2025 has been a big year for the Accelerator series. We more than doubled the number of classes held, welcomed our 500th attendee, and set the stage for continued expansion in 2026.
So what does this all mean for the ESOP Employee Accelerator program going forward?
Growth – The Accelerator grew from 6 events in 2024 to 13 in 2025, all between June and December. And thank you to the 13 generous member companies who opened their doors and hosted Accelerator classes, inspiring attendees with their impressive ownership cultures and helping us to keep events as affordable and accessible for attendees as possible.
A Larger Team – This year, three more trainers began to teach and support the Accelerator course. This adds to our capacity to build our schedule and reach members in every chapter throughout the country.
Scale – Building our outreach, event structure and support, coordination and scheduling—everything we need to grow the program and bring it to more members. We also continue improving the program by implementing ideas and feedback given by attendees to optimize all aspects of the course, from lesson planning and materials to logistics to outreach.
What's Coming Next Year?
First and foremost, look for more events! Everything we have done this year sets the stage for us to expand in 2026, reaching more employee owners, and helping more companies develop stronger ownership cultures.
Expect additional case studies featuring our attendees and hosts, whose stories impress and inspire. Our community has an abundance of employee owners and groups that give back to those around them. It’s a pleasure to tell their stories and share the ways in which employee ownership is making a difference firsthand in people's lives.
You’ll notice more content on our websites, emails, and LinkedIn pages highlighting the benefits of ownership culture, like how it drives company performance, employee owners’ work experience, and their retirement account balances. The Employee Ownership Foundation’s fascinating research gives us a strong basis for understanding the value of ESOPs and ownership culture and the lifechanging potential it has for workers, households, and companies in the United States.
The Accelerator program is poised to take another great leap in 2026, and we look forward to working with you, our valued members, to take that exciting leap together!
If you would like to see an Accelerator class in a city or town near you, email Aaron Moberger at amoberger@esopassociation.org
What Employee Owners Are Saying About the Accelerator Program
"With very limited prior ESOP knowledge, this Accelerator gave me a breadth of information and answered a lot of the questions I had going into it. I would highly recommend for anyone new to an organization that's an ESOP or an aspiring leader that is striving to improve and positively impact the company culture of an ESOP."
— Adam Carlsen, Controller at Steel-Pro Inc.
"The Accelerator was an engaging and illuminating workshop. The focused look at certain business fundamentals strengthened the foundation for my ESOP knowledge!"
— Ben Guan-Kennedy, Video Content Producer at Imtra
"The Accelerator program provided a strong baseline understanding of the ESOP structure as well as real world examples we can apply to our own business."
— Kim Davis, VP Commercial at Performance Validation
