BNI is now the world's largest referral
organization with Chapters in many countries around the globe. It was
started in 1985 by
Dr. Ivan
Misner, one of the world's leading experts in networking and
word-of-mouth marketing.
Dr. Misner was a
management consultant when he started BNI. He worked with
companies that needed assistance in the area of strategic planning and
organizational development. As a business consultant, he received most
of his business through referrals. However, he was not satisfied with
the types of business groups that existed and he put together a
networking group that he felt was structured, focused on doing business,
and had an emphasis on positive reinforcement and support. That
organization became BNI. Today, BNI has thousands of
Chapters world-wide with tens of thousands of members passing millions
of referrals.
Below, you will find some additional information
about the organization:
Founder:
Dr. Ivan R.
Misner of Claremont, CA
Established: 1985
Philosophy: "Givers Gain"
Mission: To help people increase their business through
a structured, positive, and supportive word of mouth marketing program.
Unique Feature: Only one person
per professional classification is eligible to join a chapter
Number of Chapters: over 3,400
Number of Members: 68,000 (approximately)
Number of Referrals: over 2.8 million
Total Value of Referrals: $1.2 billion (U.S.)
