Comparison · 9 material differences
The Conference Board Councils vs TEC Canada
This comparison was generated on request from the records. It carries no editorial verdict and is not indexed. The published comparisons are listed on the compare page.
Read down each column for one organization, across a row for the difference. A bronze mark at the left of a cell means the organizations differ on that row. A dash or “not published” means the organization does not disclose the fact — it is not a zero.
Verified September 2026
Peer advisory
Verified September 2026 The Conference Board Councils
Senior functional executives and C-suite officers at large organisations, joining as individuals in a role-specific peer group
Peer advisory
TEC Canada
Canadian CEOs, presidents, owners and senior executives, sorted into four programme tiers by role and company stage
What the records say
- Role or title — The Conference Board Councils: A senior role matching the specific council: councils are organised by function and level, from CEO and CFO to chief of staff and functional heads; TEC Canada: TEC CEO: CEOs, presidents, owners and leaders of large enterprises.
- Geographic restriction — The Conference Board Councils: No published geographic restriction; TEC Canada: Canada.
- Annual dues — The Conference Board Councils: Not publicly disclosed. The Conference Board states that "Seats are available for individuals through an annual fee" but publishes no amount, and directs enquiries to a membership inquiry form.; TEC Canada: Not publicly disclosed. TEC Canada quotes pricing only after an application, and says the figure depends on which programme the applicant qualifies for. Third-party estimates differ sharply: an executive-coaching firm puts CEO membership at roughly $1,500-$2,000+ CAD a month, while the Peer Resources directory gives $2,820-$13,000 a year across TEC/Vistage tiers. Neither is an organisation disclosure..
Side by side
| The Conference Board Councils | TEC Canada | |
|---|---|---|
| Profile | ||
| Type | Peer advisory | Peer advisory |
| Founded | 1916 (The founding year is that of the parent organisation, The Conference Board, established in 1916. The date the Council programme itself began is not publicly disclosed.) | 1985 (TEC Canada's own history page: "The TEC Canada story began in 1985, when Dr. Lynn Tanner brought the peer advisory model to Canada." The underlying TEC format dates to 1957 in Milwaukee.) |
| Headquarters | New York, United States | Calgary, Canada |
| Geographic footprint | Councils are grouped by region: North America (including a set of Canada councils), Europe and Asia. The Conference Board has offices in New York, Toronto, Brussels, Singapore, Hong Kong and Beijing. | Canada: Chairs listed in fourteen regions from Vancouver to Atlantic Canada; members also get access to the Vistage global network |
| Members | Council membership is not counted separately. The Conference Board reports more than 5,000 members in its global community, over 2,000 member companies including the majority of the Fortune 500, and more than 20,000 executives participating in its programmes each year. | 1,600as of May 2026 |
| Chapters | 150 | 14 |
| Primary audience | Senior functional executives and C-suite officers at large organisations, joining as individuals in a role-specific peer group | Canadian CEOs, presidents, owners and senior executives, sorted into four programme tiers by role and company stage |
| Typical member | Each council is a group of roughly forty executives holding comparable senior roles across different industries. Councils exist for chief executives, CFOs, chief human resources officers, chief legal officers, chief operating officers, chief strategy officers, chief communications officers, chiefs of staff and many functional specialisms, including separate councils graded by company size such as a CFO Council for the Fortune 250. | Members are chief executives, owners and senior executives of Canadian companies across a wide size range, from small-business owners in the TEC Small Business programme to leaders of large enterprises in TEC CEO. TEC Canada publishes no revenue or headcount threshold and no member demographics. |
| Qualification | ||
| Role or title | A senior role matching the specific council: councils are organised by function and level, from CEO and CFO to chief of staff and functional headsSome councils apply further filters, such as a CFO Council restricted to the Fortune 250 and separate divisional-CFO and Canada councils.verified September 2026 · source ↗ | TEC CEO: CEOs, presidents, owners and leaders of large enterprisesverified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Geographic restriction | No published geographic restriction | CanadaChairs are listed only in Canadian regions.verified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Invitation required | Yes | No |
| Sponsor required | Sometimes | No |
| Application process | Prospective members apply for a specific council seat through The Conference Board's site, or are referred by an existing member through a referral programme. Candidates are vetted for fit against the council's role profile and the cap on seats. Council membership is one of four published membership types alongside Executive, C-Suite and Leadership Team memberships, which attach to a company rather than an individual. | Prospective members apply through the Becoming a Member page. TEC then matches the applicant to a programme and a specific group based on organisational size, stage of development and competitive landscape, and discusses cost at that point. There is no published sponsorship or nomination requirement. |
| Selectivity | Not publicly disclosed. Council size is capped at around forty and members are vetted, but no acceptance rate is published. | Not publicly disclosed. TEC describes careful matching rather than selection against a threshold, and publishes no acceptance rate. |
| Cost | ||
| Annual dues | Not publicly disclosed. The Conference Board states that "Seats are available for individuals through an annual fee" but publishes no amount, and directs enquiries to a membership inquiry form.verified September 2026 · source ↗ | Not publicly disclosed. TEC Canada quotes pricing only after an application, and says the figure depends on which programme the applicant qualifies for. Third-party estimates differ sharply: an executive-coaching firm puts CEO membership at roughly $1,500-$2,000+ CAD a month, while the Peer Resources directory gives $2,820-$13,000 a year across TEC/Vistage tiers. Neither is an organisation disclosure.verified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Initiation fee | Not publicly disclosedverified September 2026 | Not publicly disclosedverified September 2026 |
| Membership term | Annual fee per council seat; term length is not otherwise publicly disclosed | Not documented |
| Structure | ||
| Meeting frequency | Councils meet regularly in person, supplemented by an online peer community; The Conference Board also runs 20+ events a year and 100+ webcasts | Monthly group meetings plus a monthly one-to-one session with the Chair; expert speaker sessions and an annual national member conference |
| Peer forums | Function-specific councils of roughly forty senior executives, self-governed on agenda, vendor-free, meeting under the Chatham House Rule | Confidential peer advisory groups of non-competing members facilitated by a TEC Chair, an experienced former executive who also coaches members individually |
| Confidentiality | All council meetings are held under the Chatham House Rule and group size is limited; a confidential online peer community runs alongside | Group meetings are described as confidential; trust is one of TEC Canada's four stated values |
| Time commitment | Not documented | Not documented |
| Organized as | Forum-based, Event-focused, Virtual | Forum-based, Chapter-based, Event-focused |
| Confidential peer forums | Yes | Yes |
| Local chapters | No | Yes |
| Virtual membership | Partial | Not documented |
| Online community | Yes | Yes |
| Member directory | Partial | Yes |
| Events | Yes | Yes |
| Programming | ||
| Educational programming | Yes | Yes |
| Leadership development | Yes | Yes |
| Retreats | No | Not documented |
| Travel | No | No |
| Family programming | No | No |
| Spouse and partner programming | No | No |
| Next-generation programming | No | No |
| Investment discussions | Partial | Partial |
| Investment opportunities | No | No |
| Philanthropic component | Partial | No |
| Networking emphasis | High | High |
| Social emphasis | Low | Low |
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Sources
Drawn from the sources listed on each page: The Conference Board Councils · TEC Canada