Comparison · 13 material differences
Family Enterprise Center at Kennesaw State University 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
Family-business organization
Verified September 2026 Family Enterprise Center at Kennesaw State University
Family business owners and leaders in Georgia and the surrounding region, plus students from family businesses through the centre's next-generation programming
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: Family Enterprise Center at Kennesaw State University: No published role or title; Tugboat Institute: Must be the CEO, President or Executive Chairperson of the company.
- Minimum company revenue: Family Enterprise Center at Kennesaw State University: No published minimum company revenue; Tugboat Institute: At least US$10M in annual revenue.
- Minimum ownership stake: Family Enterprise Center at Kennesaw State University: 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.
- Geographic restriction: Family Enterprise Center at Kennesaw State University: Programming is delivered at Kennesaw State University in metropolitan Atlanta, which in practice limits membership to Georgia and the surrounding region; Tugboat Institute: No published geographic restriction.
- Annual dues: Family Enterprise Center at Kennesaw State University: $1,000 a year; 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
| Family Enterprise Center at Kennesaw State University | Tugboat Institute | |
|---|---|---|
| Profile | ||
| Type | Family-business organization | Peer advisory |
| Founded | 1987 (The centre's about page states it was founded in 1987 by Dr Craig Aronoff within the Coles College of Business. It is commonly described as the oldest university-based family business centre; its own landing page says it has operated for over 40 years, which does not reconcile exactly with a 1987 founding.) | 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 | Kennesaw, United States | Sun Valley, United States |
| Geographic footprint | Georgia and the south-eastern United States, based at Kennesaw State University near Atlanta | 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 | Not publicly disclosed | Not publicly disclosed. The organization refers to drawing on "hundreds of Evergreen companies" for its content platform but publishes no membership total. |
| Chapters | A single university-based centre with no chapters. | 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 | Family business owners and leaders in Georgia and the surrounding region, plus students from family businesses through the centre's next-generation programming | 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 | Members are family businesses rather than individuals, at a range of sizes and stages; the centre notes that membership is expected to move between tiers as a business changes. The next-generation side reaches Kennesaw State students from family businesses through a student group and a talent exchange with member companies. | 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 | No published role or title | 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 | No published minimum company revenue | 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 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 | Programming is delivered at Kennesaw State University in metropolitan Atlanta, which in practice limits membership to Georgia and the surrounding regionSome programming is delivered as webinars.verified September 2026 · source ↗ | No published geographic restriction |
| Invitation required | No | No |
| Sponsor required | No | Sometimes |
| Application process | Prospective members are invited to schedule a conversation with the centre team by email to discuss which tier fits their goals, then join at the published price. No vetting, sponsorship or committee process is described. | 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: membership appears open to family businesses at the published rates. | Not publicly disclosed. The criteria are published in full but no acceptance rate, application volume or waitlist information is given. |
| Cost | ||
| Annual dues | $1,000 a yearCore membership, per business: workshops, webinars, speaker series, resource library, educational discounts, open house tours, three office-hours sessions and hosting opportunities.verified September 2026 · source ↗ | 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 | No initiation fee is published.verified September 2026 | Tugboat Institute publishes detailed eligibility criteria but no pricing of any kind. |
| Programme fee | Not publicly disclosed: the centre does not publish separate prices for the Family Business Forum, peer groups, the Family Business Roadmap or Family Business Boost; these are bundled into Signature membership or quoted on enquiry.verified September 2026 · source ↗ | Tugboat Institute publishes detailed eligibility criteria but no pricing of any kind. |
| Event costs | Two published annual tiers, both priced per business rather than per person. | 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 | Annual | Not publicly disclosed |
| Structure | ||
| Meeting frequency | Peer groups meet monthly; the Family Business Forum runs twice a year; workshops, webinars, a speaker series and open house tours run through the year | 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 | Confidential facilitated peer groups meeting monthly, available to Signature members. Group size and facilitator credentials are not published. The twice-yearly Family Business Forum is a larger gathering rather than a standing group. | 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 | The centre describes its peer groups as confidential; no written confidentiality policy is published. | The organization describes its forums as "a safe space" and its community as defined by trust; it publishes no written confidentiality policy. |
| Time commitment | Not documented | Not documented |
| Organized as | Forum-based, Event-focused, Virtual | Forum-based, Event-focused, Chapter-based, Virtual |
| Confidential peer forums | Yes | Yes |
| Local chapters | No | Yes |
| Virtual membership | Partial | Partial |
| Online community | Partial | 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 | Yes | Partial |
| Spouse and partner programming | Not documented | Not documented |
| Next-generation programming | Yes | Partial |
| Investment discussions | No | No |
| Investment opportunities | No | No |
| Philanthropic component | No | No |
| Networking emphasis | Medium | High |
| Social emphasis | Low | Medium |
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Last verified: not yet reviewed
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Sources
Drawn from the sources listed on each page: Family Enterprise Center at Kennesaw State University · Tugboat Institute