Why Peernovation 365? Why Now?

A conversation with Leo Bottary. CEOWORLD Magazine External Advisory Board Member and Opinion Columnist Leo Bottary has spent the last 20 years exploring what makes elite CEO forums tick. Leo’s company, Peernovation, LLC, shows organizational leaders why it’s relevant to team leadership. Following the release of the Second Edition of Peernovation: Forged by CEO Forums. Perfected for Teams. (2025), last week, Leo published his fourth book, Peernovation 365: A Practical Guide and Workbook for Building Peer-Sustained Performance.

Leo joins us to answer a few questions that get to the heart of why Peernovation 365, and why now.

Why did you feel compelled to write Peernovation 365? 

The Second Edition of Peernovation clarified what high-performing CEO Forums do differently and why it works. What leaders kept asking next was, “How do we make this part of how we operate every day, without it being another initiative that’s forgotten in six months?”

Peernovation 365 was written to address that question. Designed to stand on its own or serve as a companion to Peernovation (Second Edition), this book translates what elite CEO forums have done intuitively for decades into a repeatable, peer-sustained performance system that teams can actually own and operationalize. This is key. It’s not a program; it’s an operating system. Implementing it doesn’t involve adding, layering, or bolting on more activities, already consuming today’s organizations.

Instead, it’s integrated into what already exists; Peernovation just helps leaders be more intentional about it. Peernovation 365 moves Peernovation from a set of principles to an operating model, one that supports continuous learning, shared ownership, and sustained results throughout the year.

How does Peernovation 365 differ from traditional leadership or team-development approaches? 

Most leadership models still rely heavily on vertical authority: goals are set at the top, pushed downward, and reinforced through oversight. That approach struggles in environments where work is fast, cross-functional, and constantly changing.

Peernovation 365 is built on a different premise: performance is sustained horizontally, through peers.

Rather than asking leaders to motivate or monitor behavior, the model helps them design peer environments where accountability is mutual, learning is continuous, and expectations rise naturally. When peers own the work, and the outcomes, performance becomes more resilient and far less dependent on hierarchy.

Why is now the right time for Peernovation 365? 

Because the cost of relying on outdated performance models has become impossible to ignore.

Organizations are navigating disengagement, burnout, talent mobility, rapid technological change, and increasing complexity simultaneously. Leaders can’t solve these challenges alone, and they can’t cascade their way out of them either.

What’s missing isn’t strategy or effort; it’s a system that helps people learn faster together, hold one another accountable, and adapt continuously. Peernovation 365 meets this moment by aligning with how work actually happens today, through networks of peers rather than rigid chains of command.

What makes Peernovation 365 practical rather than aspirational? 

The model is built on three core dynamics, six outcomes, and five empowering factors that create the conditions for achieving those outcomes. These elements function together as a dynamic system, one that leaders can implement without adding layers of bureaucracy or complexity.

The result is psychological safety without lowered standards, accountability without fear, and productivity without burnout. Interestingly enough, everything it takes to drive consistently higher productivity also contributes to a healthier, less stressful work environment.

What would you say to leaders who believe their culture is already collaborative? 

Collaboration is valuable, but collaboration alone doesn’t drive performance.

High-performing peer groups do more than work together and share ideas. They challenge one another, raise expectations and commitment levels, and drive each other to be better. Peernovation 365 helps leaders move from good intentions to designed outcomes by ensuring peer interaction consistently produces learning, ownership, and results.

If you had to summarize Peernovation 365 in one sentence, what would it be? 

Peernovation 365 is a practical operating system for turning peer influence into peer advantage every day.

Have you read?
How to Build a High-Impact Public Image: The Architecture of Influence.
Inside Samantha Regan’s Strategic Acquisition in Cortina d’Ampezzo.
Performance Management: How to Identify and Track Measurements That Matter.
Strategic Empathy in Leadership: Why These 3 Types Are Essential for High-Performing Teams.
2026 Golden Visa Review: Comparing the World’s Most Expensive Residency Programs.