Comparison · 17 material differences
Academy for Chief Executives vs Tugboat Institute
This comparison was generated on request from the records. It carries no editorial verdict and is not indexed. The published comparisons are listed on the compare page.
Read down each column for one organization, across a row for the difference. A bronze mark at the left of a cell means the organizations differ on that row. A dash or “not published” means the organization does not disclose the fact — it is not a zero.
Verified September 2026
Peer advisory
Verified September 2026 Academy for Chief Executives
UK chief executives and managing directors of established mid-market companies
Peer advisory
Tugboat Institute
Chief executives, presidents and executive chairs with significant ownership of private companies that have deliberately rejected the venture-backed or IPO path, with at least…
What the records say
- Role or title — Academy for Chief Executives: Chief Executive or Managing Director, owner or employed leader of the business; Tugboat Institute: Must be the CEO, President or Executive Chairperson of the company.
- Minimum company revenue — Academy for Chief Executives: Minimum £5 million turnover; Tugboat Institute: At least US$10M in annual revenue.
- Minimum employees — Academy for Chief Executives: At least 20 employees; Tugboat Institute: No published minimum employees.
- Minimum ownership stake — Academy for Chief Executives: No published minimum ownership stake; Tugboat Institute: Must hold a significant ownership stake; the business must be closely held with value-aligned owners who have no legal right to compel a sale or IPO.
- Annual dues — Academy for Chief Executives: Not publicly disclosed. The Academy never published membership fees and no reliable third-party figure was found.; Tugboat Institute: Not publicly disclosed. No membership fee appears anywhere on the public site; prospective members are routed to a pre-application and a follow-up conversation..
Side by side
| Academy for Chief Executives | Tugboat Institute | |
|---|---|---|
| Profile | ||
| Type | Peer advisory | Peer advisory |
| Founded | Not documented | 2013 (The About Us page dates the founding to 2013, when Dave Whorton - previously a founder of four Silicon Valley companies and an investor at two venture and private equity firms - coined the term "Evergreen" and, with the help of Chris Alden, created Tugboat Institute following a small gathering of leaders in Sun Valley, Idaho in October of that year.) |
| Headquarters | Hedge End, United Kingdom | Sun Valley, United States |
| Geographic footprint | United Kingdom; the Academy ran regional groups led by franchisee Chairs but never published a public list of locations | United States focused, with local in-person forums grouped by member geography and virtual "elastic" forums; the pre-application form accepts company addresses in any country. |
| Members | 400as of January 2015 | Not publicly disclosed. The organization refers to drawing on "hundreds of Evergreen companies" for its content platform but publishes no membership total. |
| Chapters | 30 | The organization runs local in-person forums based on member geography plus virtual forums, but does not publish a count or a list of locations. |
| Primary audience | UK chief executives and managing directors of established mid-market companies | Chief executives, presidents and executive chairs with significant ownership of private companies that have deliberately rejected the venture-backed or IPO path, with at least US$10 million in annual revenue. |
| Typical member | Vistage's acquisition release described Academy members as "U.K. based business leaders, Chief Executives or Managing Directors, owners or employed leaders of companies with a minimum of £5 million turnover and at least 20 employees". A 2015 trade profile put the member range at £2 million to £200 million turnover, so the threshold appears to have tightened over time. | Members must lead a closely held private company whose owners have no legal right to compel a sale or flotation, must hold a significant ownership stake themselves, and must have five years as chief executive or president of the current company or prior experience in that role. The company must have at least US$10 million in annual revenue, be cash-flow positive for two years and show consistent growth. |
| Qualification | ||
| Role or title | Chief Executive or Managing Director, owner or employed leader of the businessPer Vistage's 2018 acquisition release describing Academy membership.verified September 2026 · source ↗ | Must be the CEO, President or Executive Chairperson of the company"Prospective members must be the CEO, President, or Executive Chairperson of an Evergreen company with a significant ownership stake."verified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Minimum company revenue | Minimum £5 million turnoverPer Vistage's 2018 acquisition release. A 2015 trade profile described the member range as £2m-£200m turnover, suggesting the published floor rose over time.verified September 2026 · source ↗ | At least US$10M in annual revenueAccompanied by two further financial tests: cash-flow positive for two years, and consistent growth.verified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Minimum employees | At least 20 employeesPer Vistage's 2018 acquisition release.verified September 2026 · source ↗ | No published minimum employees |
| Minimum ownership stake | No published minimum ownership stake | Must hold a significant ownership stake; the business must be closely held with value-aligned owners who have no legal right to compel a sale or IPONo percentage is specified. The ownership test effectively excludes companies with investors who can force an exit.verified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Geographic restriction | United Kingdomverified September 2026 · source ↗ | No published geographic restriction |
| Invitation required | No | No |
| Sponsor required | No | Sometimes |
| Application process | Historically, prospective members were recruited by a regional Academy Chair, who ran the fit assessment and placed the member in a non-conflicting group. No public application portal survives; enquiries now route to Vistage UK. | Candidates who believe they meet the criteria complete a two-step pre-application covering personal details and company information: legal structure, year founded, annual revenue for the last fiscal year, employee count, number of years profitable, website and address. The organization says it reviews every pre-application in detail and that a member of the team then makes contact to discuss next steps. Staff biographies refer to a candidacy process and to working with member referrals. |
| Selectivity | Not publicly disclosed. The Academy published no acceptance data. | Not publicly disclosed. The criteria are published in full but no acceptance rate, application volume or waitlist information is given. |
| Cost | ||
| Annual dues | Not publicly disclosed. The Academy never published membership fees and no reliable third-party figure was found.verified September 2026 | Not publicly disclosed. No membership fee appears anywhere on the public site; prospective members are routed to a pre-application and a follow-up conversation.verified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Initiation fee | Not publicly disclosedverified September 2026 | Tugboat Institute publishes detailed eligibility criteria but no pricing of any kind. |
| Event costs | Not publicly disclosed. The organisation no longer trades, so no current fee exists. | Not publicly disclosed. The Summit, Exemplar Visit and Gathering of Teams are described as member experiences without published pricing.verified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Membership term | Not documented | Not publicly disclosed |
| Structure | ||
| Meeting frequency | Historically monthly full-day group meetings hosted in rotation by members, plus a roughly two-hour one-to-one mentoring session with the Chair | Forum groups meet through the year, locally in person or virtually; three annual gatherings - the Summit each summer in Sun Valley, the Exemplar Visit at a member company each autumn, and the Gathering of Teams in February |
| Peer forums | Regional groups of non-competing chief executives and managing directors led by a franchisee Academy Chair | Confidential forum groups described as a structured environment balancing personal growth and business insight; members join either a local in-person forum based on geography or an "elastic" forum that meets virtually through the year and in person at Tugboat events |
| Confidentiality | Groups were confidential; the organisation's public material stressed that members could raise issues they could not discuss with staff | The organization describes its forums as "a safe space" and its community as defined by trust; it publishes no written confidentiality policy. |
| Time commitment | Historically about one full day a month plus a two-hour mentoring session | Not documented |
| Organized as | Forum-based, Chapter-based | Forum-based, Event-focused, Chapter-based, Virtual |
| Confidential peer forums | Yes | Yes |
| Local chapters | Yes | Yes |
| Virtual membership | Not documented | Partial |
| Online community | Not documented | Yes |
| Member directory | Not documented | Not documented |
| Events | Yes | Yes |
| Programming | ||
| Educational programming | Yes | Yes |
| Leadership development | Yes | Yes |
| Retreats | Not documented | Yes |
| Travel | No | Partial |
| Family programming | No | Partial |
| Spouse and partner programming | No | Not documented |
| Next-generation programming | No | Partial |
| Investment discussions | Not documented | No |
| Investment opportunities | No | No |
| Philanthropic component | No | No |
| Networking emphasis | Medium | High |
| Social emphasis | Low | Medium |
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Sources
Drawn from the sources listed on each page: Academy for Chief Executives · Tugboat Institute