Peer advisory · Industry groups · CEO groups
The Conference Board Councils
Senior functional executives and C-suite officers at large organisations, joining as individuals in a role-specific peer group
A profile page holds what the organization publishes and what named sources report: who it admits, what it costs, how it is structured, where it operates, and how it has changed. Every figure carries the date it was checked. A dash means the organization does not publish that fact.
Founding — 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.
The Conference Board runs more than 150 executive councils, each an invitation-only peer group of around forty senior executives in comparable roles at different companies. The councils are the peer-advisory arm of a research organisation founded in 1916 that reports over 2,000 member companies and more than 5,000 members in its global community. Each council is self-governed in the sense that members set the agenda from their own current issues, meets under the Chatham House Rule, and excludes vendors. Membership is capped per council to keep the group workable, and is held by the individual executive through an annual fee rather than by the company, though council membership sits alongside company-level tiers of Conference Board membership. Councils are organised across North America, Europe and Asia and grouped by function and centre: economy, strategy and finance; governance and sustainability; human capital; and marketing and communications. Councils meet in person as well as through a confidential online peer community.
How it works
A council of roughly forty peers in comparable roles meets regularly, in person and online. Members drive the agenda, bringing their own live issues into the discussion, and sessions are held under the Chatham House Rule with no vendors present. Candidates apply for a specific council seat and are vetted for fit; seats are capped. Council members also gain access to a confidential online peer community, and can influence the agendas of The Conference Board's centres and research programmes.
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.
Membership requirements
Requirements in detail, with history →Requirements are the tests the organization itself publishes — an age ceiling, a company-revenue floor, a net-worth minimum, a role. Where a figure straddles a range, the organization's own assessment decides. Local chapters can apply stricter tests than the published standard.
| Criterion | Published requirement | Provenance |
|---|---|---|
| Invitation | Each council is an invitation-only network; members are vetted for fit and seats are capped | Verified September 2026High confidenceSource ↗ |
| 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 heads | Verified September 2026High confidenceSource ↗ |
| Other criterion | Councils are capped at roughly forty executives | Verified September 2026High confidenceSource ↗ |
| Other criterion | Vendors are excluded from council membership and meetings | Verified September 2026High confidenceSource ↗ |
Published criteria as verified on the dates shown. Final eligibility and admission decisions belong entirely to The Conference Board Councils. See how you compare against these criteria →
Initiation fees are paid once on joining; dues recur. Chapter dues, retreats, travel and events are usually additional and are listed separately when the organization discloses them. Figures are as published or reported on the date shown — not quotations.
| Cost | First year | Three years | Provenance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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. | Source ↗ | |
| Initiation fee | Not publicly disclosed | ||
Structure and programming
Independent context
This is the closest thing a large research institution runs to a Vistage-style peer group, and the differences matter. Councils are function-specific rather than general-management: an executive joins the council for their role, not for their seniority in the abstract, which makes matching more precise than in a general CEO group but narrower in scope. The Chatham House Rule and the no-vendor policy are stated commitments rather than aspirations, and the roughly forty-person size means a council is larger than a classic confidential forum of eight to ten, so the dynamic is closer to a professional roundtable than to a confessional. The main gap in the public record is price: The Conference Board says seats carry an annual fee but publishes no figure anywhere, and it directs companies under US$1 billion in revenue to a separate set of membership options.
Editorial analysis by Peer Group Guide editors. It is separated from the record above and follows the editorial policy.
Similar organizations
Alternatives, grouped by need →History and changes
Site-wide change log →- milestoneThe Conference Board founded ↗
- milestoneProgramme reported at 150+ councils, alongside 2,000+ member companies and 5,000+ members in the global community ↗
Milestones as published by the organization or reported by a named source. “Record” entries are changes to this site’s own record of the organization, kept in the public change log rather than overwritten.
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Sources
- Our Councils — The Conference Board, The Conference Board. Accessed 6 September 2026.tier 1
- About Us — The Conference Board, The Conference Board. Accessed 6 September 2026.tier 1
- Membership — The Conference Board, The Conference Board. Accessed 6 September 2026.tier 2
Source tiers follow the published hierarchy: 1 official site · 2 official membership materials · 3 application documents · 4 annual reports · 5 government filings · 6 reliable business publications · 7 credible interviews · 8 other reputable secondary sources. Sources and data policy.
Is something wrong or out of date?
Represent The Conference Board Councils? Verified representatives can submit corrections to fees, criteria, chapters and contact details, and add approved material. Submissions are reviewed by an editor and shown as organization-supplied; they never overwrite independent research.