Peerspectives prompts 'next-level thinking'

Owners or managers of local businesses who would like to learn from and share information with other business owners and managers may want to attend a Tuesday seminar in Kalispell.

The gathering is designed as a demonstration of the upcoming Peerspectives program, according to Chris Parson, Small Business Development Center director for northwest Montana.

To learn more, people can just show up at the Kalispell Chamber office Tuesday for the 3:30 to 5 p.m. meeting.

Peerspectives is aimed at businesses that employ from 10 to 99 employees and have revenue between $1 million and $5 million. Those businesses are typically referred to as second-stage businesses, Parson said.

Parson describes Peerspectives as a structured program for business owners.

“It allows them to work with their peers and work through decision-making and focusing on their next steps and goals,” he said. In entrepreneurial circles, it’s referred to as “next-level thinking,” Parson said.

Between 2000 and 2007, second-stage companies provided more than 40 percent of the jobs in the private sector in Flathead County, Parson said. Though only about 10 percent of the businesses in the county were classified as second-stage firms during that time, he said, they employ a lot of people. Across the United States in the same time frame, 13 percent of private businesses met the second-stage criteria and provided 43 percent of the private-sector jobs, he said.

Parson didn’t have an exact count, but estimated about 100 businesses in Flathead County meet the second-stage definition.

Parson and Jim Oliverson of Kalispell Regional Medical Center have completed training for the program. After learning about the program, Parson thought it would fit well in Kalispell. “We think there’s a gap in resources for these second-stage businesses,” he said.

“It’s all based on peer-on-peer learning,” Parson said. That approach is “starting to become a very prominent way for these second-stage business owners to learn from their peers’ experiences, rather than advice.” Those experiences are the “real focus” of the program.

The program is not industry specific, Parson said.

“These second-stage businesses actually have a lot of the same issues, regardless of what industry they are in,” he said.

He also pointed out that Peerspectives is not like the networking clubs that are established in the Flathead Valley.

“Those are good, but the difference is this is more of a learning experience,” Parson said. “They are going to gain knowledge from their peers to help them make decisions so they don’t make the same mistakes that others did.”

Tuesday’s overview session is free, but there is a charge to enroll in the year-long program. Members of any area chambers of commerce pay $750 for the 12 sessions, each of which runs four hours. The charge for non-Chamber members is $950. Class size is limited to 15.

The classes will run from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. one Tuesday a month for 12 months beginning Sept. 28.

To participate in Peerspectives, businesses must be “resident businesses,” Parson said. That means they need to do business in the Flathead Valley and their company headquarters must be in Montana.

For more information, contact Parson at 758-2802, sbdc@kalispellchamber.com or visit the SBDC website at www.nwmontanabusiness.com.

Besides the SBDC, other entities involved in Peerspectives training are the city of Kalispell, Montana West Economic Development, the Flathead Job Service office and the Kalispell Chamber of Commerce.