The Forum for Forest Executives
Spring 2023
Are you an Executive of a forest company in tropical developing geographies?
The ForestLink is launching The Forum for Forest Executives to lift and connect leadership, reduce business risk, and create more forest investment success stories in the tropics.
Participating executives in the Forum will be joined by 8-12 executives leading forest businesses in the tropics.
Over the course of 3 days in the Spring of 2023, you will experience a professional development platform like no other. You will connect with like-minded executives in an honest, experience-rich, and collaborative peer-to-peer learning event.
Register your interest to stay updated and learn more.
Highlights of The Forum include:
🌱 Curated group to eliminate competition and foster open dialogue
🌱 Participants blended across business stage, end markets, and global tropical geographies to ensure rich and diverse discussions
🌱 Plenty of social time to move from peers to colleagues
🌱 Executive coaching from a trained professional
🌱 Dive deep on specialist topics not found in typical forest working groups or conferences
🌱 Out-of-the box industry tour.
The Forum will be facilitated by Shauna Matkovich, Founder of The ForestLink, and will include peer-to-peer learning led by an executive coach.
There will be specialist training from experts on topics relevant for both your professional development and the success of your business.
Interested? Register now to be first to hear when the Forum is open for applications
Why I am launching the Forum
I'm Shauna Matkovich, Founder of The ForestLink.
There are many moving parts in a forest operation, but in most cases, there is one person who holds the key to success.
The CEO, Managing Director – whatever the title, this is the person making decisions on the ground regarding how the business will be run. They are responsible for building, and leading a skilled team, executing top-notch forest management, accessing, and in some cases generating wood markets, strategizing with investors, maintaining healthy stakeholder relationships and so on.
In the context of forest investments in the tropics, a forest business with a skilled and well-rounded executive at the reigns is a valuable asset. Forest businesses in the context of emerging markets are subject to several challenges. Having (and keeping) an executive that can navigate the complexity in these regions with skill and ease will not only remedy risks but enable the business to thrive.
But it’s not that easy. Executives in the space will be the first to tell you how isolated they are. These leaders are often talented expat foresters or ambitious entrepreneurs with little opportunity for growth as an executive professional. The remote settings of the businesses they run make it difficult for them to find a network of peers to learn from and exchange. The industry’s niche characteristics can create an air of competition among executives operating in similar markets, investor-pools and even continents.
These executives are essentially on their own, living and working in a foreign cultural context, caught between shareholder expectations and local realities. And all too often, they move on – a missed opportunity for both the professional and the business.
That's why I'm launching the Forum - to provide a collaborative and growth-oriented space. Want to be a part of it?
