Front and Center: Business coach Kevin Weir instills teamwork

Kevin Weir has always been a team player.

Ask him about high school, and he recounts wrestling and football at Ferris.

He joined Washington State University’s ROTC program while earning a political science degree, then spent four years as an Army officer.

Today, Weir is a business coach and self-help author.

But he’s still very much a team player.

One team Weir relies on is the downtown Spokane Business Network International chapter, of which he is president.

During a recent interview, Weir discussed his career, the advice he offers business clients, and how the teamwork cultivated by BNI chapters pays off for its members.

S-R: Where did you grow up?

Weir: Right here in Spokane. I graduated from Ferris in ’81. My dad, Larry Weir, was the Ferris wrestling coach for years.

S-R: Did you have a favorite class?

Weir: Anything regarding history or politics. And I was one of those rare jocks who was fascinated by economics. I loved Milton Friedman’s PBS series “Free to Choose.”

S-R: After graduating from WSU, what did you do?

Weir: I commanded tank and scout platoons in West Germany.

S-R: Why did you leave the Army?

Weir: With the Cold War over the Army downsized, ending my dream of a military career. I’d always been interested in business, so I went back to WSU and got my MBA.

S-R: Then what?

Weir: I got a job with Taco Bell as regional manager, and ran restaurants here for three years. Then I spent some time as a consultant for Taco Time, and as a manager for Arco ampm’s before getting into career coaching in 1997.

S-R: Why coaching?

Weir: My own career had been very choppy. As a result, I was having trouble finding a job after getting downsized from Arco ampm. I decided I needed some help with my career search, so I contacted a company called Bernard Haldane Associates. And the more I was coached, the more I loved the concept of career coaching – helping others improve their position within their career or change careers. So when the person who was coaching me took a job as a full-time minister, I applied for his job, got it, and did that for five years.

S-R: And then you switched to business coaching?

Weir: Yes. Some of my clients expressed an interest in starting or buying a business. I had an MBA and had run businesses before, so I coached them. I opened my own ActionCOACH office in Tacoma in 2002, and moved it to Spokane in 2006.

S-R: Your dad was a wrestling coach for decades. How similar are sport coaching and business coaching?

Weir: The principles are the same. A wrestling coach or football coach focuses on technique, strategy, process – getting in shape – motivation, and working well together as a team. The same with business coaching: technique, process, motivation and teamwork.

S-R: Tell me about your 2011 book, “First Aid for a Wounded Business.”

Weir: During the recession, a lot of business owners came to our office seeking help, but couldn’t afford to pay for coaching. So I decided to write a book about how to turn your business around.

S-R: What does your book recommend?

Weir: Four basic principles. First, you must master the skill of reading and managing your business’s finances – balance statements, margins, cash flow. Many business owners don’t have a clue. Second, master the skill of delivering your product or service with consistency. Third, master your use of time. And fourth, master your destiny – have a vision of where you want your business to go.

S-R: When did you get involved with BNI?

Weir: In 2002, when I started my ActionCOACH business in Tacoma.

S-R: Why?

Weir: The idea behind BNI is what we call “givers gain,” meaning if I concentrate on getting referrals for other members, then I will benefit tenfold. Too often in networking, we only hunt for business for ourselves. BNI flips the script. You become a sales representative for others in the group, and everyone else in the chapter is a sales rep for you. During the four years I was with BNI’s Puyallup chapter, I made about $100,000 from other members’ referrals. When I moved here in 2006, I joined a North Side chapter, and was there until 2011, when transporting my kids to school created logistical problems. I’ve been with the downtown chapter ever since.

S-R: How much does membership cost?

Weir: Annual dues are $445, plus a one-time $150 application fee. We also charge $10 a month to cover basic chapter expenses – coffee, supplies, that sort of stuff.

S-R: Besides referrals, how have you benefited from BNI?

Weir: The attitude of some networking groups is “let me tell you about me.” BNI emphasizes learning about other business owners – what makes them different, what you can learn from them and how you might be able to help them. BNI only allows one member per profession at each chapter. Our job is to learn what makes that mortgage lender or chiropractor unique.

S-R: How big are chapters?

Weir: The biggest one in Eastern Washington is in Kennewick and has 60 members. Twenty-five to 30 is more typical. Our downtown chapter hopes to have 20 members by the end of February.

S-R: What careers would you like to have represented that aren’t?

Weir: We’d love to have an interior designer. We also need a title company and a business broker – someone who sells businesses.

S-R: How does one go about joining a BNI chapter?

Weir: People are welcome to visit twice to see if they feel comfortable with the group. Once they apply, we ask for three referrals and do a professional background check. You’d be surprised by what people fail to disclose on applications.

S-R: What happens, for instance, if a chapter has a chiropractor who’s not generating many referrals, and then the president of the state chiropractors’ association applies?

Weir: Every year, we all have to renew our memberships. And if the membership committee doesn’t think you’ve been an effective member, your renewal can be denied. That happens every once in a while.

S-R: Besides dues and fees, how big a personal commitment is BNI?

Weir: We expect members to attend our weekly meetings – we allow three absences over six months – and also meet one-on-one with another member each week to learn more about their business. Some people unfamiliar with BNI ask, “Can’t I just meet when I feel like it?” Well, no. Basketball teams that expect to win don’t allow players to show up for practice only when they feel like it. In the same sense, we’re building a team – a team of professionals playing the game of business as a group of cooperative individuals.

S-R: What sort of person is best suited to be a BNI member?

Weir: Typically they are business owners looking for ways beyond traditional marketing techniques to grow their business, and are willing to invest the time needed to do that through BNI. Time is much more valuable than money. You can always make more money. You can’t make more time.

This interview has been condensed. If you’d like to suggest a business or community leader to profile, contact Michael Guilfoil at mguilfoil@comcast.net.