Power Teams are a well-known concept within BNI (Business Network International), promoted as a way to generate more business by collaborating with referral partners in similar or complementary industries. But what if the traditional way of building these teams isn’t actually effective?

In a recent BNI education slot, Darren Jamieson challenged the standard approach to Power Teams — and he did it in the most unexpected way imaginable: by drawing inspiration from Thanos, the notorious Marvel villain. It might sound bizarre, but Darren’s analogy sheds light on why so many Power Teams fail to deliver results, and what business professionals should do instead.

Rethinking the BNI Power Team

“When we decided to do an education slot on Power Teams, I was reluctant,” Darren began. “Because personally, I don’t think Power Teams work within BNI — at least not the way they’re usually done.”

The idea behind Power Teams is grounded in the 80/20 principle: in business, 80% of your results often come from 20% of your efforts. In BNI, this translates to 80% of your referrals coming from 20% of your fellow members. So it makes sense to form small groups of members in related industries who regularly meet and share referrals.

But in practice, Darren argues, it doesn’t really work.

“BNI suggests trades get together — your electrician, your plumber, your carpet fitter, your decorator. You meet once a month outside of BNI to discuss jobs and pass referrals. Sounds good in theory. But in reality? It’s like herding cats.”

Why? Because organising regular meetings between busy professionals is tough. You need a leader — a Power Team Captain — someone to initiate and manage the meetings. And as Darren points out, that rarely happens.

“I’m going to take a stab in the dark and say we’ve had four months of 2025 so far. I’m guessing there haven’t been four trades Power Team meetings this year. Am I right? I thought so.”

The same goes for other industries. Even in the finance Power Team, consistency is lacking.

The Problem with Default Groupings

Another key issue is assuming that your most likely referrers are sitting in your own chapter. For Darren, who works in digital marketing, that assumption falls flat.

“BNI says your Power Team is in the room. But mine isn’t. Mine might be Ray in photography, Tom in graphic design, or Phil in film. But even that doesn’t quite work.”

Why not? Because their client bases don’t align. One of Darren’s potential collaborators works heavily in the hospitality sector — pubs, restaurants, hotels — and that’s an industry Darren actively avoids.

“I don’t want to work in hospitality. It’s the worst thing in the world for me. We don’t touch it. So even though we’re in complementary industries, that doesn’t mean we’re referring business to each other.”

Enter Thanos: A Better Blueprint for Power Teams

This is where things take a turn — into the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Yes, Darren brings in Thanos.

“What would Thanos do?”

For those unfamiliar, Thanos is a supervillain whose goal is to restore balance to the universe by eliminating half of all life. To do this, he needs to collect six powerful Infinity Stones scattered across the universe. Each one gives him a different ability, and only when they’re combined does he gain ultimate power.

“Thanos didn’t walk into a room and find all six stones lined up neatly for him. He had to seek them out. He had to track them down. He had to have one-to-ones with people — granted, most of them he killed, but let’s not do that.”

The point? Thanos built his power team — his real power team — by identifying and finding the right pieces, not settling for whatever was conveniently nearby.

Build Your Own Infinity Stones

Darren’s message is clear: you need to find your Power Team, not a Power Team.

“Don’t look at the way BNI tells you to do it. Look at the way Thanos tells you to do it. Go out of this room. Find people from other groups, other chapters, even other regions.”

He shares that many of his best referrals have come from outside his own chapter. If he had followed the traditional BNI approach, he would have missed out.

“Your Power Team isn’t necessarily in this room. Thanos was right. Go out and find your own Infinity Stones somewhere else — and then Power Teams will actually work for you.”

Conclusion

Darren Jamieson’s unconventional approach to BNI Power Teams is both humorous and insightful. By using Thanos as a metaphor, he highlights a serious flaw in how most members approach referral partnerships — they rely too much on convenience and not enough on strategy.

If you want your Power Team to truly help your business grow, don’t settle for what’s in the room. Be proactive. Be selective. Build a team of professionals whose clients match your ideal audience, even if they’re in other chapters or regions.

“Thanos was right — the stones weren’t handed to him. He had to go and find them. And that’s how you build a Power Team that works.”

Key Quotes to Share

• “It’s like herding cats. I’m guessing there haven’t been four Power Team meetings this year. Am I right?”
• “I don’t want to work in hospitality. It’s the worst thing in the world for me.”
• “Thanos didn’t wait for the Infinity Stones to come to him. He sought them out. So should you.”
• “Your Power Team isn’t necessarily in this room — and that’s OK.”

Full Transcript

[00:10]
When we decided last week to do an education slot on Power Teams, I was reluctant to actually do this because I personally don’t think Power Teams work within BNI. But I thought, “You know what? I’m going to do it anyway because I’m going to do it my way,” which is going to be a little bit different, as you can imagine.

[00:30]
Now, for those of you that don’t know what a Power Team is, it works on the principle that is well established within business—the 80/20 rule. 80% of your business comes from 20% of your clients. In BNI, 80% of your referrals will come from 20% of your referral partners. So, it makes sense to have a Power Team—those people who are going to most likely refer you.

[00:45]
But the way BNI does it, I take umbrage with. There’s the word for the day: “umbrage.” So, BNI will say, “Right, the trades get together in a Power Team.” So, you’ve got your electrician, you’ve got your plumber, you’ve got your carpet fitter, you’ve got your decorator. Meet once a month outside of BNI to discuss the jobs that you’ve got going on, and maybe you can better refer each other.

[01:10]
One of the main issues with this is, in order to organize this, it needs a Power Team captain. It needs a leader. It needs somebody to say, “Right, we’re going to do it at this point, and we’re going to have this meeting, and it’s going to happen.” Now, for anyone who’s ever tried to do that, you’ll know it’s a little bit like herding cats.

[01:30]
Because—I’m going to take a stab in the dark and say—we’re in May now, so we’ve had four months of 2025. I’m guessing there haven’t been four trades Power Team meetings this year. Am I right? I am correct. I thought so.

[01:55]
And finance also has a Power Team. And I’m guessing, Zoe, there haven’t been four finance Power Team meetings this year? No? No, because it’s very difficult to organize everyone together.

[02:10]
Then the other problem with this is—and this is my big issue with it—BNI suggests that you have this Power Team with the members of your chapter, but they’re not necessarily going to be the ones that refer you.

[02:25]
So, with me, for example—digital marketing—my Power Team is likely to be Ray (photography), it’s likely to be Tom (graphic design), it’s likely to be Phil (film). And we would meet once a month to pass referrals between each other.

[02:40]
But that isn’t going to work either. Many of Ray’s clients are hospitality—does a lot in the food industry, does a lot with hotels, restaurants, pubs. I don’t want to work with them. That would be the worst thing in the world for me. I do not want to work in hospitality. It’s an industry we don’t touch. So, that’s not really going to work.

[03:00]
So, I’ve always disliked the way Power Teams are. But then I thought, “What would Thanos do?” Yep, you heard that correctly—what would Thanos do?

[03:15]
For those who don’t know, Thanos is from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He is a Titan and enemy of the Avengers. Thanos quite rightly postulated that the universe is made of finite resources. There are far too many beings in the universe consuming these resources. The best way to deal with it is to wipe out half of all life in the universe. Sensible fella—I can get behind that.

[03:40]
But in order to do this—and you’re thinking, “How’s this going to relate to Power Teams?” Don’t worry, it’s coming—in order to do this, Thanos had to locate the Infinity Stones. Those thinking, “What the hell?” had to locate the Infinity Stones.

[03:55]
And there are six Infinity Stones that, when put together, give you all the power in the universe. And the Infinity Stones are: the Mind Stone, the Soul Stone, the Space Stone, the Time Stone—what you know—specific—the Reality Stone, and the Power Stone.

[04:15]
The Power Stone. The Power Stone. Thanos knows how BNI works. He was literally seeking out his Power Team Stone—the Power Stone.

[04:25]
And when Thanos had located all of these, he could wipe out half of all life in the universe with a snap of his fingers. But unlike the way BNI does it, Thanos didn’t walk into a room or walk into Vormir—the planet which had the Soul Stone on—and there were all six stones lined up for him to take. Didn’t work like that.

[04:45]
Thanos had to seek them out. Thanos had to look for them. Thanos had to have one-to-ones with people to find out where these souls—where these stones were. I mean, true, most people he spoke to, he killed. I’m not suggesting you do that in your one-to-ones.

[05:00]
If you do kill someone in a one-to-one, remember to log it yourself because they’re not going to be able to log it. That’s important.

[05:10]
But once he had found all of these stones and put them together, he was able to wipe out half of all life in the universe with a snap of his fingers. And all was well—sort of.

[05:15]
But if this is your goal and you do want to wipe out half of all life in the universe, then I am slightly afraid of you. But if your goal is to build a Power Team, don’t look at the way BNI tells you how to do it. Look at the way Thanos tells you how to do it.

[05:30]
Go out of this room. Find people from other groups. Find people from other chapters—maybe even other regions. Many of my biggest referrals come from other chapters. My Power Team isn’t necessarily in this room. Your Power Team isn’t necessarily in this room.

[05:45]
Because remember: Thanos was right. Thanos was right. Go out and find your own Infinity Stones somewhere else, and then Power Teams will actually work for you.

[05:55]
Thank you.