Customer Advisory Boards

Resource Center

Welcome to the CAB Resource Center.

I am your CAB Strategy Advisor and I lead KickStart Alliance‘s CAB Practice. I’ve been facilitating CABs since 2002 – far more than 100 at last count. And, I’ve learned a few things along the way. This website is dedicated to being a repository of best practices and insights.

Here you’ll find my methodology and “lessons from the front lines” in my books, articles, videos, and my new CAB Masterclass. May they aid you in your journey to deliver a world-class CAB experience!

Services

In addition to CABs, I facilitate Partner Advisory Councils and Executive Roundtables. I also plan and guide Executive Strategy workshops (vision, corporate strategy, & go-to-market strategies) for CEOs and staff. For details on these, or for designing a custom service to fit your unique needs, give me a call.

Contact me to learn more.

Join our November CAB Masterclass Series

Learn the latest strategies to harness the full potential of your CAB:

Capture value and guidance from your best customers.
Drive strategy to align your vision.
Identify new business opportunities.
Discover synergies between you and your customers.

. . . and much more!

November 2019 classes are now open! Learn more

How Well Do You Really Know Your Customers?

Do you know the trends and drivers shaping their business decisions? Do you know where they plan to invest three years from now? Do you know how to stay relevant so you can remain a preferred provider to them?

A Customer Advisory Board is a strategy-level focus group – a sounding board for your leadership team to learn from and better understand your most strategic customers. Because whoever understands the customer best wins. A well-run CAB program holds the secret to your future success.

A Well-Run CAB Is Unlike Any Other Meeting.

Customers do 80% of the talking. You do 80% of the listening. Agendas are made up of discussion modules, not a parade of product update presentations.

Your CAB is your “inner sanctum”. It’s a small, intimate group of 8-12 senior decision-makers, plus your leadership team and a CAB facilitator.

This is a strategy-level focus group. Agendas are business topics. Use your CAB to better understand your best customers, where they are investing, and what you need to do to stay relevant.

Posts Trending Now

5 rules for designing your best Customer Advisory Board

by Mike Gospe | Jun 1, 2018 | Homepage, Planning, Strategies

Companies are now discovering the benefits of sponsoring a Customer Advisory Board (CAB). When used effectively, this critical engagement tool greatly helps CEOs and staff to develop, validate, and enhance crisp business strategies. Follow these 5 rules to design your best CAB program.

3 Tips for Building the Business Case for your Customer Advisory Board

by Mike Gospe | Mar 7, 2018 | CAB Business Case, Homepage

Building a business case to support your Customer Advisory Board (CAB) initiative is no small task. One of the biggest mistakes is when executives interpret the CAB to be merely a “marketing event”. When this assumption is made, companies dramatically limit the value and ROI that can be achieved. You need a business case to properly set expectations. These 3 initial tips will guide you in setting expectations effectively.

The perfect Customer Advisory Board agenda

by Mike Gospe | Jun 12, 2017 | Agendas, Homepage

Here’s the ideal agenda for your first CAB meeting.

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Alignment

“Mike’s leadership and perspective were instrumental in helping us design and execute a worldclass, global CAB program.”

– CMO, Aspect Communications

“Mike and his KickStart Alliance team helped us deliver world-class CABs for the past 5 years. He’s not just a facilitator; he acts as an extension of my leadership team.”

– CEO, NFI

“Our CAB program is one of our strategic initiatives, but it needed some retooling. Mike jumped in and energized our CAB. We strengthened our connection to our customers and doubled our business with them.”

– SVP Sales, Pitney Bowes

“Mike has been core to our CAB for several years. He’s more than a facilitator; he partners with us every step of the way. And, our advisors love the interaction.”

– CEO, Spectracom

“Mike provided terrific support for our first ever Customer Advisory Forum. His ability to manage content, participation and flow around topics oriented to an executive audience led to important insights and positive feedback from all of our participants.”

– CEO, Purolator

“Mike brought our client advisory board to life. His expertise in enabling us to gain valuable insights and deepen relationships is truly unique. Mike delivered an absolute win for us and our most important customers.”

– GM, Availity

“Mike Gospe brought a high-energy, personable style to our CAB as our facilitator. His engagement with our C-suite customer leaders was spot-on, and he delivered a world-class experience.”

– EVP, HCL

“Mike Gospe is a pleasure to work with. He not only delivered a world-class CAB experience for our customers, he facilitated an internal planning meeting as well as an industry forum for us. He’s an all-around expert and brings great experience and perspective to our customer interactions.”

– CAB Executive Sponsor, Waters