The High Center for Family Business, located on Elizabethtown College’s campus, has recently expanded into Berks County. Previously, the center mainly operated out of Lancaster County, but in the past year, it has been looking to roll out to new markets.
“There was always a feeling that there was so much opportunity in Lancaster, Dauphin and York that we didn’t previously think about other markets. Tom Garrity was really the catalyst that got the energy going to move into Berks County,” Managing Director of New Markets and a 2014 graduate of the MBA program Scott Burky said. “Executive Director Mike Mitchell (Etown ‘84), was approached about the expansion into Berks and Lehigh, and since they were adjacent markets, it made a lot of sense to look at expanding our programming and resources to reach more family-owned and privately-held businesses.”
The High Center has a strong reputation as a family business center, and they are one of the oldest centers in the country. It offers many services to members, one of which being survey tools. These include the Best Practices and Exit Planning survey, which are helpful for companies to make sure they have the right tools in place.
The center is also focused on leadership roles, making sure that businesses have good communication and a strategic plan. The High Center also offers peer groups, during which leaders of companies have time to converse confidently with each other.
“For some businesses, they only have a CFO or a COO, or four people in a leadership role. They don’t have anywhere to go to talk to other people. They need to talk to people that have other skill sets. Peer groups are helpful because leaders can put issues out there to their peers, facilitating conversations,” Burky said.
After peer groups occur, the High Center will then talk to the businesses and help them form an action plan, while holding them accountable to that plan. During the COVID-19 pandemic, peer groups were extremely helpful for business owners. Burky stated that the majority of businesses that are members at the High Center made it through, and part of why the High Center expanded in the middle of a global pandemic is because they have tools and resources that can help businesses thrive.
The reputation of the High Center also helped in the expansion, as partners and members would talk to other businesses about the program, causing more members to sign up. As of September 2021, there are about 130 members, with 19 peer groups, each with eight to 10 members. That’s a lot of businesses that the High Center is helping, part of Etown’s “Educate for Service” motto.
Etown students are also involved at the High Center, helping to compile survey responses and coming to listen to sessions with speakers such as American author Jim Collins who focuses on business management. This takes place at the Business Forum, which is the High Center’s annual event for members.
The High Center’s expansion to Berks County helps bring awareness back to Etown and take the College’s reputation out into other areas. There is also a strong alumni group supporting the High Center, including the Managing Director for the York Market and 2020 graduate of the Master’s program Bryan Kelly.
“I’m thrilled to be a part of this expansion to new areas,” Kelly said.
The High Center is having the first Berks-based peer group starting in October 2021. Any businesses that are interested in learning more about membership at the High Center can contact Scott Burky by email at burkys@etown.edu, or visit the High Center’s website and fill out the contact form.
