The Peering Podcast

[00:00:36] Mike Richardson: Hey everybody. Welcome back to another episode of the Peering Podcast, and I'm really excited today. To have a very good friend and colleague of mine with us as a special guest, Philip Guino American in Paris. We'll find out more about that in a moment. He's been all over the world. I lose count of how many languages he speaks.

It's at least three, if not four. If not five. He's got a fantastic career. We'll, more, we'll hear more about that in a moment. Uh, we're here today to peer into. The challenges of global executives and why, therefore, they might be really interested to participate in a global executive forum that we're launching inside of ref, a peer forum specifically for global executives.

Uh, mastering the challenge of, of, of all that that entails. They may be, you know, in far-flung places, traveling so much with a, a crazy schedule that they just can't participate in a local, in-person peer forum. And so Philip here is, uh, our forum leader for the Global Executive Forum, which I'm really excited about.

Welcome, Phillip.

[00:01:54] Philip Guarino: thanks so much, Mike, for the really kind intro and uh, really a pleasure to be here on, on the podcast.

[00:02:00] Mike Richardson: Yeah, everybody in a post COVID world, Philip is one of those people that I feel I know incredibly well. We've been working together for probably two or three years. We'll talk about how we met in a moment, and we've never actually met in person, so I.

[00:02:15] Philip Guarino: Well, we'll change that. We'll change that.

[00:02:18] Mike Richardson: So I have no idea how tall he really is or, and he, no idea how tall or short I really am.

Uh, but we, uh, we get on like a house on fire. So perhaps Philip, let's talk about, uh, can you share with everybody how did you and I first meet?

[00:02:33] Philip Guarino: Oh, it was funny. So,I've been a member of, uh, an organization called Virtual Advisory Board, uh, which is a fantastic organization, uh, which essentially, uh, is for. Folks who want to improve their board governance skills and network with other folks that are looking for board roles. And the founder, mark Hamill, was the connection point and.

[00:02:59] Mike Richardson: quite a character we love,

[00:03:01] Philip Guarino: He's definitely character. Uh, he's, and I'm sure he's, uh, but he's, he's a fantastic character and, um, so he has, you know, he introduced me to, to ref and, uh, and I think we, we had our fir the first conversation was with you and, and, and, and the CEO of, of, uh, of Rev. And, you know, you know, mark, he has this.

Really uncanny ability to connect people who should know each other. Um, and I really admire that. So if

[00:03:30] Mike Richardson: So a shout out to Mark Hamill already. I hope

[00:03:33] Philip Guarino: Oh, I know, I know, I know, I know. It's, uh.

[00:03:36] Mike Richardson: VAB, everybody, virtual advisory Board Mark. Mark is one of those people that just has ions in all kinds of different fires and everybody, when REF Global, uh, wanted to expand into the uk. They sort of tapped me on the shoulder to help lead that charge.

They found Mark Hamill as a, uh, a local, um, headhunter and, uh, we worked with Mark to find potential forum leaders. He. He introduced us. In addition to that, he introduced us to Philip, who's based in Paris, and said, Hey, here's someone else you ought to talk to. 'cause he could be, you know, a very, very great member of the team.

And uh, so Mark introduced us to all these potential partners and forum leaders, and. We had all these in, in, you know, introductory calls and things, and then I think the light bulb gradually came on with Mark. It's like, well, hang on a minute. Why don't I become the UK partner? Uh, uh, because this is such a great business.

And anyway, as a, as a byproduct of all of that, he introduced, uh, us To you, Phillip, and you, how long have you been based in Paris, Philip,

[00:04:46] Philip Guarino: Uh, 12 years now.

[00:04:47] Mike Richardson: and what took you there?

[00:04:49] Philip Guarino: What took me here, it was interesting. I, at the time I was doing consulting work with, uh, a lot of firms in the luxury sector. And that was not just, not just fashion, but uh, you know, cars and, and hotels, et cetera. And it was a time when there was some consolidation in the market and, uh, a lot of the French companies were actually buying, clients.

So I was renting an apartment in Milan. And,

[00:05:15] Mike Richardson: Ah.

[00:05:16] Philip Guarino: and then traveling a week, a month to Paris in a hotel. Then two, then three. And then the question became why am I paying for a place there when I should, when I could just basically, and most of my time is being spent in Paris. And as life is, as, as you know, you know, Mike, one, one thing leads to another and then, and then the years go and go by

[00:05:40] Mike Richardson: And where are you

[00:05:41] Philip Guarino: and I'm still here.

[00:05:42] Mike Richardson: Where are you from originally, Phillip?

[00:05:43] Philip Guarino: I'm originally from Boston. Yeah. So, but I've been.

[00:05:47] Mike Richardson: you, when did you first leave the USA?

[00:05:50] Philip Guarino: Ooh, uh, when I was young, uh, lived in Argentina for several years and, um, then, uh, did my education in the States. Went back to Argentina for work. Um, I'll tell you about that afterward. But, um, and then, uh, lived in Italy, uh, for a few years before coming to to France, and uh, so I've been around a little bit.

[00:06:16] Mike Richardson: Helps explain why he speaks so many languages, everybody.

[00:06:19] Philip Guarino: a couple.

[00:06:20] Mike Richardson: So, uh, so perhaps, uh, actually let's keep going on that, Philip. So. Tell us about your career path. How did you get to where you are today? We'll talk more in a moment about what you are doing presently, but how did you, what was your career path as a global executive yourself, and how did you get to where you are today?

[00:06:38] Philip Guarino: so I grew up, um, it kind of, and the reason why I bring this up is it really was kind of what colored my experience was. I grew up in a bicultural home, my father's Italian and my mother's American. And, uh, my, my father grew up in Argentina and my, my aunts were born in Argentina, so I never really understood what, you know, I'm three or four years old.

Why, why am I hearing three languages and why, you know. Why, what is this thing about Argentina and where is Argentina and where is Italy? And I remember, you know, my fascination with maps as a, as a, you know, as a little child. And, I think that really was the trigger to really sensitize, uh, you know, it sensitized me too.

Uh, to different cultures and different languages, and then that early exposure made me really curious about, you know, why people think and operate differently, right? So that curiosity kinda carried through my life. Um, as I said, I lived in Argentina, then Italy, and I've been here in France for 12 years.

And, you know, I've, through work, I mean, I think, and through work and then also for, for pleasure. 'cause I needed to burn all of my frequent flyer miles that I got from thanks to my, my jobs. Um, you know, I think I've done, I think I'm up to 140 countries, something

like that, which has been a blast, a blast.

[00:08:01] Mike Richardson: 40 countries. You

[00:08:02] Philip Guarino: Yeah. Crazy, crazy.

[00:08:04] Mike Richardson: to quite a few, but it's not that many.

[00:08:06] Philip Guarino: No, it's fun. It, it was, it was fun. It was fun when the frequent flyer game was, was, was actually really, uh, easier to work. so, you know, and I've worked in like, I don't know, probably like 45 or 50 I think. Um, so when you, I guess when you, when you spend that much time traveling, um.

Across borders and you have to, you know, inside companies with leadership teams and you know, across business cultures, you really become attuned to nuance. And so basically, I studied international relations at Harvard and then I did my MBA at Wharton in international management and entrepreneurship.

I swear it was all a pro, it was all a product of, of having, uh, strict Italian grandparents and, uh, well opening my eyes to the world, right? So.

[00:08:54] Mike Richardson: Nice.

[00:08:55] Philip Guarino: But, but the real education started, like right when I got like out of college. my first job was at Bose Corporation and Bose Music Systems and, you know, 22 years old.

And I, I, I was brought in, uh, to help reestablish their business across Latin America and, and the Caribbean and the business had basically been dormant since the 1970s. And so, you know, every country people think of Latin America as a monolith. It's absolutely not. I mean, Mexico has absolutely nothing to do with Argentina except for a similar, you know, same language, but different words, you know, different, you know?

[00:09:31] Mike Richardson: quilt of, of different countries and cultures and histories

[00:09:36] Philip Guarino: Yeah. Yes. And so, you know, it was, it was an incredible experience, you know, to kind of come in and, and kind of, kind of take, take a look at things. And, and I, I was on the fast learning curve because we were a very lean team. So after Bose, I went to Wharton and went back to Bose and did strategy work with their retail division.

Rolled out their retail division, which. Grew to like a hundred million dollar business in a short period of time. And, um, I, uh, then, you know, started my own company, uh, in the US importing. Uh, importing high-end kitchens and dealing with impoverished, uh, American clients,

[00:10:23] Mike Richardson: Right.

[00:10:23] Philip Guarino: a few, and a few, uh, uh, uh, a few, uh, more companies that I've, I, I founded, uh, afterward were in this management consulting space, uh, both in Europe and the us and then most recently launched an AI firm.

Uh, basically working, uh, we were predicting consumer trends and consumer tastes for, uh, the broad, you know, major lo uh, global brands. So we work with companies like Ferrari and Burberry and,

[00:10:53] Mike Richardson: Wow.

[00:10:54] Philip Guarino: uh, some others to, uh, a lot of fun. So these days. Um, I'm basically working advising founders, um, you know, supporting executives and helping organizations navigate international growth.

Um, so, uh, and that's been, it's been, it's, it's a lot of fun. Um, primarily the, the clients are in the, the tech, uh, space, but, but uh, also in some other more traditional sectors. Yeah.

[00:11:26] Mike Richardson: Yeah. Brilliant. And, uh, and, uh, you've, you've launched this business called Alisa,

[00:11:32] Philip Guarino: Exactly.

[00:11:33] Mike Richardson: which is what that does. Is that correct?

[00:11:35] Philip Guarino: Yeah. Yeah. Well, we, we, uh, I've been working with my business partner, um, Renee Hartman. Uh, she and I have worked together, um, for the past maybe 15 years on, on, uh, two different companies. And we launched this, uh, business catalyst to primarily focus this on, uh, helping European companies. Uh.

Uh, uh, enter the US market. Um, a lot of them want to want to go and they don't know where to start or they wanna avoid missteps. And so that's, that's been, it's, it's a lot of fun. And then we also do a lot, a lot of work with governance issues. Um, you know, basically how do you use advisory boards to make inroads into a new, into a new market.

So,

[00:12:20] Mike Richardson: And another shout out to Renee Hartman. Uh, Renee and I serve on a, on an advisory board Together, we have for, I think probably a year or two already. That's always a lot of fun to be together. It's a, uh, of all things. It's a women's fashion retail, uh, startup from South America that is now gaining a foothold here in the USA and, uh, of course, Renee is based in Europe, but has a, has a retail fashion background, so brings an awful lot of insight to that.

So it's great working with her. Well con congratulations on your new business, Lysa. I'm sure it's gonna be a phenomenal success. Let's join up some more dots here. Philip, you are very much on the leading edge of AI thinking, right? You are also part of, what's it called? The data sciences, Harvard. What's that called again?

[00:13:09] Philip Guarino: Right, the Harvard Data Science Review. So it's um, it's uh, it's a fantastic, uh, publication. It was founded by Shali Meg, who was the former, uh, Dean of Faculty of Arts and Sciences at Harvard, and he is the most hilarious guy. When you think of. A statistician, you don't think, you don't think funny, uh uh, funny, someone that you're gonna laugh with for, you know, an hour or an end at a time.

But the publication is, is, uh, is really interdisciplinary and it really kind of seeks to democratize, uh, ai. So it's not a data science per se, it's more of social impact. What are some of the things we need to think about? Um, he even writes some hilarious articles on how to, how to make your okra crunchy using ai.

So, I mean, it's very quirky and very funny, so I, it's highly suggest, um, recommend people to, to check it

[00:14:10] Mike Richardson: So the Harvard Data Science Review and, and what, what's your role with

that,

[00:14:14] Philip Guarino: Yeah, so, so I'm on the advisory board, uh, and, um, you know, most of the work that I've done is really kind of connecting folks with, HDSR. Uh, and that's resulted in a number of, uh, of some superb, superb people, uh, publishing some articles. Uh, really been a lot of fun. Really a

[00:14:36] Mike Richardson: So HDSR, everybody, however, DA Data Science review, and then also Philip. For many years, not least of all, because you're, well, of course, because you're an alumni yourself of Harvard, you've been very much involved with Harvard alumni entrepreneurs. Tell us about that.

[00:14:54] Philip Guarino: exactly. Yeah. So I've been a member of the organization for. A long time. Uh, the Harvard Alumni Entrepreneurs is, um, is the university's largest, uh, uh, largest alumni association and has about 22,000, uh, members in about, I think it's, we're up to like 115 countries. Uh, and it's really focused on, on accompanying, uh, uh, entrepreneurs along every step of their journey.

I mean, a lot of them are early stage, but a lot of. Are very well developed. And so this programming, uh, that we do, uh, there is, um, uh, all kinds of programming on, you know, how to raise funding, et cetera, et cetera. And I lead their podcast, uh, I I was lured into that by, by the President Regina Ryan. Uh, uh.

[00:15:46] Mike Richardson: Shout out to Regina.

[00:15:48] Philip Guarino: Yeah. Shout out to Regina, right? And, uh, absolutely. And uh, I had come up with an idea and I said, Hey, what about if we do a podcast? And she said, yeah, when do you wanna start? I said, no, wait a second here. Uh, she said, no, no, that's not how, the way that works. You suggested it. You gotta go with it. So here we

[00:16:05] Mike Richardson: And you're on the board. You're on the board of Harvard alumni entrepreneurs

[00:16:10] Philip Guarino: I am, yes. Globally. Yes.

[00:16:12] Mike Richardson: you also lead the chapter kind of in Europe, correct?

[00:16:17] Philip Guarino: Yeah, we have a European, uh, we, we folded all of the, i I was in charge of the, the French chapter, but we've kind of folded all of that into Pan Europe since our programming these days is really, uh, everything has gone virtual since the pandemic.

[00:16:34] Mike Richardson: Brilliant. So that, that's why everybody was so excited that, that Philip raised his hand actually a few years ago now. Uh, um, and, and now we're really getting into gear with this. Raised his hand, you know, expressing interest in, Hey, how bad if we were to do a virtual. Peer forum specifically for global executive leaders who would really struggle to commit to the more normal engagement in a peer forum, which tends to be, you know, localized face-to-face.

Get together in person, you know, once a month for half a day. Um, how about if we were to make sure that we had a virtual option for those kinds of global executives that couldn't commit to that, so that they don't have to miss out on the experience. Tell us a little bit more, Philip, about the sort of germination of this idea in your, in your mind and drawing from your own experience.

[00:17:33] Philip Guarino: Yeah. I mean, I think I, I, I mean if I, if I, I guess when I look at, when I look at, uh, folks that are working internationally, I mean, there, there, there are some constants and then there are some new things, right? The constant is that. Um, and there are challenges that have always existed, right? So the timeless challenge is that, you know, when you're operating internationally, you're not just dealing with, with different markets, you're dealing with different contexts all the time.

So you have cultural expectations, you have decision making styles, you have, uh, even the definition of urgency. It.

[00:18:10] Mike Richardson: Yep. Substantially from

[00:18:13] Philip Guarino: Absolutely. So you have to be really intellectually and culturally nimble to navigate all of these. I think what's different about, working internationally these days is the velocity of change.

[00:18:28] Mike Richardson: Yep.

[00:18:28] Philip Guarino: Technology, especially like AI is really accelerating, everything. The cycles are faster, the disruptions are bigger, and leaders just really constantly have to adapt all the time.

So, you know, add to that, the geopolitical and the economic uncertainty and so it's higher risk, more volatility. More demands. And that's exactly where I think that the Pure Forum plays so wonderfully, uh, to serve the needs of global executives. Because when leaders have to make decisions in, in these. And, and, and, and in these environments of, you know, rapidly shifting kind of dynamics, you know, having a trusted group of peers that understand this have a real, real understanding of what those dynamics are.

It really could help 'em make clearer decisions, but also to feel like, feel less isolated because if you're on the road all the time, it's a different life and very demanding. So.

[00:19:32] Mike Richardson: yeah. Yeah.

[00:19:33] Philip Guarino: How I, you know, kind of see it.

[00:19:35] Mike Richardson: Yeah, I'll pick up on that, that word isolation that you just used there. I, I did a big event locally here, Philip, yesterday, I think you were aware of it. I did a big, uh, CEO C-suite summit, uh, just a few miles away in my local area. I live in a wine district, everybody called Temecula Valley, and there isn't, there isn't this fantastic base of, of business here above wineries, uh, manufacturing and software and services.

You name it, we've got it. But because we're a smaller market, you know, a little bit off the beaten track, um, in the sort of triangulation between Los Angeles, San Diego and Palm Springs, there isn't much of an ecosystem here in support of sort of mid-market, you know, CEOs and C-suite executives. So we had more than a hundred people in the room yesterday, and obviously I sort of, I sort of, you know, opened up and, and set the context and, and I.

Got to the same question of why. Why is it that peer forums, peer groups, peer advisory boards have risen up as a new category of leadership development? Everybody and I, I went to a survey last year. By Korn Ferry, I think, of 10,000 global, uh, CEOs and executives, and they wrote a blog focused on the USA element of that.

And they said, um, that the blog was entitled, it's Lonely at the Top. And the nugget from the research that they focused on was that 71% of American CEOs and, and by the way, 65% of American senior executives, uh, self, self-report that they experience imposter syndrome.

[00:21:25] Philip Guarino: Hmm.

[00:21:25] Mike Richardson: In other words, they're kind of faking it till they make it.

And, and when they got into the blog entitled, it's Lonely at the Top, it was really, it was really all about that. And so I, by a show of hands in the room yesterday, I asked everybody, you know, who can identify with that? At least 80% of the hands went up.

It is, you know, it's lonely at the top isn't just a cliche, it's a reality. And I remember it well from my own days as a global executive. You know, I ended up, as you know, well, I ended up running the aerospace division of a British public company that you've probably never heard of called Spnt initially from the uk, was traveling the world to serve. You know, the global manufacturers, of course, went to Seattle, Boeing many, many, many times, but the South of France to Airbus Industries and to lose and into Germany, to Deutsche, Airbus, you know, the German partner in Airbus Industries.

Out to, um, Brazil for Embraer and, you know, out to Asia Pacific in service of the global airlines. And, and, and of course, you know, Europe and the, and the USA for the Global Airlines and the global militaries. Um, we, we were in the business of not just commercial aviation, but military aviation, making actuation systems for jet fighters and cargo transports and all that kind of stuff.

So I was all over the place all the time. And I was, you know, having to do very entrepreneurial, innovative, high stakes, um, you know, technology stuff in a public company share price sensitive environment. So I constantly felt like I was in a pressure cooker. I constantly was on a plane. And I really didn't feel like I had any peers at all that I could really turn to and have a sort of whites of the eyes conversation with some degree of, you know, confidentiality and safety and, and transparency.

I, I really didn't, I felt incredibly lonely on this crazy journey that I was on. And, and I'm guessing you recognize that in your background too.

[00:23:43] Philip Guarino: Yeah, it's interesting because, um, you know, going back to our initial conversation, you know, when Mark Amel made the introduction, I had

[00:23:51] Mike Richardson: Yeah.

[00:23:52] Philip Guarino: had, um, uh, uh, I, I immediately understood the value. Of a peer forum. I had, uh, been part of a peer forum, uh, maybe 15 years ago, uh, in a business that I had. And it was by no means as sophisticated as, as, as refs, uh, as structure, uh, structured forum.

But I have to say that. That experience really was a game changer. It really, really was to be able to meet with people that were not competitors, to be open to, to share. Um. It, it was a real game changer. And so, you know, being able to, to, to apply, apply this to, uh, the challenges that international executives face, it's kind of like a, it's a, it's a, it's a wonderful, uh, kind of experience to, uh, uh, to have, and, and that I see that others, uh, absolutely enjoy.

[00:24:58] Mike Richardson: Yeah. And, and, uh, you know, it's always heartwarming. Uh, part of the, the event yesterday was we launched, I launched a forum here for CEOs, a local in-person forum. Very different from what we're talking about. We're talking about a global virtual forum, but I launched a local in-person forum for CEOs here, uh, about a year ago.

And so yesterday I, I made a fuss about the fact that it's our one year anniversary, as it were. And, and we had some, uh, some of the members, you know, speaking from the main stage and that kind of thing, and one of the, one of the speaker members. Very recently sort of fessed up, you know, to the group that he said, you know, a year ago when I was coming on board, I was very skeptical about this.

He's, he's, uh, he's a Marine, you know, uh, you, you are never an ex-Marine, are you? Um, uh, once a Marine. Always a Marine. Uh, he was a, a, a helicopter pilot. Um, uh, ended up actually flying Marine one. Uh, you know, presidential helicopters, so incredibly capable guy, uh, had of course phenomenal training and development, you know, throughout his whole career, not least of all in the military, of course.

And then he bought, of all things he. The local Chick filet, uh, franchise here in the local area and has been very successful with it. Chick-fil-A is a, you know, a top shelf brand, uh, and, and he's had plenty of training through them. So a year ago when he joined, when he was considering joining the group, he was kind of, um.

Very much on the fence for a while. He, he just fessed up. He said, Mike, I was incredibly skeptical a year ago. You know, what, what, what the heck am I gonna learn from this? What, what the heck is this gonna give me that I haven't already had? Or I can get a ton of other places. And, uh, it was in last month's meeting, you know, one year later that he fessed up to the group and he said, you know, I've gone from being.

A skeptic to an advocate. He said, this is, this has absolutely amazed me on how valuable this has been, uh, beyond, you know, my expectations, you know, wildly. And, um, uh, it, it was just so heartwarming to hear that. And, you know, I, I've been doing this work for 23, 24 years. And I've, I've heard that, you know, quite frequently those kinds of, of reactions, you know, once someone's been in it a while.

So, um, so tell us more about what we're, what we're gonna do, Philip. What's the, what's the format, how does it, um, how does it unfold from here?

[00:27:42] Philip Guarino: Right, so, so the way that the Global Executive Forum works is it's a monthly meeting of about three hours, uh, and, um. It's structured, uh, in a, a very, uh, deliberate manner where the first hour or so we, we have a special guest, uh, that will come in and, and talk about, um, uh, uh, uh, whatever relevant, pertinent issue.

Uh.

[00:28:12] Mike Richardson: the, do the educational component, a speaker?

[00:28:15] Philip Guarino: Exactly. And then we move on to a case method where each participant brings, uh, brings. Their challenge. And what's fascinating about it is that when the discussion ensues, um, it takes on so many new dimensions.

[00:28:36] Mike Richardson: Yep.

[00:28:36] Philip Guarino: Oh, I hadn't thought about that. Oh, I hadn't thought about that. And uh, and then you have people and then, or you have people saying, wow.

I work at in investment banking and you work in manufacturing, but we have exactly the same challenges. And, uh, that's where the real magic, I think happens is, is in the, in the collective sharing and as, as ref refers to it, as collective intelligence, where the learning comes, uh, yeah.

[00:29:07] Mike Richardson: Yeah. And so Philip and I, uh, actually piloted and, and prototyped this everybody, uh, a few months back with about 10 participants across the course of, uh, about three months. And, um, uh, with, actually in that case, we did it weekly, just as the pilot, just as the prototype. And, uh, uh, so we, we took that, uh, cohort, if you like, that.

Peer forum through the experience and every week we would process a different case, uh, where we've prepared and framed it in advance with the member bringing it. Uh, and, and it would be, you know, a real life, real world real issue, challenge, problem, opportunity, anything from business, professional development, personal growth, or life.

Um, you know, I've been doing this 23 years, 24 years, and by and large, you know, I've heard everything from, you know, all the business things you could expect. Should I hire, should I fire, should I stay? Should I go, should I, should I buy, should I sell all the way through to, you know, personal things like, uh, I've just discovered my teenage son is on drugs.

What the heck do I do? And everything in between, you know, health, wealth, love, life, marriage, divorce, you name it. Because, and I, I remember this very well from my own experience, you know, the, the, the business professional personal life. Uh, lanes of our experience and our journey are so interwoven, um, and so tangled up.

They're very inseparable. I mean, I, you know, like you, I immigrated from the UK with my wife and two young boys. We came out to the USA on a four year work permit. Uh, before that ran out, we managed to get our green cards. Um, then nine 11 happened. I got my green card two months before nine 11. Uh, nine 11 happened.

And, uh, the, this corporation that I worked for, you know, their share price was in big trouble. Uh, so I decided to pivot and go independent and do my own thing. And, you know, all of those. Choice points, all of those forks in the road, all of those, uh, decision points, you know, were a tangled web of business, professional, personal life, and so, uh, a peer forum is a place where you can bring all of it.

It's totally confidential. There are no competitors in the room. Uh, so that everybody can be totally transparent and, uh, be of service to each other. As you said, tapping into the power of peers and, and generating this collective intelligence, as we call it, lead us, powered by collective intelligence. And it's, uh, it's, it's a wonderful experience, isn't it, Philip?

[00:32:06] Philip Guarino: It really is. And, and I think, uh, as you mentioned on so many different levels, uh, you know, in the intersection of, in our business life, our personal life and, uh, you know, even, even, you know, health and, uh, so it's, it, it really is a powerful, powerful experience.

[00:32:26] Mike Richardson: Yeah, and the power of it. Everybody comes from the, the diversity of the members. And so

[00:32:34] Philip Guarino: Very true.

[00:32:34] Mike Richardson: we're putting together here a group of, you know, plus or minus 15 very diverse, uh, members from diverse industries, diverse kinds of businesses. Uh, diverse places, you know, around the world. Obviously, you know, managing time zones as best we can. Um, the more diversity, the better everybody, because that's where the power of peers comes from. And so we want high tech, low tech. We want old economy, new economy. We want manufacturing software services, uh, you know, hospitality, you name it. Um, we want diversity of tenure. Uh, we may be people that are at the beginnings of their journey.

We maybe have people at the tail end of their journey. We want diversity of age, ethnicity, of course, gender.

[00:33:26] Philip Guarino: Mm-hmm.

[00:33:26] Mike Richardson: Personality type everything because the more diversity, the better. And that's where the power of peers and the collective intelligence comes from. And as Philip said, a virtual meeting, of course, um, three hours once a month.

Um, facilitated across those different elements that, that Philip mentioned. And, and the core of the core of the core, as we call it, is, is what we call the case, um, uh, where members are bringing those real world, real life real issues, challenges, problems and opportunities framed and prepared in advance.

And, and what we find Philip, don't we, is that it becomes a sort of hall of mirrors. So. Every question that a member asks of the member bringing the case doesn't just land on the member bringing the case. It reverberates around the hall of mirrors and it lands on everybody, including the person that just asked it every, uh, piece of input, suggestion, ideation, experience, story.

Recommendation that, that, that members give to the member. Bringing the case doesn't just land on that member. It reverberates around the hall of mirrors. It lands on everybody and person, including the person that just said it. And so it becomes this very powerful hall of mirrors, everybody, where everybody takes away value from every case that gets processed, whether it was their case or not.

And that's the, that's the beauty of it, isn't it, Philip? We saw that a lot, didn't we? When we, uh, were doing the prototype and the

[00:35:00] Philip Guarino: Yes, yes, yes. And you know, the comments of, uh, the comments of, wow, I experienced that too. And, oh, that made me think of something that, uh, and these were people that weren't necessarily. You know, presenting their case. They were, they were listening and a light bulb went off and said, thank you so much for sharing that, because it really helped me in what, in, in, in, in an issue that I'm going through right now.

And so it's, and I also think there's pollinization that happens in the process. So it's, um, it's a pretty rich experience.

[00:35:34] Mike Richardson: Yeah. And, and, and that richness comes from, from two things, everybody. Number one, it does come first and foremost from the diversity of the members, and secondarily, number two, it comes from the forum leader. Who is a catalyst for that in particular, when they have been on a journey like Philip has been on, you know, you, you've heard how many countries he's visited, uh, in, in, in business and in life.

How many languages he speaks, how many places he lived as a child and, and as an adult. And, um, and the different, uh, angles of things that he's involved with. You know, global communities like Harvard alumni, entrepreneurs leading edge, uh, thought leadership around ai with the Harvard Data Science Review, and some of the businesses that he's been involved with, with that are really.

Pushing the envelope on, on AI and, and now with Lysa Partners, you know, just helping, helping businesses, um, go global and, uh, leverage advisory boards and, uh, all the sort of, uh, conversations that can flow from that. Um, and, uh, we've got a nice, uh, group of, of, of support, uh, cast, we call them ambassadors, Philip.

[00:36:51] Philip Guarino: Yes. Mm-hmm.

[00:36:53] Mike Richardson: Who, um, who are part of the extended network here. Just tell us a little bit more about that.

[00:36:58] Philip Guarino: Right. So we have, uh, highly international, highly accomplished group of professionals that have, um, that really represent the, the, the, they live and breathe, if you will, the, the spirit of, of, of, of the global executive forum. Uh, and, um, you know, they become also involved in the the ref community as well.

it's really been a, an honor and a pleasure to work with them.

[00:37:25] Mike Richardson: yeah, yeah. And so they, um, they help extend the network. Everybody. They've got a whole bunch of contacts and connections. Um, they, they become sort of, um, an extension of the forum of members, uh, we call them ambassadors. Um, some of them have such specialist expertise that they will come and speak and get to know the members. Open their doors of their networks and those kinds of things. And so it becomes a really powerful ecosystem of, of people that really understand the global setting, really understand the challenges of being a global executive leader and, and really understand, um, you know, on a, on a sort of eye level, whites of the eyes, reality check of just, just what it's like, you know, leading, uh, the kinds of global businesses that.

That, uh, our members will have. So, um, we're getting launched in, in Q1. Everybody we are, um, we're in, we're in process right now of having conversations with prospective members. Uh, that's a very relaxed, you know, exploratory kind of conversation. Just a brief zoom call, um, uh, with Philip and or I, I'm obviously supporting Philip in this endeavor. Uh, and, uh, we'll be forming the, the group in Q1 and having the inaugural meeting and then rolling forwards from there on a monthly basis. And we're really excited about it. Um, if it's anything like, uh, all the other forums that. I've been involved with or launched over the years, or Philip's been involved with.

It'll be a very rich experience. Everybody incredibly valuable. And even if you are a little bit skeptical on the way in a few months later, trust me, you won't be just like that member that, uh, that I mentioned yesterday. Philip, what else? Uh, what else should we mention to everybody here? Anything else that we're missing or anything else that you wanted to share

[00:39:20] Philip Guarino: No, I think.

A unique experience, uh, that's a special experience. And, um, uh, if, um, I, I look forward to, uh, to, uh, to the launch. And, uh, in the meantime, speaking with anyone, uh, anyone who's, uh, who's interested.

[00:39:42] Mike Richardson: Yeah. So there we have it everybody. Another episode of the Peering podcast. Uh, we've been peering into the complexities of, uh, being a global executive leader. Uh, we've been peering into, uh, Philip's story and his journey. As, as a global executive leader himself, and also peering into the fantastic sort of triangulation of things that he's involved with now.

Everything from Harvard alumni, entrepreneurs, the leading edge of AI advisory boards globally, it's been a thrill. Philip, thank you so much for your commitment. To this, uh, global Executive Forum, and I'm really excited to see how that takes shape and then, uh, uh, you know, how it unfolds from there and all the great stories that we hear about how well it's doing.

And, uh, thanks for being here, everybody, uh, listening to this, uh, episode. And, uh, we'll see you next time. Thanks a lot. Bye-bye everybody.