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🍻 Bringing EO to Brew City

A week of EO inspiration, familiar faces, and a glimpse of what's ahead for the EOX Network

Weeks later, we’re still thinking about what we carried home from Milwaukee.

The 2026 NCEO Annual Conference brought together the largest gathering in employee ownership history, and the week gave us plenty to celebrate: strong sessions, packed rooms, familiar faces, and a field full of people working to bring EO to more businesses and communities.

Read our full recap on LinkedIn for more highlights from the week, including the partners, sponsors, and EO friends who helped make Milwaukee so memorable.

For EOX, the week was especially meaningful because so much of the State Center Network was together in one place. From the EOX State Center Symposium, sponsored by Eide Bailly, to the NCEOX Building Bridges reception, co-hosted by NCEO, EOX, and the State Centers, Milwaukee offered a clear reminder of why this network matters. National visibility opens doors, but local relationships help people walk through them.

We also gathered at the Best Place at the Historic Pabst Brewery for The Final Pour, celebrating what’s ahead for EOX and our State-By-State Capacity Building Campaign. The evening included the inaugural EOXcellence Awards, honoring founding board members Ken Baker, Neil Brozen, James Steiker, and Cecil Ursprung, along with a surprise award for EOX Deputy Director Elle Carne in recognition of her leadership and care for the Network.

We're grateful to our sponsors who helped make the night possible!

Milwaukee gave us a fuller view of the work ahead: connecting national interest in employee ownership to trusted, local places where business owners and communities can take the next step.

Interested in supporting our work?

EOX has raised over 92% of our $6.9M goal for the State-By-State Campaign. Help us cross the finish line!

HELP US CLOSE THE GAP ON OUR STATE-BY-STATE CAPACITY CAMPAIGN

NOW AVAILABLE!

EOX 2025 IMPACT REPORT

Read how 2025 was a monumental year with momumental opportunities for EOX to GROW, FUND, PROVE, and CONNECT !

EOX ON THE MOVE

EO Advocacy Does Not Clock Out

Steve Storkan went straight from the NCEO conference to Washington, D.C., for the Community Development Investors conference, where he helped bridge the worlds of employee ownership and Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition. It was great to see fellow EO ambassadors Gina Schaefer, Julien Rosenbloom, Christine Curella, and Evan Edwards, proving that EO advocacy really is a 24/7 passion.

FOLLOW US ON LinkedIn!
Keep in touch with our upcoming travels. Who knows, you might even get tagged in a post when we cross paths.

Help us reach our goal of increasing our LinkedIn following by 40%.
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NEWS ACROSS THE EOX NETWORK

SPOTLIGHT: ALCEO hosts their inaugural Local Legacy Conference at historic Sloss Furnaces in Birmingham.

ALCEO gathered more than 50 attendees and speakers from across the country at Sloss Furnaces for its Local Legacy Conference, a day focused on helping Birmingham business owners explore exit planning, employee ownership, and ways to keep local businesses rooted in the community. Special thanks to featured sponsor Maynard Nexsen and to the business owners who came ready to teach, learn, and help build wealth in Birmingham.
READ HERE →

NEW RESEARCH: EOX Board Member, Adria Scharf, Ph.D., publishes groundbreaking study — Business Owner Perspectives on Selling to Employees: Insights from In-Depth Interviews
READ HERE →

GACEO to present a small business seminar with the Greater Hall Chamber of Commerce →


FLCEO seeks their next Director. Apply Here →


IACEO attends the Rise: Iowa Rural Summit in Dubuque, sharing how EO can strengthen rural Iowa →


ILCEO welcomes their new Executive Director, Adam Schuster, who brings a strong focus on economic development →


INCEO shares insights on EO with Building Indiana Business in their article on the growing ESOP movement in Indiana →


MICEO brings their LEO pilot program to the Connect Local Grand Rapids Buyers & Business Exchange →


MOCEO seeks a Community Partnership Coordinator to help grow their mission across the Kansas City Metro →


NCEOC exhibits at two great events across NC, making connections and educating others about EO →


TXCEO welcomes Austin Courts and Floors to the employee ownership family in Texas with guidance from Tandem →


WACEO co-hosts EO Community Spaces event with Inland Cooperative Services in Spokane →

EO RESOURCES

🎙️ PODCAST - Poised for Exit, Ep. 292: Employee Ownership as a Business Exit Option feat. Steve Storkan
EOX Executive Director, Steve Storkan, joins Julie Keyes to share how EO is a powerful option for owners who need an exit option.
LISTEN HERE →

🎙️ PODCAST - The Grit Blueprint, Episode: Exit Strategy Tips for Independent Retail Business Owners with Former Founder Gina Schaefer
In this episode, Gina Schaefer breaks down everything: ESOPs, succession planning for independent dealers, finding the right buyer for your business, and why she chose employee ownership over private equity.
WATCH HERE →

UPCOMING EVENTS

🗓️ Check out the EOX Events Calendar!

SEMINAR — Culture as a Legacy: Navigating Succession Planning with an Ownership Mindset

hosted by the Georgia Center for Employee Ownership (GACEO) & Greater Hall Chamber of Commerce

June 9, 2026 | Gainsville, GA

REGISTER →

PRECONFERENCE — Selling Owner Preconference

hosted by the Vermont Employee Ownership Center (VEOC)

June 11, 2026 | Burlington, VT

REGISTER →

CONFERENCE — VEOC Annual Employee Ownership Conference

hosted by the Vermont Employee Ownership Center (VEOC)

June 12, 2026 | Burlington, VT

REGISTER →

EDUCATION PROGRAM — Is an ESOP Right for You?

co-hosted by the National Center for Employee Ownership (NCEO) and the Ohio Employee Ownership Center (OEOC)

June 15-16, 2026 | Virtual

REGISTER →

WEBINAR — Charting the Course of ESOP-to-ESOP Mergers

hosted by Prairie Capital

June 18, 2026 | Columbus, OH

REGISTER →

PROGRAM — Leadership Program for ESOP CEOs and Presidents

hosted by the University of Pennsylvania Center for Social Impact Strategy and the National Center for Employee Ownership (NCEO)

July 26, 2026 [Session 1] | Philadelphia, PA
LEARN MORE →

FORUM — 2026 NCEO Forum

hosted by the National Center for Employee Ownership (NCEO)

August 26-28, 2026 | Phoenix, AZ
REGISTER →

CONFERENCE — IACEO Annual Employee Ownership Conference

hosted by the Iowa Center for Employee Ownership (IACEO)

October 01, 2026 | Ankeny, IA

REGISTER →

EO IN THE NEWS

New Research — After 7+ years of work and Federal security clearances to access Census data, researchers release groundbreaking authoritative US Census research study on ESOPs, titled "Employee Share Ownership, Management Practices, and Labor Productivity: An Analysis Using Establishment Level Micro-Data from the U.S. Census."
READ MORE →

POLICY CORNER

Providence, RI - Companion bills H7570 & S2922 introduced in RI General Assembly

Rhode Island lawmakers are considering companion bills, H7570 and S2922, that would establish the Rhode Island Center for Employee Ownership to help business owners explore employee ownership as a succession planning option. The House bill was held for further study after a March hearing, while the Senate version is scheduled for hearing and/or consideration on April 29, 2026. If advanced, the legislation would create a dedicated resource for education, technical assistance, and referrals around ESOPs, worker cooperatives, and employee ownership trusts.
READ HERE →

SUPPORT EOX

Want to get more involved in a State Center near you or at the national level? Please email Steve Storkan at sstorkan@eoxnetwork.org.

If you're interested in donating to support our work to expand employee ownership across the United States, please click the button below to make a tax-deductible gift to the Employee Ownership Expansion Network!

EOX EIN: 83-2849677

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