---
name: customer-advisory-board
description: "Plan and run a customer advisory board (CAB). Use when asked to design a customer advisory board, plan a CAB meeting agenda, choose CAB members, or write CAB invitations and follow-ups. Produces a CAB program plan — objectives, member selection criteria, a meeting agenda, discussion guides, roles, logistics, and a follow-up and value-capture plan."
---

# Customer Advisory Board Skill

Design a customer advisory board that gives you honest strategic input and deepens relationships with your most important customers — not a thinly disguised sales pitch. A good CAB is member-first: they come for peer exchange and influence, not a roadmap presentation.

## What This Skill Produces

- A CAB charter: purpose, cadence, and what members get
- Member selection criteria and a balanced roster plan
- A meeting agenda built around discussion, not presentation
- Discussion guides and facilitation prompts
- Logistics, roles, and a follow-up plan that captures and returns value

## Required Inputs

Ask for these if not provided:

- **Objective** — strategic input, roadmap validation, relationship deepening, advocacy
- **Format & cadence** — in-person / virtual, how often, meeting length
- **Candidate members** or the segments/personas you want represented
- **Topics** you want input on (and any you must avoid)
- **Constraints** — confidentiality, competitor overlap, budget, exec sponsors
- **What members get** — early access, peer network, influence, recognition

Keep it member-value-led; flag anything that risks feeling like a sales meeting.

## Process

1. **Define success** — the decisions this CAB should inform and how you'll know it worked.
2. **Design membership** — 8–15 members balanced by segment, maturity, and voice; avoid direct competitors in the room.
3. **Craft the value exchange** — what members give (candid input) and get (influence, peers, early access).
4. **Build the agenda** — majority discussion; open with member context, not a company update.
5. **Write discussion guides** — a few sharp questions per topic with facilitation prompts and time boxes.
6. **Assign roles** — facilitator, note-taker, exec sponsor, product listeners (who observe, not defend).
7. **Plan follow-up** — synthesize themes, close the loop on what you'll act on, and sustain the relationship between meetings.

## Output Format

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# Customer Advisory Board — Program Plan

**Objective:** [strategic input / validation / advocacy] · **Cadence:** [frequency · format] · **Sponsor:** [exec]

## Charter
- **Purpose:** [why this CAB exists]
- **What members get:** [influence · early access · peer network · recognition]
- **What we ask of members:** [candor · attendance · confidentiality]

## Membership
| Criterion | Target |
|---|---|
| Size | [8–15] |
| Segment mix | [enterprise / mid-market / …] |
| Persona mix | [economic buyer / practitioner / …] |
| Guardrails | [no direct competitors together · NDA] |

**Candidate roster:** [names/segments or `[to confirm]`]

## Meeting Agenda ([duration])
| Time | Segment | Format | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|
| [00:00] | Welcome & member intros / context | Round-robin | Facilitator |
| [00:xx] | [Topic 1] | Facilitated discussion | Facilitator |
| [00:xx] | [Topic 2 / roadmap input] | Discussion (listen mode) | Product |
| [00:xx] | Synthesis & next steps | Group | Facilitator |

## Discussion Guides
**[Topic]:** 
- [Sharp open question]
- [Probe]
- Facilitation note: [how to keep it member-led]

## Roles
- **Facilitator:** [name] · **Note-taker:** [name] · **Exec sponsor:** [name] · **Product listeners:** [names — observe, don't defend]

## Logistics
[Location/platform · date · pre-reads · confidentiality · travel/hospitality — or `[to confirm]`]

## Follow-Up & Value Capture
- Synthesize themes within [X days]
- Close the loop: what we heard, what we'll act on, what we won't (and why)
- Between meetings: [cadence of touchpoints]

---

## Quality Checks

- [ ] The agenda is majority discussion, not presentation
- [ ] Membership is balanced and avoids competitors in the same room
- [ ] Each topic has a discussion guide with real questions
- [ ] Product is in "listen mode," not defending the roadmap
- [ ] Follow-up closes the loop on what will and won't be acted on
- [ ] Members clearly get value, not just give it

## Anti-Patterns

- [ ] Do not turn the CAB into a product pitch or QBR
- [ ] Do not stack the room with only your happiest customers
- [ ] Do not let the team defend decisions instead of listening
- [ ] Do not collect input and go silent — always close the loop
- [ ] Do not seat direct competitors together or ignore confidentiality

## Example Trigger Phrases

- "Plan a customer advisory board for our enterprise accounts"
- "Design a CAB meeting agenda focused on roadmap input"
- "Who should we invite to our first advisory board, and why?"
- "Write the CAB charter and member value proposition"