With BNI’s new Worldwide Referrals feature, international relationships are coming more into focus. While the model of BNI and the passion of our Members how allowed for the cultivation of cross-border business relationships in the past, they are know at the forefront of our growth.
Throughout the month of February, and in conjunction with International Networking Week (#INW19), Members and Directors across BNI have shown that your commitment is truly Changing the Way the World Does Business®.
We encourage you to expand your boundaries. By embracing the global reach of BNI, you’ll continue to grow your business, cultivate important skills and build cultural awareness. Below are a few examples of cross-border collaboration and the potential of global power teams.
3 Directors, 3 Continents, 1 Meeting
All BNI Members are connected through their belief in Givers Gain®. This philosophy, which extends across borders, provides a foundation for Members to find success and support on the international stage. Quite often, we hear stories of Members who have encountered unforeseen circumstances while traveling abroad. In many of these cases, issues are resolved through the intervention of a local BNI Member.
Conversely, many Members & Directors see opportunity in visiting local chapters when traveling abroad. Whether to provide inspiration, cultural understanding or to show appreciation, it is a testament to the investment that we all have in BNI.
Recently, during #INW19, the Connect70 chapter in New York City, NY hosted an incredible 3 Directors from 3 different continents. The Directors who attended this meeting were:
Ben Prusky – Director Consultant, Manhattan BNI (BNI U.S.)
Jay Kantawala – Director Consultant, Mumbai South & Member of BNI Sparkle (BNI India)
Nicolas Gorski – Director-Consultant, West France (BNI France)
While it was coincidence that each Director decided to visit Connect70 during the same week, it shows that Members are interested in the BNI Experience no matter where it takes place. And while they were in New York for completely different reasons, this allowed stories to be shared, connections to be built and 121s to be conducted.
When recapping their visit, each Director emphasized that the energy displayed during the visit was contagious, giving credence to the idea that every single chapter meeting has a purpose. Nicolas stated “I’ve visited chapters in New York, Bangkok, Los Angeles… and it’s always the same. BNI works worldwide.”
Another fun fact: Connect70 had 41 visitors on that day alone!
A Step towards the Future
Jens Michael Damm, Regional Director for South Jutland (BNI Denmark) recently took a big leap forward towards greater cross-border collaboration through his connection with Members & Directors of BNI Germany. Specifically, Members from Flensburg, Dresden & Munich. And despite a difference in native language (Danish vs. German), Jens Michael saw the potential of developing an international relationship with these connections that could lead to more business for both.
Ultimately, after sending an initial invitation, a small delegation arrived from Germany to attend the BNI INW chapter in South Jutland. Jens Michael believes that through a natural but careful integration, quarterly meetings between Members from both countries are entirely possible.
Ralph Bøttcher from BNI Husum in Germany agrees: “There are many business opportunities in the border region. Danish Members can help German companies enter the Danish market, and we in Germany can reciprocate through the philosophy of Givers Gain®. In order to overcome the linguistic challenges, we can speak English. Plus, we all speak the language of referrals. This is an exciting step forward!”
A New Global Power Team
In an exciting development, BNI Members have recently established a new Russian Global Power Team. This group is open to Members around the world who speak the Russian language and are interested in expanding their business internationally.
As of now, this group includes Members from Russia, Latvia and Israel. They meet online every two weeks (fortnightly) and the agenda is structured to mirror a typical BNI Meeting. If you are interested in joining this Power Team, please see additional details below:
- Meetings are conducted through “Zoom”. It is recommended that you have a strong internet connection, headphones and a webcam, if possible.
- 30 Second presentations should be prepared in advance and you should be ready to provide positive feedback to other members at the conclusion of their presentation.
- During each meeting, this group with have one member give a 10 minute presentation about his/her business.
- At the conclusion of each meeting, we encourage guests to provide feedback in order to help the development of the group.
- Please visit their Facebook Page
- Registration for this group is available here.
For a list of current members and their contact information, please click here.
International Joint Chapter Meeting
During #INW19, Leaders from BNI Brazil & BNI Canada coordinated a joint-chapter meeting by video conference. This was an incredible showcase for the power of worldwide referrals. We expect this to be a launching point for future collaboration.
Felel free to view to recording on BNI Brazil’s Facebook page.
