What Leadership Now Project does

Leadership Now Project is a private membership organization founded in 2017 by Daniella Ballou-Aares that convenes C-suite executives and business leaders around the premise that a strong democracy is foundational to economic competitiveness and political stability. The organization operates a referral-based network with members in more than 30 states and active chapters in 9 states (Arizona, Ohio, Wisconsin, Texas, California, Massachusetts, Georgia, District of Columbia, and New York), supplemented by an annual summit in New York City and 35+ policy events per year.

Its core offerings are a portfolio of civic and policy programs rather than a unified software product. The Business Plan for America, launched in May 2026, is a multi-issue policy agenda covering growth, AI, immigration, housing, energy, tax reform, global competitiveness, and rule of law, developed with business leaders, elected officials, and MBA students from 34 universities. Adjacent products include the Democracy Report Card (state-by-state grading tool), Protect Our Elections (election risk resources for business leaders), the Congressional Tenure Analysis (peer-democracy benchmarking), the Catalyst Fund (a $1 million inaugural grant vehicle funded by Pivotal to nine centrist civic organizations), the Leadership Now Award (annual recognition program), and the Leadership Now Candidates platform (147 endorsed candidates across federal and state offices). Underlying technology is positioned as policy research and analysis; no proprietary AI/ML, software stack, or API surface is disclosed.

The business model is a non-profit-adjacent membership subscription funded by member dues and philanthropic grants, supplemented by contributions to the Catalyst Fund. Go-to-market is community-led and event-driven, relying on referrals, the Annual Summit, and state chapters for member acquisition, with earned media in WSJ, NPR, and Fast Company and owned channels including a LinkedIn newsletter (Democracy + Business Update) and Substack. The customer base is a single primary segment — centrist business leaders — served through a horizontal, persona-based segmentation.

Name

Leadership Now Project

Legal name

Leadership Now Project

Website

https://leadershipnowproject.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Leadership Now Project is a private membership organization founded in 2017 that convenes C-suite business leaders around pro-democracy, pro-competitiveness policy. It operates a referral-based network across 30+ states, runs 35+ annual events, and delivers policy programs including the Business Plan for America, Democracy Report Card, and the Catalyst Fund.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Civic Advocacy

NAICS

Political Organizations (813940), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813), Business Associations (813910)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Civic Participation & Leadership Development (Voting, Advocacy, Community Leadership) (EDAAADAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Corporate Reputation & Thought Leadership (MPAAAOAF), Corporate & Leadership Development (BPACANAA)

Keywords

• Civic advocacy organization
• Policy research
• Democracy reform
• Membership organization
• Election protection

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Membership organization funded by member contributions. Members invest in aligned candidates and organizations through the Catalyst Fund and direct investments in candidates.
2. Catalyst Fund Grants: Grants awarded to organizations building common ground for the political center. Inaugural funding of $1 million provided by Pivotal (founded by Melinda Gates).

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Leadership Now Project is a membership organization of business leaders that convenes members through 35+ events annually and develops policy research and analysis focused on protecting democracy and U.S. economic competitiveness. It produces reports, state-level grading tools, and a comprehensive policy agenda (Business Plan for America), and mobilizes member investment in centrist candidates and aligned civic organizations through the Catalyst Fund.

Product overview

Leadership Now Project is a membership organization offering a portfolio of civic programs rather than a unified software product. Its core offerings include the Business Plan for America (a comprehensive policy agenda), the Democracy Report Card (state-by-state grading tool), Protect Our Elections (election protection resources), and Congressional Tenure Analysis (benchmarking reports). Supporting programs include the Catalyst Fund (investment initiative for centrist organizations), the Leadership Now Award (annual recognition program), the Annual Summit (member convening), New Jersey Plum Book (government talent resource), MBA Policy Challenge (student policy competition), and Leadership Now Candidates (candidate endorsement platform). These programs collectively aim to inform, influence, and invest in democratic strengthening through business leader engagement.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Business Plan for America A comprehensive policy agenda focused on growth, economic opportunity, AI, immigration, housing, energy, tax reform, global competitiveness, and rule of law. Developed in collaboration with business leaders, elected officials, policy experts, and MBA students from 34 universities.
• Democracy Report Card A state-level grading tool assigning letter grades to each state based on democratic performance across voting access, electoral systems, and campaign finance; helps business leaders make informed decisions about engaging in state-level politics and democracy reform.
• Protect Our Elections An election protection initiative providing business leaders with analysis of the 2026 midterm risk environment and actionable guidance on defending accessible, secure, and fair elections.
• Congressional Tenure Analysis A data-driven analysis benchmarking U.S. Congressional tenure and age across parties and against peer democracies, highlighting generational gaps and providing a fact base for reform proposals.
• Catalyst Fund An investment initiative mobilizing resources for pragmatic, centrist civic organizations; inaugural $1 million in grants awarded to nine organizations targeting the political center and the estimated 34% of Americans who identify as moderate.
• Leadership Now Award An annual award recognizing individuals who exemplify courageous, pragmatic leadership and commitment to rule of law, often at personal or professional cost; recipients have included Stephen Richer (2025), Adam Kinzinger (2024), Al Schmidt (2022), and Jerome Powell, Scott Galloway, Jessica Tarlov, and Tom Florsheim Jr. (2026).
• Annual Summit An annual in-person convening bringing together Leadership Now members and select invited guests to engage on action, alignment, and leadership priorities around democracy and economic competitiveness.
• New Jersey Plum Book A resource highlighting key appointed government roles in New Jersey spanning economic development, housing, technology, and public health.
• MBA Policy Challenge A competition where graduate teams from 34 universities propose policies to strengthen the U.S. constitutional framework and responsible economic growth, scored by business and public policy experts.
• Leadership Now Candidates A searchable platform showcasing endorsed candidates who align with moderate, pragmatic values and defend democratic norms across federal and state offices; 147 candidates supported across federal and state levels.

Quantifiable outcome

• 84% of senior business leaders surveyed express concern about political and legal climate's impact on companies
• +2 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Bipartisan Policy Center: Washington-based think tank producing policy analysis from a centrist posture; directly comparable as a centrist policy research and convening organization with similar C-suite and policymaker engagement model.
• Common Cause: Long-standing civic advocacy organization focused on government accountability, voting rights, and campaign finance reform; comparable member-supported civic advocacy model and state-level organizing footprint.
• Protect Democracy: Nonpartisan organization defending democratic institutions and rule of law; directly aligned mission on democracy protection with similar rapid-response policy posture.
• RepresentUs: Democracy reform organization tackling election integrity, anti-corruption, and voting access; comparable operating model combining policy advocacy, state-level organizing, and grassroots mobilization.
• Aspen Institute: Membership-style convening organization of senior business and civic leaders; highly comparable in operating a values-based leadership and convening model with an annual flagship gathering and policy programming.
• Committee for Economic Development (CED): Business-leader-led public policy organization producing research on economic competitiveness and governance; nearly identical member archetype (C-suite executives) and policy framing as Leadership Now.
• No Labels: Centrist political organization that mobilizes business leaders and elected officials to build bipartisan coalitions on key issues; most direct analogue to Leadership Now's centrist business-leader mobilization and candidate support model.
• Issue One: Reform organization focused on election integrity, campaign finance, and reducing political polarization; closely comparable mission on democracy protection and very similar candidate-vetting/endorsement mechanisms to Leadership Now Candidates.

Broad incumbents

• Brookings Institution: Large, established think tank producing policy research across governance, economic competitiveness, and political reform; broader in scope and scale than Leadership Now but analogous as a research-to-policy influence intermediary.
• U.S. Chamber of Commerce: Large national business association representing companies on policy and political engagement; comparable business-leader constituency and policy advocacy channel, though far broader and more established than Leadership Now's targeted centrist niche.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeted.com/talks/daniella_ballou_aares_how_business_leaders_can_renew_democracy
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/leadership-now-project

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles15 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments9 records

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

Frequently asked questions about Leadership Now Project