Here’s a sketch of the scene:

Nearly 300 senior executives attend four times per year. The featured C-suite speakers come from the ranks of attendees. The topics are picked from a survey of the region’s executive population at the beginning of each calendar year.

Every detail from the invitations to registration to signage has received white glove care. Networking begins at 7:00 AM. People come early. The program starts on time—8:00 AM sharp. It begins with a flourish in the fully firm-branded ballroom: hand-picked music gives way to hand-selected movie clips playing on a giant screen, all introducing the topic of the day in some clever way.

Speakers are coached in advance. They have 30 minutes each. 30 minutes are left for Q&A. Every program ends with a twist to make attendees smile. The program ends on time at 9:30 AM, every time. But people leave late.

Attendees are polled at the end of each event to measure satisfaction with the topic, the speaker, the little details. Those who couldn’t come have access to a videotape recap on the firm’s website—so they can see what they missed, when they want.

The executives in the community begin to refer to The Power Breakfast by its made up name. The word on the street is: “nobody does events like your firm.” Countless relationships are formed and strengthened at the quarterly event. And over the years, a couple of dozen A-list prospects are introduced to the way the firm does business as featured speakers at the event.

View full article