Since 2009
Grand Rapids Area Professionals for ExcellenceMore About GRAPE
Our Mission
“To build a community of professionals who inspire others to reach their fullest potential: personally, professionally, and neighborly!”
Connect With Us
CLICK here to get our APP for easy convenient access: user friendly, no downloading necessary!
Sign up for real time text message alerts. Simply text GRAPE to 313131.
Become A Sponsor
We appreciate your support. Click here for more information. We are always looking to promote area venues too!
Meet GRAPE’s Leadership Team
Carolyn Lund
Board President
Co-Founder & Managing Partner with Earnest Apps (A division of Earnest Enterprises)
Lisa Kosak
Social Media Consultant
Horizon Bank
Patty Vanderklok
Board Secretary
Real Estate Investor
John Potter
Executive Director
Academic Librarian
GRAPE Events
Connect Event January 17, 2019
BINGO FUN NIGHT Start the New Year off by Connecting with your fellow GRAPE Members. Make sure to bring your holiday stories and appetite for Bingo Fun Night! Thursday January 17, 2019 5-7pm Hosted by 3330 Claystone St SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49546 * * * * * You can look...
Connect Event Wednesday Nov 14, 2018
We had the pleasure to walk through the new Covenant House during construction in September. This home is being built to house young adults, 18-24, who experience struggles in their lives beyond their control. Covenant House will supply food, shelter, education, and...
Educate Event October 18, 2018
11:30-1p, Olivet Nazarene, 625 Kenmoor SE Kris Mathis is a Grand Rapids, MI native who has went on to have a successful career and reach international prominence as a world-class Motivational Speaker, Business Coach, and Author of the best-selling book, “From Success...
Connect Event Sept 20, 2018
Join GRAPE, GRBE, & BNB for this after hours social! Thursday Sept 20, 5-7p 1420 28th St SW Wyoming · Wyoming, MI Upper level, to the right, just after the entrance Bring your business cards and a guest for this special evening with all 3 groups for open...
Educate Event August 16, 2018
Join GRAPE as we welcome the Better Business Bureau speaking and hosting this special event! Thursday August 16th 11:30-1pm 3330 Claystone SE Serving 38 counties in the Lower Peninsula by helping consumers and businesses build trusting relationships. Lunch Catered by...
Connect Event Thursday July 19, 2018
GRAPE will be meeting at Uccello's July 19, 5-7pm 2630 East Beltline SE (across from Woodland Mall) We will see you in the banquet room for open networking, socializing, and cocktails! Click here to register
Join our GRAPE Sponsorship program
Support. Recognition. Appreciated.
Please visit our sponsors.
What we do
Creating a Community of Excellence
Connect
Connect events are opportunities for entrepreneurs to meet and build relationships with others in the Grand Rapids area.
Educate
Every quarter, GRAPE hosts special meetings that provide members with relevant and helpful information.
Inspire
Annually, GRAPE highlights an issue or charity that members can learn about and support.
What Drives Us
Our Mission
To build a community of professionals who inspire each other to reach their fullest potential: personally, professionally, and neighborly!
Get Involved
As a non-profit organization, GRAPE always appreciates the support of volunteers!
Our Next Event
Online Educate Event June 18, 2020
Join your fellow members for GRAPE's Online training via ZOOM... Breakout rooms for dedicated networking and collaboration, along with personalized feedback to build a stronger mission-driven business! June 18th, 2020 11:30-1p Registration is required to attend our...
Read
Articles
Workplace Time-Sinks You Need To Eliminate Immediately
Whether you’re working a dream job, or even a “meh, it’s fine” job, rocking your career feels great. How good does it feel to strut into a meeting, knowing you are fully prepared? Or stand in your boss’ office for a performance review, and hear him or her shower you with praise? Answer: It feels good. Really good.
Human Capital: Seven Crucial Trends
The pressure for performance and the talent that drives it will likely increase as business decisions become more complex, driven by globalization, connectivity, analytics and other trends. This article presents seven crucial trends that can be viewed as leading indicators of emerging threats and strategic opportunities.
Starting a Business? Three Important Initial Considerations
When working with start-up entrepreneurs, there are always a lot of questions that arise. It’s very common to have a great idea and then not know what to do next. Though it may be easy to skip ahead and just jump right in to operations, in the long run it will be crucial to have established a strong foundation for your business.
2 Trends to Look for in HR Technology in 2015
Email. Texting. Social media. Gchat. Technology has taken over the workplace, and it continues to evolve what we work on and how we get it done. What's the new frontier for HR? In Karen Higgenbottom's Forbes article, she highlights two trends that employees and HR...
Don’t Blame HR for Making All of the Bad Policies by Trish McFarlane
Policy manuals have been a topic of contention for years. There are those firmly in the camp that they are not needed. There are those who believe in a minimalist approach, only including what is absolutely legally necessary to add clarity (I fall in this camp). Then there are those organizations who have a policy for everything.
How to Intentionally Embrace Change in the New Year by Patsie Smith
What do you do when you come to the end of a calendar year as it approaches the start of another one? Do you get caught up in the festive season hype and then, as you roll into the new year, find it all a bit anticlimactic? Or, are you a bit like me and prefer to keep it a quieter, reflective time?
When a Private Message Ends Up in the Wrong Place by Karen Dillon
When Alan* heard the email “ping” from his new boss’s nearby desk, his quiet laughter turned to a sinking feeling in his stomach. Was that a notification that she’d received the email he’d just sent, mocking how she’d criticized the mess left in the office kitchen? He swore he had hit “forward” before writing his scathing response… but it turned out he hit “reply” instead. And what he wrote, intended as a private joke between buddies, was not going to do him any favors with the boss.
Have you been infected by the question mark virus?
Two strains of the question mark virus are running rampant through our society, and hopefully you are not a carrier. You almost certainly have been exposed to one or both strains within the last day or two, however
Why do businesses change ownership?
Have you ever thought about all the behind-the-scenes work that goes on to change over a business? Or, maybe you are business owner getting ready to sell your business or buy a new one.
Read more to learn about the most common reasons that businesses get sold and what you can do before buying an already established business: