Gather around everyone.  I have some great news I’d like to share with you.  Cue the spotlight and drum roll.  We at Beacon Results are proud to announce our partnership with our friends at Mission Met.  Cue trumpets and confetti.  The crowd roars with approval until one voice way in the back of the crowd says, “That’s great news.  But who is Mission Met and why partner with them?”  That’s a great question.

 

One of our foundational beliefs is that all conflict exists in the absence of a great conversation.  And while I’d love to take credit for being the first to think of that clever saying, that just wouldn’t be right of me.  That credit goes to my good friend Eric Ryan, Founding Partner at Mission Met.  I got to know Eric back near the beginning of the century when I first started Beacon Results.  At that time, I was just venturing into the world of strategic planning and Eric served as a mentor of sorts.  We’ve stayed in touch over the years looking for opportunities to collaborate on projects or just act as thought partners.  One thing I’ve come to appreciate most about Eric is his alignment with that saying about conflict and conversation.

 

As much as I think he’s a great guy, that’s not the only reason, or the main reason we’ve chosen to partner with Mission Met.  This was a business decision.  And it was a decision to take advantage of their amazing cloud-based software that they’ve designed that we believe will make many of our clients even more effective and productive.  And since it’s his company’s software I think this is where I step aside and let Eric take it from here.  Everyone, meet Eric Ryan.

 

Whoa, Mike, we’ve known each other since near the turn of the century? That’s crazy. Time flies, my friend…

 

You’re kind enough to attribute that great quote (“conflict exists in the absence of a great conversation”) to me. Turns out that I “harvested” it from a great mentor of mine, Chris Barrow. But the quote sure is true. Imagine if the right and left, the Russians and Ukranians, some people in your family or workplace, etc. were engaged in great conversations. Conflict would surely be reduced…

 

We at Mission Met are thrilled to be partnering with you and Beacon. Your customer-centered approach and your intent to create practical solutions totally aligns with us.

 

You mentioned our software, Mike. Well, like you and Beacon, we have been creating strategic plans for nearly twenty-five years. A few years ago we realized that there was probably a better way of documenting and tracking a strategic plan than in Word or Google Docs. And so we created our own cloud-based strategic planning software, Mission Met Center, for small and medium-sized nonprofits and organizations. Over the years we’ve learned that our initial hunch was spot on – software catalyzes strategic planning success. Our customers succeed with their planning efforts in direct relation to their engagement with the software tool. It’s been awesome to watch.

 

If you’d like to learn more about the software then be sure to reach out to Mike and he can help you give it a whirl.

 

Thanks Eric.  There you have it.  We’re excited because of the quality of the partnership to benefit our clients.  And like he said, if you’d like to know more about how it all fits together just let me know.  In the meantime expect more great conversations from us here at Beacon.