHAT ARE FRANCHISEES SAYING? 25

AVAILABLE TERRITORIES 26

MEET THE EXECUTIVE TEAM 27

NEXT STEPS 33

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Franchise Executive Summary

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WHY BNI®? BNI® is the World’s Leading Referral Organization.BNI’s is uniquely positioned to help members increase their business through a structured, positive, and results-driven referral program that enables them to develop long-term, meaningful relationships with driven professionals.

Why BNI is Needed in the Marketplace One of the key challenges for small businesses is finding clients and increasing sales. A BNI membership grows business through valuable referrals and word-of-mouth that increases a member’s business profile in the local community without investing a lot of money in advertising.

Instead, BNI members make a smart investment of time. Members meet weekly, and these regular face-to-face interactions mean members get to know each other and understand the type of service other members provide, which enables members to give qualified referrals to one another.

Since each BNI chapter can have only one member from any given business specialty — only one dentist, one plumber, one web designer, etc. — referrals can be passed around without competition. BNI brings people from different backgrounds together and helps them find ways they can help each other grow, often by bringing people in complementary professions together. A staffing company, for example, can meet a payroll professional through a BNI chapter. What’s more, similar services can band together to form a potent business alliance by passing referrals back and forth to each other. For example, a general residential contractor can pass a referral to a plumber,

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landscaper, and electrician, all within the local chapter.

BNI members are trained in the art of finding and developing referrals, and the weekly meetings are rigorously organized to be efficient and productive. Membership committees hold chapter members accountable for attending weekly meetings, bringing visitors (including potential members) to chapter meetings, setting up one-to-one meetings with other members to deepen relationships and knowledge of each others’ businesses, and passing along referrals. An engaged chapter membership maximizes business opportunities for everyone within the chapter, so BNI tracks the engagement of members as well as the results generated by referrals.

While the heart and soul of BNI comes from bringing professionals together in the same room to discuss business, BNI’s extensive global network means members can reach out to professionals all over the world. BNI’s online portal, BNI Connect®, provides access to professionals worldwide who have passed BNI’s rigorous screening

procedure and are therefore trusted professionals.

BNI has a Positive Economic Impact In 2015 alone, BNI referrals around the world lead to $9.3 billion in sales worldwide.

The BNI Northern and Southern Alabama region generated $28.7 million dollars worth of business for members in just Alabama in 2015. When you consider the multiplier effect of economic activity — each new dollar of spending generated by a business generally generates more spending elsewhere in the economy — Meaghan Chitwood, the Executive Director of the region, says the potential economic impact is enormous.

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THE BNI® STORY How a Simple Idea Sparked an International BusinessOver thirty years ago, Dr. Ivan Misner, the Founder and Chief Visionary Officer of BNI®, was a business consultant looking for referrals. He approached a few trusted friends for the favor and suggested that he in turn could help them. The group of professional colleagues began to meet and share business referrals, augmenting each others’ marketing efforts by introducing their clients and friends to other trusted professionals.

The seed for BNI had been sown.

Dr. Misner’s small group picked up steam. Soon, Ivan was being asked if he could help others establish their own groups. Initially he was wary of straying from his career path as a business consultant. Then, it dawned on him that running referral networks was itself a powerful kind of business consulting.

Upon reflection, Dr. Misner realized he had something of value on his hands — a way of driving sales that wasn’t routinely taught at schools. BNI was officially formed.

With that start thirty years ago, growth has been organic and global. Today, BNI serves over 200,000 members through 797 regions in 65 countries around the world. In 2015 alone, BNI registered 7.7 million referrals worldwide and generated $9.3 billion in business.

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What’s Next? BNI®’s goal is to increase membership to over half a million by 2020. BNI’s vision is to keep looking forward and changing the way the world does business on a much larger scale. The possibility of even doubling the membership is real, says Meaghan Chitwood, Executive Director of the Northern and Southern Alabama region, “and that opens a world of possibilities for the future through a positive, wonderful process.”

“BNI is a wonderful model that works and provides members with new business opportunities and professional development and relationships and my vision is to take BNI to a different level in terms of global significance, significantly expand the organization and increase the value proposition for each and every member,” says Dr. Misner.

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ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE What are the Core Values that Guide BNI®?BNI® is upending the dog-eat-dog competitive world of business by changing the way people approach solutions. By getting people to collaborate and cooperate, BNI helps stitch together new connections in the business community, which weaves communities together more tightly and fosters friendships as well as growth. BNI carefully tracks referral activity, and members publicly acknowledge one another’s contributions in a way that helps members see their actions fostering real change in their communities.

This commitment to community is exemplified by the work of the BNI Foundation, which extends the principle of Givers Gain® by getting involved in charitable work in communities across the world. BNI’s Business Voices™ program specifically helps struggling schools and other institutions at the local level, as a way of giving back.

‘Culture Eats Strategy for Breakfast’

BNI founder Dr. Ivan Misner says that culture eats strategy for breakfast. As a business consultant, he observed that businesses that have a team full of people committed to a common goal are virtually unstoppable in the business world. Strategy is important, but it’s nothing compared to the teamwork generated by people with a passion and a clear-eyed vision for their purpose in the world.

BNI’s mission is to help professionals and communities thrive by bringing people together and harnessing the power of altruistic entrepreneurship. We believe that when you bring entrepreneurs together and invite them to help other professionals succeed, it generates a virtuous circle of economic growth that can transform lives — not only for BNI members, for also for their employees and communities.

Core Values Givers Gain®

Business networking often feels mercenary and opportunistic. A business

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owner sets their sight on a target — someone they think can help their business — and then they attempt to corner them for a one-on-one encounter that feels like face-to-face cold calling. BNI is different. Networking is more about farming than hunting, says Dr. Ivan Misner, Founder and Chief Visionary Officer. It’s about cultivating relationships with other business professionals, a model that BNI facilitates.

The best way to build relationships is to help and support someone, to give to them and that in turn can yield dividends. This idea anchors one of BNI’s cornerstone philosophies, Givers Gain the theory that if you give, you get back. If I give you business, you’ll give me business and we’ll all do better as a result of it.

Givers Gain is based on the social capital theory of the law of reciprocity, that by working together we all support and help one another.

Building Relationships

The Givers Gain philosophy leads to a vested interest in establishing meaningful business relationships with fellow professionals so referrals can be found

for — and obtained from — trusted sources.

Training and Education

BNI is very much about passion, people and process. Training and education are the cornerstones of process. Every BNI member receives extensive training to help them give and receive referrals. Chapter leadership teams also undergo training in conducting meetings and evaluating members.

Traditions + Innovation

While BNI holds its core beliefs to heart, it has consistently evolved over 30 years. The company is committed to innovation, such as building robust online tools that expand the power of our networking and referral networks.

Positive Attitude

BNI believes in having fun. Meeting new professionals in the community is an opportunity to build friendships, not just referrals. It’s also an opportunity to create a meaningful positive social impact in the community.

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REVENUE MODEL BNI® Makes Money Through a Membership Model that

Generates Recurring RevenueEach BNI® member pays annual dues of approximately $445. BNI Executive Directors scale up their business by filling chapters with more members and opening additional chapters. Since BNI chapters generate referral business for members, each member has a significant incentive to remain in their chapter. In fact, since chapters tend to generate

more referrals by having more members, each member in a chapter also plays a role in recruiting new members and helping Executive Directors’ businesses grow.

Since members benefit from recruiting other members, a BNI chapter is a self-sustaining venture whose members have

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a vested interest in having their chapters — and your business — grow.

A typical BNI chapter has 25-40 members. Our chapters are set up to encourage cooperation and eliminate conflicts of interest, which is why we only allow one professional per group to represent a certain line of business. For instance, a BNI chapter would only have one real estate agent, one accountant, one outsourced HR professional, one acupuncturist, one plumber, one small business banker, one life insurance agent.

Since BNI chapters generate strong referral business, other professionals tend to seek out membership opportunities. When a second financial advisor wants to join an existing chapter and that professional slot is already taken, then they would be invited to become part of a new BNI chapter. The financial advisor, working with the Executive Director and the Executive Director’s staff, would then work together to recruit other professionals to fill the new BNI chapter. Once at least 10 people have expressed interest, we begin preliminary meetings and intensify recruitment efforts. Once a chapter hits critical mass, regular meetings and referrals begin.

When Accountant No. 3 Attends, the Process Begins, Again. This growth model allows BNI Executive Directors to grow their business largely through word-of-mouth referrals. The Executive Director’s main responsibility is to help open new chapters as they are needed, to help existing chapters grow by adding new members and making the most of their networking and referral opportunities, and to retain their existing members.

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MEMBERS SUCCESS STRATEGY A Weekly Workout for Your BusinessPart of the magic of the BNI® organization is the accountability structure we have in place for members. The simplest way to explain it, if you’ve never been to a BNI meeting, is this: Think of an exercise gym. Some gyms have a wealth of equipment available for anybody to use. As a gym member at Gym A, you may show up occasionally to use the equipment, but nobody really cares whether you show up, or is watching to make sure you do your stretches and use the equipment properly. As a member, you have a roomful of equipment, but not a lot else. At Gym B, you have a personal trainer who will call you and ask why they haven’t seen you at the gym that week, who will make sure you’re using proper form to do sit-ups, and who will pair you up with workout buddies so you have help and extra motivation.

Traditional networking groups are like Gym A. BNI is like Gym B. Which gym do you think tends to keep members around longer, and help them obtain better results?

Accountability and The Power of One BNI stresses a philosophy — The Power of One — to describe the impact of taking small individual actions that can make a big impact. Like any good business, we track results. We task members with action items to complete. They’re simple, and if done on a consistent basis, they yield results.

- BNI’s members are held accountable to attend one meeting every week so members can get to know each other and figure out what fellow members are looking for in terms of referrals.

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- They’re encouraged to add in at least one education unit a week — these can be in terms of podcasts or trainings or reading BNI’s SuccessNet™, an online portal for members to share stories.

- Members are asked to arrange for one-to-ones with fellow members, informal meetings that allow for more direct contact and verbalization of business needs, and are encouraged to bring in one referral a week.

- Members also bring in one visitor a month. Establishing these connections and forging a network one step at a

time allows for strong relationships based on trust and the referrals and the business fall into place.

The Power of One is a set of simple prescriptions that will have members achieve results for themselves and their chapters.

As the BNI brand grows, so does the need for more chapters, an organic process that builds self-sustaining revenue. “We find BNI to be a very compelling economic model that is based on three decades of refinement,” says Graham Weihmiller, CEO for BNI.

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MEMBER PERSONA BNI® Members Come from all Professional

BackgroundsBNI® chapters consist of all types of business owners and professionals. One of the great strengths of our organization is that we help world’s collide so that members can discover opportunities they otherwise would have missed. It’s the type of organization that encourages lawyers and plumbers to sit down for lunch and discover common ground between their businesses, and ways they can help each other grow.

BNI fulfills a universal need by providing businesses a cost-effective way of increasing sales.

What Types of Businesses are Represented? Every BNI chapter is made up of members representing different professions. In order to avoid competition between members, only one

per profession is allowed. So if a real estate agent wants to join a chapter that already has one, he or she will have to join another chapter in the area or might form the seed for a new one.

Most chapters will include residential real estate agents, mortgage brokers, insurance agents, and financial planners, and will have these four professions filled. The health and wellness categories are also strongly represented, with a chiropractor, acupuncturist, health and wellness products salespeople, a

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massage therapist and a dentist typically being members of a BNI chapter.

In the business category chapters might have a business coach, a marketing representative, a payroll services provider, a print advertising representative, a computer technician and a website designer.

Home services professionals in a chapter typically include plumbers, general contractors, electricians, landscapers, painters and more.

Sometimes professionals in one category can band together to steer clients to one another — providing trusted and valuable referrals to both customers and BNI peers. For example, a website designer might be able to pass referrals for copywriting to a fellow BNI

member. A chapter in the BNI Oregon and Southwest Washington region serves as a great example: 15 people in the home services category call themselves the “Large and In-Charge Power Team” and pass over $1,000,000 in business between each other in a given year.

No matter the profession, there is room for everyone under the BNI umbrella. Today, BNI serves over 200,000 members in 65 countries around the world.

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FRANCHISEE COMPOSITE BNI® Franchisees Relish Meeting People and Building

Connections in the Communities They ServeBNI® franchisees enjoy helping people connect, and doing work that makes a major positive impact in their communities. That’s the common passion that binds everyone in our organization together.

“Owning a BNI franchise is probably one of the most rewarding things I could ever imagine. It’s a way for me to give back to people in a huge way. It really fulfills my values,” Patti Salvucci says.

In terms of skills and backgrounds, Executive Directors come from all walks of life. Dr. Ivan Misner, BNI Founder and Chairman, has seen people with many different strengths make for outstanding franchisee Executive Directors. “I’ve seen analytical people run very successful regions because they surrounded themselves with very outgoing people; I’ve seen promoters and go-getters who are really good because they surround themselves with analytical people. Successful franchisees have confidence in their ability and know

their style and they know how to form a winning team.”

Teamwork Triumphs BNI can be run out of a home office, with low overhead and staffing needs. As the business grows, Executive Directors build a team that helps them support members.

Much of the support team for BNI is made up of members who either volunteer or receive a small reimbursement for their time. This is especially true on the chapter-level, where a president, vice president, and secretary treasurer oversee membership committees, event coordinators, education coordinators, growth coordinators, mentors and visitor hosts — a highly motivated professional staff made up of volunteers eager to grow their chapter.

As Executive Directors begin to oversee multiple chapters, they begin to build a staff — part-time Director Consultants

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who oversee a handful of chapters, and Area Director Consultants who may oversee a handful of Director Consultants on behalf of an Executive Director as the territory grows to 30 and beyond chapters.

Tim Roberts, Executive Director of BNI’s New Hampshire region also has a region in Florida and is able to be completely invested in both by having capable teams in charge of routine operations and having his ear close to the ground.

Training People, Mastering Processes A successful Executive Director at BNI realizes that the recipe for growth lies in recruiting the right people for the team and empowering them with the right tools, such as training, to succeed. An Executive Director must have the ability to connect with people. BNI has clearly outlined processes to follow at every stage of the business right from conducting weekly meetings to hosting visitor events. A BNI franchisee must either be detail-oriented or surround themselves with others who possess those skills.

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BUILDING BUSINESS BNI® is Powered by Organic Growth Thanks to

ReferralsBNI® has thrived by living out our philosophy of “Givers Gain®” — our belief that one of the best ways to grow your business is to intentionally help your peers grow their businesses, too. We stand as living testament to the effectiveness of Givers Gain business practices.

BNI has enjoyed three decades of consistent organic growth. Once a BNI chapter has been established in a new territory, and starts generating positive results for its members, word quickly spreads about the benefits of our approach to building referral networks.

Since BNI franchisees derive their revenue from membership fees, the word-of-mouth nature of our growth mean that successful members become a magnet for new BNI members, which helps Executive Directors start new chapters and add to the roster of existing chapters, creating a vibrant ecosystem of professionals who get to know one another and learn to refer business back-and-forth.

Chapter Makeup and Growth Each BNI chapter has members representing different professions: computer services, home contractors, etc. Only one member in a chapter can represent a specific profession. This means that if a potential web design professional looks to join a chapter which already has representation in that field, that member can be referred to another group or become the nucleus for a new chapter. Growth snowballs from there.

Invested Members Fuel Expansion

The larger a BNI chapter, the larger the referral network for the individual member. This means that members are personally invested in chapter growth. For franchisees, this means that once the groundwork is laid, the momentum

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for growth is often carried forward by members.

Chapters that increase their size correspondingly increase the number of referrals within their group. In fact, chapters with fewer than 25 members spend 80% of their time inviting and recruiting new members to keep the chapter open and flourishing, while ones with more than 25 members typically spend 80% of their time looking for and passing referrals. Another advantage of a large chapter is that one referral for a large project can go to multiple people. For example, a home reconstruction project can involve a plumber, electrician, general contractor and more — all professionals drawn from one large BNI chapter pool.

So how do you get to this large number?

Working Together Toward a Common Goal The Larger a BNI Chapter, the Larger the Referral Network for the Individual Member. This Means that Members are Personally

Invested in Chapter Growth. The first method is accountability. A chapter’s leadership team motivates members and holds them accountable to their responsibilities. Each member must attend weekly meetings, bring in visitors, and pass along a certain number of referrals — this exact number varies from chapter to chapter. Members undertake specific training to meet each of these goals. BNI provides extensive training units to members and coaches them on how to make and receive qualified referrals, how to bring in visitors, and more.

Each chapter’s members are encouraged to bring guests weekly. Some join the group, while some only do business with the member. This is another way to deliver measurable growth to a chapter since visitors can be potential members. Each member invites professionals from his or her personal network to expose them to his/her BNI network, which, with follow-up, can be an effective recruiting tool.

BNI’s Visitors’ Day Handbook has specific procedures for planning and hosting a membership drive event with week-by-week instructions. Guidelines

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for location selection, a sample press release, invitation letters and instructions for developing a list of prospects are all part of the process, giving chapters and members guidance on achieving the best results.

Starting and Growing a New Chapter The core to building a BNI franchise business is the 3+1 method: starting chapters, filling chapters, retaining members and, the “+1” — telling stories.

Professionals interested in starting a chapter first meet with the Executive Director or Area Director Consultant to learn more about BNI, the advantages of BNI, how to form a chapter and develop clear goals for enrollment. This support system helps a chapter grow to 10 members.

Once a chapter reaches the number 10, it enters what is known as Phase 1. During Phase 1, a chapter meets every other week and BNI helps chapters identify who they want to invite to be part of the team. This Phase 1 chapter also attends BNI showcase meetings which are larger established chapter meetings to get a feel for what BNI is and does, so Phase 1 members can get

a more tangible idea of the goals needed to get there.

If a chapter does not get from 10 to 15 in six weeks, it indicates that it is not the right mix of people and it’s time go back to the drawing board and recycle the process.

Once the chapter hits 15 members, it officially enters Phase 2 and members have five weeks to get from 15 to 25, which marks Phase 3. BNI provides detailed training materials and presentations to go along with each phase, and chapter leadership teams and members are encouraged to stick to these easy-to-execute scripts to facilitate success.

“When you start with a group that is really good, the process is fantastic,” says Meaghan Chitwood, Executive Director for Northern and Southern Alabama, “you end up with a strong successful chapter in the end.”

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FRANCHISEE SUPPORT STRUCTURE BNI® Franchisees Benefit From an Unusual

Combination: a Deep Bench of Professional Help and

Low Labor CostsBNI®’s Core Value is Givers Gain®, and that philosophy plays out in every BNI chapter around the world, where members volunteer to take leadership positions within their chapters in order to support the growth and success of their group.

For an Executive Director, this means they have a ton of help organizing local chapters. Some members also ask to be ambassadors who help organize multiple BNI chapters. Executive Directors also are able to hire a mix of part-time and full-time help to manage the chapters within their territories. The combined effect of this organization structure is that Executive Directors enjoy the assistance of many professionals (whose efforts Executive Directors support) while maintaining a lean payroll.

The Structure of the Organization Every Executive Director is in charge of a region, which comprises many chapters. For example, Meaghan Chitwood, the Executive Director for the Northern and Southern Alabama regions has dozens chapters and about 1,000 members under her purview.

The BNI Chapter Every BNI chapter is comprised of a leadership team, with a President, Vice President and Secretary, selected from the membership base. These members serve a one-year term and attend two leadership training sessions, one before taking on their new role, and the other, halfway through the term.

In addition to this core team, each chapter has the following volunteer positions that may or may not be filled

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depending on chapter size and member interest and availability:

Membership Committee: Responsibilities include screening and interviewing potential new members, checking category classifications for conflict, evaluating any member complaints and evaluating member participation and chapter growth.

Visitor Hosts: Guide and welcome visitors to meetings, introduce them to the rest of the chapter, and provides them with information about how they can join BNI.

Education Coordinator: Works with the President to present weekly networking tips and strategies and education units to members. These education tools are from the BNI curriculum.

Mentoring Coordinator: Assigns mentors (who are fellow members) to new members and tracks progress of both mentor and mentee.

Event Coordinator: Responsible for coordinating Visitor Days, holiday outings and team-building events.

The Regional Level Each chapter will be assigned an ambassador who supports the chapter by helping the visitor host team, the mentor coordinator and in general serving as ambassador of the chapter to the larger region.

A group of chapters is under the supervision of a Director Consultant who would be the go-to resource for a chapter in case questions or issues arise that can’t be resolved at the chapter level. Each Director Consultant typically has 2-3 chapters under his or her purview.

An Area Director Consultant, who is likely a salaried employee, typically supervises 5-8 Director Consultants. Finally, a Senior Director Consultant supervises all the Director Consultants in a region, in close consultation with the BNI Executive Director.

BNI franchise owners typically hire all staff above the chapter level.

BNI’s organization pyramid places the members on top in keeping with the philosophy of serving members first.

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FRANCHISEE FINANCIAL SUCCESS What Determines Financial Performance for BNI®

Franchisees?

BNI® does not publish information about average franchise performance. Averages can mask a wide range of outcomes, and we prefer to direct candidates to existing franchisees, who can answer questions about their individual financial performance. We encourage franchise candidates to interview a wide range of existing Executive Directors — varied by their location, years with BNI, and size of operation, in order to learn the revenue and earnings potential of BNI’s membership-based business model.

Key items to consider include: - How our membership model creates a recurring revenue stream for Executive

Directors.

- How the business scales up as you add and fill chapters

- The staffing needs of the business and how those needs change as the business grows

- The amount of time Executive Directors need to commit to the business in the first 1-5 years, and how that time commitment changes as the business matures.

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STARTUP COSTS BNI® is a Franchise with Low Startup Costs

Thanks to the nature of BNI®’s business, Executive Directors are able to scale up operations gradually as they increase their membership rolls. The business model greatly reduces overhead expenses, which allows new business owners to hit break-even on their investment more quickly.

Likewise, our labor model, which encourages and rewards members who take a leadership position within BNI chapters, further reduces operating costs by enlisting the help of members to manage many chapter functions.

On the next page, take a look at the investment, as outlined in the Item 7 section of our 2016 Franchise Disclosure Document:

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Your Initial Estimated Investment

Type of expenditure

Lowest Estimated Amount

Highest Estimated Amount

Method ofPayment

When Due To Whom Payment is to Be Made

Initial FranchiseFee

$45,000.00 $45,000.00 Details in FDD Details in FDD Us

Existing ChapterFee

$1,000.00 $1,000.00 Details in FDD Details in FDD US

Orientation andConference andTravel Expenses

$2,000.00 $4,000.00 As Arranged As Incurred IndependentCarrier

Professional Fees $2,000.00 $10,000.00 As Arranged As Incurred IndependentCarrier

Supplies, Equipment and Software

$5,000.00 $6,000.00 Details in FDD Details in FDD Us or OurAffiliate

Computer $500.00 $1,500.00 As Arranged When Arranged IndependentCarrier

AdvertisingExpenses

$500.00 $1,000.00 As Arranged As Incurred IndependentCarrier

Deposits $500.00 $1,000.00 As Arranged As Incurred IndependentCarrier

Insurance $250.00 $2,000.00 As Arranged When Arranged IndependentCarrier

Additional Funds -3 Months

$1,000.00 $5,000.00 Cash As Incurred Various Payees

Total $57,750 $76,500

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WHAT ARE FRANCHISEES SAYING? BNI® Franchise Reviews from Executive Directors“I have regular debates with my husband about what I’m doing with my world because he is an engineer and I too have an engineering degree. He says I could be an engineer but I wouldn’t be making the impact that I’m making now as a franchisee at BNI®. My team members are amazing, the people in our chapters are amazing and that’s why I do this. It’s a labor of love. Plus it is a really fun way to make an income on top of that. There’s no question I would 100 percent do it again if asked.”— MEAGHAN CHITWOOD, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, NORTHERN AND SOUTHERN ALABAMA

“We have so many businesses that want to be placed that we can’t open chapters fast enough. That’s how exciting it is. Doing this business is probably one of the most rewarding things I could ever imagine. It’s a way for me to give back to people in a huge way and help them realize their dreams. I believe we are here to give back, it really fulfills my values. There is no doubt in my mind that this was the right path for me.”— PATTI SALVUCCI, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, MASSACHUSETTS

“Being a BNI Executive Director was not something I had in mind, I kind of tripped into it backwards. When I got in, I found out I was pretty good at getting people together and helping them be successful. It was my passion and when I found out I could have a good career from it, it’s been the greatest thing ever. I have traveled all around the world and it doesn’t matter where I go, I know there’s a BNI there that will welcome me.”— TIM PAULIN, LOUISIANA AND SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI

“The bottom line is that with all the systems in place and what BNI has figured out over the last three decades, if you plug into it and follow the recipe it’s amazing. I’ve never seen a business that is so self-propelling. It kind of builds upon itself. You get it started and people get so excited and passionate. They want to help and they want to make it work. And then the margins are great, the revenue is great and the people are unbelievable.”— MARK STOUGH, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, SOUTHWEST FLORIDA

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AVAILABLE TERRITORIES What BNI® Territories are Available for Me to Purchase

and Grow?BNI® franchises flourish all over the world because everyone speaks the language of referrals.

The franchises are especially effective in areas where the number and variety of different professionals is high. Since a chapter can have only one representation from each of many professions, additional professionals serve as the nucleus for more chapters. The Greater Houston area for example, has thousands of insurance agents, each potentially serving as a starter for a BNI chapter.

While a BNI franchise has the potential for success in areas with a high density of professionals, it can also be healthy by covering large geographical swaths of a region. In more sparsely populated areas, a chapter may draw from an entire county.

Available Territories The following territories are available within the United States:

- Central Alabama

- North Dakota

- Northern Virginia

- El Paso, TX

Resale Opportunities BNI has been operating in the United States for three decades, and many of our Executive Directors have been in business with us since the early days. Of course, no matter how much they love their business, most people will eventually choose to retire.

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MEET THE EXECUTIVE TEAM Dr. Ivan Misner, Founder & Chief Visionary Officer

Dr. Ivan Misner is the Founder & Chief Visionary Officer of BNI®, the world’s leading referral organization. BNI was founded in 1985. The organization now has over 7,000 chapters throughout every populated continent of the world, generating millions of referrals that lead to billions of US dollars worth of business each year for BNI members. Dr. Misner’s Ph.D. is from the University of Southern California. He is a New York Times bestselling author who has written 20 books including his latest release, Who’s In Your Room? He is a columnist for Entrepreneur.com and Fox Business News and has taught business

management at several universities throughout the United States. In addition, he is the Senior Partner for the Referral Institute, a referral training company with trainers around the world.

Called the “Father of Modern Networking” by CNN and one of the “Top Networking Experts to Watch” by Forbes, Dr. Misner is considered one of the world’s leading experts on business networking and has been a keynote speaker for major corporations and associations throughout the world. He has been featured in the L.A. Times, Wall Street Journal, and New York Times, as well as numerous TV and radio shows including CNN, CNBC, the BBC and The Today Show on NBC.

Dr. Misner is also the Co-Founder of the BNI Foundation® and has been named “Humanitarian of the Year” by the Red Cross. He and his wife, Elisabeth, are now “empty nesters” with three adult children. Oh, and in his spare time he is also an amateur magician and a black belt in karate.

Graham Weihmiller,

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CEO

BNI’s Chief Executive Officer, Graham Weihmiller, is passionate about BNI’s remarkable value proposition and positive social impact. Prior to joining BNI, Graham was the CEO of a thirty-two year old homecare services company with over 250 locations across the United States. While there, he was a founding director of a foundation that provides homecare to those who cannot otherwise afford it.

Graham’s previous experience includes roles with Pioneer Equity Partners, Financial Health Services, American Franchise Company, Bank of America, Booz Allen, and JP Morgan. He speaks frequently on entrepreneurship and operational excellence and has recently been on panels at Harvard Business School, Stanford University, and Georgetown University.

Mr. Weihmiller is trained in Lean Enterprise, Process Excellence, Design for Six Sigma, and is a Six Sigma Black Belt. He is an active member of the Young Presidents Organization (YPO), the Harvard Business School Club of Philadelphia, the Harvard Club of Delaware, and is a former president of the Harvard Business School Club of Charlotte. Graham received his MBA from Harvard Business School and his BBA from the College of William & Mary.

When he’s not focused on business, Graham has completed two Ironman triathlons, seven marathons, and summited Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. Originally from Virginia, he has traveled to thirty-seven countries and is an active member of the Presbyterian Church. He has done mission work in Biloxi, Mississippi, in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, Costa Rica, and Haiti. Graham and his wife, Sarah, a pediatric emergency room doctor, enjoy time with their three children, camping, reading, watching movies, and traveling throughout the world.

Michael Walchonski, CFO

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Michael Walchonski, CPA has served as BNI’s Chief Financial Officer since December of 2014. Based out of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Michael oversees all accounting and financial operations of the organization and supports the ongoing initiatives of the National Directors in over 65 countries around the world.

Michael has previously worked with other franchisors in the healthcare laundry and non-medical home healthcare industries. Michael graduated from Drexel University and is an active member in the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, as well as the Pennsylvania Institute of Certified Public Accountants. He currently serves on the BNI Foundation Board of Directors.

Michael and his wife Natalie have five children.

Andy Hart, President of Global Development & Operations Andy Hart is the President of Global Development & Operations for BNI, responsible for managing franchises across the world. Prior to joining BNI, Andy led a large team with BP Oil and ran his own business coaching sales teams. He has been involved in BNI for over 13 years, first as a member, then franchisee before becoming involved with the Global Support Team, where he has held a number of positions, including Interim CEO.

Andy is a graduate of Trinity College Dublin and lives in the west of Ireland with his wife, Sandra, and their two children. He is passionate about military history, archery and strategy games.

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Elyse Wilson, U.S. National Director Elyse Wilson joined BNI in March of 2015. As the US National Director, Elyse supports US Executive Directors and oversees a US Support Team dedicated to marketing, training, process, and member services to ensure they receive the resources needed to grow their business.

Elyse is a graduate of Wilkes University. She currently serves on several committees in her hometown including United Way and Women in Business. In her free time, she competes in Olympic distance triathlons, half marathons, competitive tennis and golf, and recreational skiing. Elyse and her husband, Ed, have 3 children.

Stephen Schwartz, Director of Global Technology Stephen Schwartz joined BNI in June 2015 and is overseeing large technology investments to further develop BNI’s online platform and systems. He previously served as Senior Vice President and General Manager of Back

Office Products at XPIENT Solutions, located in Charlotte, North Carolina, and as Chief Information Officer at Long John Silvers, LLC. Mr. Schwartz served in various roles at Yum! Brands from October 1999 until March 2012.

Marcel Portmann, Director of Global Franchise Development Marcel Portmann joined BNI in April of 2016. As Director of Global Franchise Development, Marcel partners with existing National Directors to expand their franchise efforts, and works with BNI’s Global Support Team to open new markets worldwide.

With over twenty years of experience in global franchising, Marcel was Director of Operations for Cartridge World, and also served as Vice President of International Development for the International Franchise Association (IFA), the world’s oldest and largest organization representing franchising. In this role, he was elected to serve as Secretary General of the World Franchise Council, an organization of over forty national franchise associations.

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Born in Mexico to Swiss & Chilean parents, Marcel has lived in seven countries and visited over sixty-five nations. He enjoys both playing and watching soccer, and spending time with his daughter.

Daniel Tangeman, General Counsel Daniel Tangeman joined BNI in June of 2016. As the General Counsel, Dan is primarily responsible for protecting intellectual property, franchising law, certain HR matters, as well as vendor contract negotiations.

Daniel is a graduate of Wheaton College and Harvard Law School. He also served in the military as an ARMY Captain flying attack helicopters. He spent time in working with major law firms before graduating to in-house practice working for biotechnology and high technology firms.

In his free time, Daniel enjoys traveling, handcrafting beer, fishing, playing guitar (or at least attempting), motorcycling, weight-lifting and spin-cycling.

Michelle Midkiff, Director of Global Marketing Michelle Midkiff joined BNI in 2016 as the Director of Global Marketing. In this role, Michelle leads global marketing and communication initiatives to enhance membership growth and increase awareness of BNI worldwide.

Prior to joining BNI, Michelle served as Vice President of Marketing for Thinkgate, and directed global marketing efforts for Global Compliance Services, Siemens Power Generation, and CEM Corporation.

In Michelle’s free time, she enjoys swimming, biking, hiking, making jewelry, and traveling with her husband and daughter.

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Meaghan Chitwood, Director of Global Operations Meaghan Chitwood joined BNI in 2004 as an Executive Director, after being a chapter member and business coach for 11 months. As Director of Global Operations, Meaghan leads a range of new and existing initiatives to ensure they’re executed in a timely and impactful way.

Meaghan started her career working for big oil as an engineer, where she learned to work with many types of people and the importance of processes. Taking this experience into the small business world gives Meaghan a unique set of skills she applies to small business marketing and operations. She is a Lean Six Sigma Green Belt and holds a Civil Engineering degree from Auburn University.

Meaghan lives in Alabama with her engineer husband, Shawn, and children, Elin and Keegan. In her spare time, she enjoys boating and water skiing, snow skiing, and volleyball.

Robin Schuckmann, Director of Global Training Robin Schuckmann joined BNI in 2002 as an Executive Director. In 2016, Robin joined the Global Support Team as Director of Global Training, where she leads global training initiatives and programs to support franchisees.

Robin is heavily involved in the BNI organization at many levels. She is an international speaker and trainer, where she teaches other business professionals about team building, team communication, time management, and accountability.

Robin lives with her husband and two children, Connor and Madeleine, on 9 acres of forestland with Mt. St. Helens at her front door, which she has climbed twice. She enjoys reading, wine tasting, yoga, racquetball and downhill skiing. Robin’s key to success is realizing that everything happens for a reason. And, that there is always a positive solution to every challenge!

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NEXT STEPS What Happens After I Fill Out a Form on The Site?

Step 1: Introduce Yourself The first step to becoming a BNI® Executive Director is to fill out a form on our site, provide your contact information and tell us about yourself. When you fill out the form, you’ll also receive a link to a Free Executive Report that outlines the BNI franchise opportunity in detail. You can download it as a PDF to study and to share with friends, family members and advisors.

Step 2: Pre-Qualification After you fill out the form, you’ll receive a call within 1 business day to see if you meet the qualifications to become a franchisee. To qualify as a franchise candidate, you need at least $75,000 in liquid capital that can be invested in a new business (this can come from bank accounts as well as 401k accounts), as well as a net worth of $100,000. Assuming you meet the minimum financial requirements needed to start the business, we’ll schedule an hour for you to speak with one of our recruiters.

Step 3: Getting to Know Each Other Next, a BNI recruiter will interview you to learn about your background and your goals, and will provide an overview of the franchise opportunity. If you decide to learn more, we will schedule another meeting to share insights about our competitive advantages and what makes BNI a strong business.

Step 4: Franchise Application If you have not already filled out a franchise application, you will be asked to fill it out now. The application provides a financial picture of candidates, and also allows us to run background checks. It’s a critical step to protect the brand and safeguard the investments of BNI and its Executive Directors. One you have turned in your

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application, we will schedule a call to review the latest Franchise Disclosure Document, which provides a wealth of information about BNI.

Step 5: Franchisee Validation and Securing Financing Your recruiter will facilitate interviews between you and BNI franchisees. You are free to interview any franchisees, past and present. We may offer suggestions about franchisees who have a similar background to you, who operate in a region in which you intend to start your business, or who are well-positioned to answer your specific questions about the brand.

Step 6: Discovery Day Once you’ve heard all the feedback you desire from franchisees, the next step is to visit our headquarters in Charlotte to meet the leadership and support team. Expect a full day of presentations about the brand’s direction and vision. You’ll get a great feel for the culture of the organization and the quality of the people who will be supporting your business.

Step 7: Approval The process described above is designed to help you thoroughly investigate BNI, and for BNI to understand your background, needs and goals. Once we reach this point, it’s time to make a decision about whether we are a good fit. To us, this means:

- You have determined your objectives can be met with a high degree of probability, and

- You fit the profile of a successful BNI Executive Director

- We share the same core values

Fill out the form on our site to get started!

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