Peer advisory · CEO groups · Business owners
Convene
Christian CEOs, business owners and presidents in the United States, with parallel tracks for C-suite executives and other senior leaders in their organisations
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: "In 1996, Brian Thatcher and five pioneering CEOs founded Convene" per its own story page, which also marks 2026 as its thirtieth anniversary. The organisation began as the "BBL Forum", started by Brian Thatcher and Ric Green out of Saddleback Church.
Convene is a peer-advisory organisation for Christian chief executives and business owners, founded in 1996 by Brian Thatcher and five CEOs out of what began as the BBL Forum at Saddleback Church. Members join a team of 10 to 15 non-competing Christian business leaders led by a Convene Chair, an experienced business coach. Teams meet for a full business day each month, and each member also takes a separate 60 to 90 minute one-to-one coaching session with the Chair, making the time commitment among the heaviest in the category. Three team types run in parallel: CEO & Owner, the traditional peer-advisory model; C-Suite & Executive, for those reporting directly to the CEO; and Key Leader, for senior influencers below that level. Teams run in person and online. Membership includes a suite of assessments Convene calls CORE - an organisational 360, DiSC Work of Leaders, a financial dashboard, a top-three-challenges exercise and a trust index - plus regional and national gatherings and a library of leadership resources. Pricing is not published and is set by company size, revenue, location and team type.
How it works
An applicant submits an enquiry and Convene follows up to test fit before placing them on a team. Each team of 10-15 non-competing Christian business leaders meets for a full business day each month under a Convene Chair, working through leadership content and members' live business issues. Between meetings the member takes a 60-90 minute coaching session with the Chair. Members also attend regional Impact Gatherings and an annual national gathering, and complete the CORE assessment suite.
Typical member
Members are Christian business leaders. Teams are composed of 10-15 peers from non-competing industries. Convene publishes no revenue or headcount threshold, though it says pricing depends partly on company size and annual revenue, implying a size-banded structure.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Role or title | CEO & Owner teams: CEOs, business owners and presidents | Verified September 2026High confidenceSource ↗ |
| Role or title | C-Suite & Executive teams: leaders reporting directly to the CEO | Verified September 2026High confidenceSource ↗ |
| Role or title | Key Leader teams: leaders holding significant influence in their organisation | Verified September 2026High confidenceSource ↗ |
| Other criterion | Teams are composed of Christian business leaders from non-competing industries | Verified September 2026High confidenceSource ↗ |
| Other criterion | Members must commit to one full business day a month plus a 60-90 minute coaching session | Verified September 2026High confidenceSource ↗ |
Published criteria as verified on the dates shown. Final eligibility and admission decisions belong entirely to Convene. 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. Convene's own membership page states: "Membership pricing is based on multiple factors, including company size, annual revenue, location, team type, and more. For accurate pricing information, please contact our team." | Source ↗ | |
| Initiation fee | Not publicly disclosed | ||
Structure and programming
Where it operates
7 chapters on file · 7 citiesChapters verified from published sources.
Each dot is a city with at least one chapter on file. City positions © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Main cities
- DallasUnited States
- MiamiUnited States
- HoustonUnited States
- SeattleUnited States
- DenverUnited States
- CharlotteUnited States
- MinneapolisUnited States
Ranked by how many organizations on this site also meet there.
7 chapters
| Chapter or location | City | Country | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Convene Denver regional gathering Recorded from Convene's own 2026 regional gathering pages. Convene does not publish a public list of team locations; its locations page is a zip-code search. | Denver | United States | ||
| Convene Miami regional gathering Recorded from Convene's own 2026 regional gathering pages. Convene does not publish a public list of team locations; its locations page is a zip-code search. | Miami | United States | ||
| Convene Minneapolis regional gathering Recorded from Convene's own 2026 regional gathering pages. Convene does not publish a public list of team locations; its locations page is a zip-code search. | Minneapolis | United States | ||
| Convene Carolina regional gathering regional gathering Convene names the region "Carolina" without a city; Charlotte recorded as the region's principal centre | Charlotte | United States | ||
| Convene Dallas regional gathering Recorded from Convene's own 2026 regional gathering pages. Convene does not publish a public list of team locations; its locations page is a zip-code search. | Dallas | United States | ||
| Convene Houston regional gathering Recorded from Convene's own 2026 regional gathering pages. Convene does not publish a public list of team locations; its locations page is a zip-code search. | Houston | United States | ||
| Convene Pacific Northwest regional gathering regional gathering Convene names the region "PNW" without a city; Seattle recorded as the region's principal centre | Seattle | United States | ||
| No chapter on file matches that. This list is not complete, so one may still exist. | ||||
Independent context
Convene is explicit that faith is the organising principle rather than an add-on: teams are described as "10-15 Christian business leaders", the stated mission is Kingdom impact, and the programming includes family and personal-calling material alongside business content. That makes it a poor fit for anyone who does not share the frame, and a distinctive one for those who do. Operationally it is the heaviest commitment in this batch - a full business day a month plus a 60-90 minute coaching session, against half a day at The CEO Institute or a morning at REF - and the closest structural analogue is Vistage, from which its long-serving leadership is partly drawn. The transparency gap is real: no price, no current member count, no published team-location list and no named international countries, so a prospective member cannot compare it against alternatives without a sales conversation.
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 →- milestoneConvene founded by Brian Thatcher and five CEOs; it grew out of the "BBL Forum" started by Thatcher and Ric Green at Saddleback Church ↗
- milestoneConvene marked its thirtieth anniversary, including the 30th anniversary of its first peer advisory team ↗
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
- Christian Business Network for Leaders - Convene, Convene. Accessed 6 September 2026.tier 1
- Our Story & Purpose - Convene, Convene. Accessed 6 September 2026.tier 1
- CEO & Owner - Convene, Convene. Accessed 6 September 2026.tier 1
- Team Types - Convene, Convene. Accessed 6 September 2026.tier 1
- Team Locations - Convene, Convene. Accessed 6 September 2026.tier 1
- Become a Member - Convene, Convene. Accessed 6 September 2026.tier 1
- International Teams - Convene, Convene. Accessed 6 September 2026.tier 1
- Convene Membership - Join a Christian Business Leader Team, Convene. 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 Convene? 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.