Why this network exists.
Most business networks optimise for size. Size is easy to sell and easy to measure, and it is the reason so few introductions inside them are worth taking.
Most networks optimise for size.
Size is the easiest thing to sell and the easiest thing to measure, which is why nearly every network is built around it. It is also why most introductions inside one are worth nothing: when anyone can join, being introduced tells you only that someone paid a fee.
A room is only useful if entry is decided.
MBH&Co is application-based because the value of the room is set by who is refused, not by who is admitted. Each category holds a limited number of seats, so members are complements rather than competitors, and a referral does not travel to three firms at once.
An introduction is a favour being asked of two people.
So both are asked. Nothing is forwarded to a member who has not seen the reason and agreed to it. Either side can decline without explanation, and declining carries no cost inside the network.
What happens after the introduction is the actual product.
A connection that is never followed up is indistinguishable from a lead list. Introductions are tracked through to what they became — a meeting, an engagement, or nothing — because that record is the only honest measure of whether the network works.
How an application is actually reviewed.
Application
Every application is read by a person. There is no automatic approval and no self-serve sign-up.
Verification
We confirm the business exists, is registered and in good standing, and does the work the application describes.
Category and fit
We check the category has an open seat, and that admitting the firm would not put two members in competition for the same introduction.
Conversation
A call, so both sides can decide. Applicants ask about the network; we ask what the firm would contribute, not only what it wants.
Decision
Admitted, waitlisted for a category that is currently full, or declined. Every applicant hears back either way.
Accountability
Verification is repeated at renewal, and membership is reviewed against the standards. A seat that stops meeting them is released rather than quietly left in place.
Where the network operates.
Greater Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada. The first seats in every category are being filled in the GTA. Membership is not restricted to it. More about the Toronto chapter.
What members are held to.
Membership is a standing invitation into other people’s businesses, so the conditions are explicit and they are enforced. The full list is on the standards page and in the code of conduct.
Every member started as an application.
MBH&Co is an application-based private network for selected service firms whose expertise, clients, and growth goals naturally complement one another.
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