Society of American Business Editors and Writers

What Society of American Business Editors and Writers does

The Society of American Business Editors and Writers (SABEW), legally organized as the Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing, is a 501(c)-style nonprofit professional association founded in 1964 and headquartered in Washington, D.C. (incorporated in Arizona). It serves individual business journalists, institutional newsrooms, journalism students, and educators through tiered annual memberships ($25 student to $1,000 lifetime individual; $135-410+ institutional), currently covering 2,500+ members in the United States and 250+ members via its 2014-established SABEW Canada chapter. Revenue is generated from membership dues, award competition entry fees ($20-200 per entry), job listing fees ($60 per 30-day posting for non-members, free to members), and event registration fees ($50-175 for events such as the Personal Finance Summit at The New York Times). Externally funded fellowships (Goldschmidt, Xana, Sho, Health Care, Cox-SABEW, David J. Morrow) provide material portions of program budget alongside core grants from NEFE, the Commonwealth Fund, and others.

SABEW's product portfolio centers on the Best in Business Awards (31st year in 2025, 137 recipients), Best in Business Book Awards (6th year), Canada Best in Business Awards (12th year), an annual conference, monthly virtual training sessions, the College Connect student blog program, a job board, and a First Amendment Initiative advocating press freedom and government data access. Delivery runs primarily through the sabew.org website and the third-party Award Force contest management platform, with no proprietary AI, API, or mobile offering disclosed. The operation is lean, with only two full-time staff: Executive Director Stephanie Klimstra (in role since September 11, 2023, previously Director of Events at Investigative Reporters & Editors) and Membership and Awards Manager Tess McLaughlin (joined September 2019).

Customer segments span professional, early-career, and student business journalists, plus institutional newsroom memberships and a smaller associate tier. Named member and award-winning outlets include The Globe and Mail, Bloomberg News, Toronto Star, Reuters Canada, Financial Post, CBC, and The Logic, with university partners Arizona State, University of Missouri, and University of Georgia. Distribution combines direct membership signup through the website portal, regional chapter activity in Canada, in-person and virtual events, and a multi-channel marketing mix (email newsletter, X/Twitter, LinkedIn, content marketing, earned media, and partner programs including Muck Rack as Official Media Partner).

Name

Society of American Business Editors and Writers

Legal name

Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing

Website

https://sabew.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1964

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

SABEW is a 501(c)-style nonprofit professional association founded in 1964 and based in Washington, D.C., serving 2,500+ business journalists across the United States via tiered memberships, awards competitions, fellowships, and training events, with a 250+ member Canadian chapter.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Journalism Association

NAICS

Business Associations (813910), Professional Organizations (813920), Business, Professional, Labor, Political, and Similar Organizations (8139)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYMPAJABAK

Scholarly Societies & Conference Proceedings Publishing

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Publishing (Books, News, Magazines)/Educational & Academic Publishing (Textbooks, Scholarly, STM)

SECONDARYTHAHAMAB

Sales Kickoffs (SKOs) & Revenue Summits

Travel & Hospitality/MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences & Exhibitions)/Corporate Meetings & Summits

SECONDARYEDABAGAG

Cloud & SaaS Security Awareness (e.g., M365/Google Workspace)

Education/Corporate Training & Professional Development/Cybersecurity Awareness & Secure Practices Training

Keywords

• Business journalism association
• Professional development training
• Journalism awards programs
• Membership organization
• Press freedom advocacy

Headquarters

HQ city

Phoenix

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual membership fees from individual and institutional members providing recurring revenue stream. Individual memberships range from $25/year (student) to $1,000 (lifetime). Institutional memberships based on size.
2. Award Competition Entry Fees: Fees charged for entering Best in Business Awards competitions. Entry fees vary by category and deadline timing, ranging from $20 (students) to $200 (late general excellence).
3. Job Listing Fees: Job postings are free for SABEW members; non-members pay $60 per 30-day job submission.
4. Event Registration Fees: Revenue from conferences, summits, and training sessions. Personal Finance Summit registration ranges from $50 (students) to $175 (non-members).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

SABEW is a membership-based professional association that sells individual and institutional memberships to business journalists, providing access to the Best in Business Awards competition, fellowship opportunities, training programs, a job board, member-only resources, and partnerships with LinkedIn, Rev, and Bright Data. It also generates revenue through award entry fees, conference and summit registration, job-listing fees, donations, grants, and sponsorships. The organization advocates for press freedom and serves as the industry body for business journalism in North America, with a regional chapter in Canada.

Product overview

SABEW is a professional association for business journalists, not a technology product company. Its offerings consist of membership programs, journalism awards competitions, fellowship opportunities, training events, and advocacy initiatives. The core portfolio includes the Best in Business Awards, Best in Business Book Awards, and Canada Best in Business Awards (prestigious journalism competitions); six fellowship programs (Goldschmidt, Xana, Sho, Health Care, Cox-SABEW, David J. Morrow) providing professional development funding; annual and virtual training including conferences, workshops, and webinars; the College Connect student blog program; a job board for journalism positions; and the First Amendment Initiative advocating for press freedom and government data access. These services are delivered through its website platform using third-party tools like Award Force for contest submissions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Best in Business Awards: Annual awards competition celebrating excellence in business journalism
• Goldschmidt Fellowship
• Xana Fellowship
• Sho Fellowship
• SABEW Canada
• College Connect

Products and services

• Membership Programs Tiered individual (Student $25/yr, Early-Career $40/yr, Journalist $70/yr, Retiree $35/yr, Associate $90/yr, Lifetime $1,000) and institutional memberships (size-based $135–$410+/yr). Provides members with access to training, awards eligibility, fellowships, networking, member resource center, and discounts on LinkedIn Premium, Rev VoiceHub, and Bright Data.
• Best in Business Awards Annual journalism awards competition honoring excellence in business journalism across multiple categories (Investigative, Explanatory, Breaking News, Feature, plus topics by news-organization size). Open to SABEW members; entry fees vary by category and deadline, ranging from $20 (students) to $200 (late general excellence).
• Best in Business Book Awards Annual awards recognizing outstanding business books in three categories: Business Reporting, Career and Financial Development, and Management and Leadership. Open to SABEW members.
• Canada Best in Business Awards Exclusive Canadian journalism awards competition recognizing exemplary business journalism works, with 18 contest categories including Beat Reporting, Investigative, Feature, Multimedia, Podcast, and Video. Run by SABEW Canada with 250+ Canadian members participating.
• Annual Conference (SABEW26) Annual conference with hands-on sessions, panel discussions, newsmaker interviews, and one-on-one mentoring sessions for business journalists.
• Personal Finance Summit Annual summit hosted at The New York Times and co-sponsored with NEFE, focused on consumer and personal finance journalism. Includes fellowship opportunities for journalists covering underserved communities. Registration from $50 (SABEW student) to $175 (non-member).
• Virtual Training Programs Monthly virtual training sessions with beat reporters and expert sources, covering topics such as AI in journalism, alternative data, retail coverage, and personal finance reporting. Free for SABEW members.
• Job Board Online job listings platform for business journalism positions. Free for SABEW members; non-members pay $60 per 30-day posting.

Quantifiable outcome

• 31st annual Best in Business Awards recognizing excellence in business journalism
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• National Endowment for Financial Education (NEFE)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNEFE funds the College Connect blog program, a personal finance blog project where students from Arizona State University, University of Missouri School of Journalism, and University of Georgia describe their own experiences handling money and credit. This partnership supports financial literacy education for college students.
• Bright DataminorGTM or Marketing PartnerBright Data offers SABEW members full access to marketplace datasets, web scraping experts, and OSINT tools including eCommerce, Business, Real Estate, Travel, Social Media, and Search Engine data for use in reporting.
• Rev.com VoiceHubminorGTM or Marketing PartnerRev offers SABEW student members FREE VoiceHub Basic annual subscription ($120 value) and non-student members 50% discount on VoiceHub Pro annual subscription ($252 value) for voice transcription and recording tools.
• LinkedIn for JournalistsminorGTM or Marketing PartnerLinkedIn provides SABEW members with 12-month subscription to LinkedIn Premium Business, access to ongoing trainings and regular product updates specifically for active journalists and editors.
• National Institute for Health Care Management (NIHCM) FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNIHCM Foundation partners with SABEW for health care workshops as part of the Health Care Fellows program.
• University of South Carolina School of Journalism and Mass CommunicationscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for David J. Morrow Scholarship for Business Journalism - funds designated for college tuition and expenses for students aspiring to become business journalists, including attending SABEW conference.
• University of GeorgiacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCox-SABEW Fellowship recognizes University of Georgia students who have embraced business journalism and qualified through professional experience and student media.
• The New York TimescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe New York Times hosts SABEW's Personal Finance Summit at its 15th Floor Conference Center in New York City. The event is co-sponsored by SABEW and NEFE.
• Muck RackminorGTM or Marketing PartnerMuck Rack is listed as an Official Media Partner of SABEW.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE): IRE is a nonprofit membership organization for investigative journalists, offering training, awards, and resources. Directly comparable to SABEW as a journalism professional association with overlapping member base and event programming. SABEW's Executive Director Stephanie Klimstra previously spent 16 years at IRE.
• Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ): SPJ is the largest journalism membership organization in the US, offering training, awards, and advocacy. Both organizations serve journalism professionals with subscription-based membership, training events, and ethical standards advocacy. SABEW is a more specialized business journalism-focused peer.
• Online News Association (ONA): ONA is a nonprofit membership organization for digital journalists, providing training, awards, and networking. Comparable to SABEW in mission and operating model, though focused on digital journalism rather than business journalism specifically.
• Association of Health Care Journalists (AHCJ): AHCJ is a membership organization for health care journalists running training, fellowships, and awards. Directly comparable as a beat-specific journalism association with similar member tiers, awards, and fellowship programs—SABEW even runs a Health Care Fellows program.
• National Association of Science Writers (NASW): NASW is a membership organization for science writers and journalists offering training, networking, and fellowships. Comparable to SABEW as a beat-specialized journalism professional association with subscription-based membership and event programming.
• Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA): RTDNA is a membership organization for broadcast and digital news professionals, offering training, awards, and advocacy. Comparable to SABEW as a journalism professional association with subscription model, awards programs, and industry advocacy focus.

Broad incumbents

• Poynter Institute: Poynter is a leading journalism education and training organization offering seminars, fellowships, and resources. Comparable to SABEW as a journalism training and ethics organization, though Poynter is a larger institution with broader scope across all journalism domains.
• National Association of Broadcasters (NAB): NAB is a large trade association representing broadcasters offering advocacy, training, and events. Comparable to SABEW as a media industry association, though NAB is much larger and serves broadcasters rather than journalists specifically.

Emerging players

• Journalism and Women Symposium (JAWS): JAWS is a membership organization supporting women in journalism through training, networking, and advocacy. Comparable to SABEW as a journalism professional association with mission-driven programming targeting specific demographics, though smaller and more focused.
• Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA): AAJA is a membership organization for Asian American and Pacific Islander journalists offering training, scholarships, and awards. Comparable to SABEW as a journalism professional association with demographic-focused programming and similar membership/fellowship structure.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/sabewCDA
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sabew
• Facebookfacebook.com/sabeworg

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Society of American Business Editors and Writers