BSCAI offers Peer Groups that provide members with an avenue to freely share ideas, information and options in a group setting. BSCAI staff will help to match peers in different or non-competitive areas of the country. Tools and resources will be provided to help foster a close-knit group that addresses current issues. The goal of this program is to grow together in the industry. These intentionally planned groups are intended to provide members with an avenue to freely share ideas, information and options amongst themselves.
Contracting Profits, a leading resource for building service contractors, recently published a three-part series in August 2019 detailing why peers groups are so valuable to the industry:
- Part One: With Peer Groups, BSCs Don’t Go It Alone: read more.
- Part Two: Networking With Contemporaries Requires Constant Communication: read more.
- Part Three: Grow Peer Group Membership Slowly: read more.
Key Benefits:
Key benefits of joining or creating a BSCAI Peer Group include:
- Gain insight into how similar companies operate
- Evaluate top management of other peer group companies
- Open atmosphere with diverse viewpoints
- Situational knowledge
- Industry knowledge
- Confidential sounding board
- Advisory resource
- Enhanced friendships/personal relationships
- Group accountability
- Unvarnished feedback
- Geographical insight
Participation:
Peer Groups form organically with the help of BSCAI staff. Each member firm is allowed one company participant in a Peer Group. It is typically the Owner or CEO. The group will enter into an Agreement with the other members to address certain points such as membership, protocol, meeting frequency, confidentiality and other operational parameters.
Group Responbilities:
Each peer group member participant must fulfill his or her responsibility by:
- Attending scheduled peer group meetings
- Attending additional scheduled meetings outside of the peer group setting. The dates and locations of additional meetings will be determined each year at the BSCAI Annual Convention & Trade Show committee meetings.
- Actively give advice and participate in the advance of the peer group
- No active business competition with another member within the peer group
- A member of good standing in the Building Services Contractor Association International (BSCAI)
- Attend and actively participate in any onsite meetings or audits of fellow peer group companies
- Refrain from having cliques with the peer group
- Peer group audits and/or meeting dates for balance of year to be formed at the BSCAI Annual Convention and Trade Show
- Agree to copy all peer group members of communication between individual members
- Maintain complete disclosure to peer group members
- Discuss any ill feelings or disagreements directly with the party involved. No discussions of the disagreement to occur outside of the peer group.
- Acceptance of others for differences in attitudes and/or opinions.
- All information of any member in the peer group is strictly confidential
Guidelines:
- All incurred expenses to attend audits or meetings to be borne by each individual peer group member
- Peer group audits and/or meeting dates for balance of year to be formed at the BSCAI Annual Convention and Trade Show
- Host company will provide the evening meal on the last night of the audit
- Suggestions and comments by auditing members will be submitted to the host company on the last day of the audit
Suggestions:
- Three or more members (four is ideal) so each company is visited once every two years
- Ability to meet in person two times per year, two and a half days at a time
- Ability to travel to the host location
- Members should not service the same geographical area
- The peer group participant should have controlling interest in the company
- Member should have similar service offerings