Comparison · 9 material differences
The CMO Club vs Ellevate Network
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
Networking organization
Verified September 2026 The CMO Club
Chief marketing officers and senior marketing leaders at established brands
Networking organization
Ellevate Network
Professional women at all career stages, from early career through senior executive, plus corporate partners buying membership for their employees
What the records say
- Role or title: The CMO Club: Chief marketing officer or equivalent senior marketing leader; Ellevate Network: No published role or title.
- Gender: The CMO Club: No published gender; Ellevate Network: Ellevate describes itself as "the largest community of women at work" and states its mission as "creating a world where everyone belongs by helping women who challenge the status quo thrive at work".
- Annual dues: The CMO Club: Not publicly disclosed at any stage of the organisation's history.; Ellevate Network: Prices are recorded from Ellevate's own pricing page as it stood in August 2023. The current Hivebrite-hosted site does not display membership tiers or prices to visitors who are not logged in, so present-day pricing could not be verified..
Side by side
| The CMO Club | Ellevate Network | |
|---|---|---|
| Profile | ||
| Type | Networking organization | Networking organization |
| Founded | Not documented | 1997 (Founded in 1997 as 85 Broads by Janet Hanson, "one of the first women to be promoted to sales management at Goldman Sachs"; the name referred to Goldman Sachs's former headquarters at 85 Broad Street in New York. Rebranded as Ellevate Network in 2014.) |
| Headquarters | United States | United States |
| Geographic footprint | At acquisition in 2020, more than 30 global chapters. The successor InspireCMO runs member programmes at chapters across the United States; a current chapter list is not published on the public site. | Local chapters, mostly in United States cities with a small international presence; Ellevate's chapters page listed 27 chapters in 2023, including Dubai, Madrid and Toronto |
| Members | 650as of March 2020 | Not publicly disclosed. Ellevate describes itself as "the largest community of women at work" but publishes no member number. |
| Chapters | 30 | 27 |
| Primary audience | Chief marketing officers and senior marketing leaders at established brands | Professional women at all career stages, from early career through senior executive, plus corporate partners buying membership for their employees |
| Typical member | Members were CMOs and senior marketing leaders at large consumer and business brands. The club's defining rule was that vendors and press were excluded, so members could speak without being sold to or quoted. | Professional women across industries and career stages. Ellevate's tiers distinguish general members from senior executives: the Executive tier's Squads programme was described as connecting "other senior executives", while Pro-tier Squads were open more broadly. |
| Qualification | ||
| Role or title | Chief marketing officer or equivalent senior marketing leaderThe historic club and its successor both position membership as CMO-level. No formal written eligibility test is published.verified September 2026 · source ↗ | No published role or title |
| Gender | No published gender | Ellevate describes itself as "the largest community of women at work" and states its mission as "creating a world where everyone belongs by helping women who challenge the status quo thrive at work"Ellevate does not publish an explicit rule on whether men may join; the organisation's programming, chapters and Squads are addressed to women. Recorded as stated rather than as an exclusion.verified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Invitation required | Not documented | No |
| Sponsor required | No | No |
| Application process | For the successor InspireCMO: complete an online interest form, speak with the chapter's executive director, then begin attending member programmes. No public application process survives for the original CMO Club. | Members sign up online and choose a tier; there is no application form, sponsor, interview or vetting step. New members are pointed to a live welcome session, described as Ellevate 101. Corporate partners buy access for groups of employees separately. |
| Selectivity | Not publicly disclosed. | Not applicable: Ellevate is an open-enrolment community with no published eligibility test or acceptance process. |
| Cost | ||
| Annual dues | Not publicly disclosed at any stage of the organisation's history.verified September 2026 | Prices are recorded from Ellevate's own pricing page as it stood in August 2023. The current Hivebrite-hosted site does not display membership tiers or prices to visitors who are not logged in, so present-day pricing could not be verified. |
| Monthly dues | Not publicly disclosed. | $40 a monthPro tier: "$40.00/mo when paying up front", recorded from Ellevate's own pricing page as archived on 1 August 2023. Includes the Squads mastermind programme, free virtual event tickets, 50% off most in-person events and the Experts programme.verified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Initiation fee | Not publicly disclosedverified September 2026 | Prices are recorded from Ellevate's own pricing page as it stood in August 2023. The current Hivebrite-hosted site does not display membership tiers or prices to visitors who are not logged in, so present-day pricing could not be verified. |
| Membership term | Not documented | Monthly or annual subscription; prices quoted per month when paid up front |
| Structure | ||
| Meeting frequency | Chapter programmes through the year plus regular virtual strategy calls and peer-led sessions, per the successor organisation | Local chapter meet-ups and workshops, virtual Roundtables and Community Circles, executive events and the annual Mobilize Women summit |
| Peer forums | Member-led chapter circles rather than facilitated closed forums; each community has an assigned executive director | Squads: small facilitated mastermind groups running for twelve weeks, with a separate Executive Squads track |
| Confidentiality | The original club's premise was a room without vendors or press. The successor publishes a code of conduct but no forum confidentiality rule | Ellevate describes Roundtables and Community Circles as "safe spaces"; no formal confidentiality policy is published |
| Time commitment | Not documented | Squads run as a twelve-week programme; other participation is optional |
| Organized as | Chapter-based, Event-focused, Virtual | Chapter-based, Cohort-based, Virtual, Event-focused |
| Confidential peer forums | Partial | Yes |
| Local chapters | Yes | Yes |
| Virtual membership | Partial | Yes |
| Online community | Yes | Yes |
| Member directory | Yes | Yes |
| Events | Yes | Yes |
| Programming | ||
| Educational programming | Yes | Yes |
| Leadership development | Yes | Yes |
| Retreats | No | No |
| Travel | No | No |
| Family programming | No | No |
| Spouse and partner programming | No | No |
| Next-generation programming | Partial | No |
| Investment discussions | No | No |
| Investment opportunities | No | No |
| Philanthropic component | No | Partial |
| Networking emphasis | High | High |
| Social emphasis | Medium | Medium |
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Last verified: not yet reviewed
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Sources
Drawn from the sources listed on each page: The CMO Club · Ellevate Network