Upstream Academy

What Upstream Academy does

Upstream Academy is a privately held professional development and training company founded in 2000 and headquartered in Helena, Montana. It specializes exclusively in leadership development, career progression, and advisory business training for public accounting firms and CPA professionals across North America. Its portfolio includes tiered training programs such as the Emerging Leaders Academy, New Manager Academy, Advanced Partner Academy, and Career Development Series, alongside the annual HeadWaters Leadership Conference (25th anniversary in 2026). Supporting services include retreat facilitation, speaking engagements, the Upstream Leader Podcast, and a content library of articles and recommended reading curated for accounting firm leaders.

The company's business model rests on two revenue streams: per-firm and per-participant program fees for its training academies and Career Development Series (ranging from approximately $3,000 to $12,500 per firm/participant tier), and recurring annual membership dues through the Upstream Academy Network (UAN), an association membership that bundles free access to certain programs, discounts on all services, and peer network participation for member firms. With more than 150 firms served annually and over 1,500 accounting firm partners cumulatively developed, Upstream Academy monetizes a tightly defined vertical with limited horizontal diversification.

Operationally, Upstream Academy is lean: a core team of six (including Managing Director Jeremy Clopton) supported by a faculty network of experienced public accounting professionals. Content is delivered through virtual classrooms, webinars, on-demand learning, coaching, podcasts, and in-person events. Distribution is relationship-led and direct-to-firm with no public funding, no technology platform layer, and no reported AI/ML capabilities. Marketing is anchored on thought leadership content, the podcast (top 10% globally by Listen Notes), email newsletters, and accounting industry events. The company is currently navigating a generational leadership transition following the retirement of founders Sam Allred, Tim Bartz, and Georgia Cummings.

Name

Upstream Academy

Legal name

Upstream Academy

Website

https://upstreamacademy.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Upstream Academy is a private professional development firm serving 150+ North American public accounting firms with leadership academies, career development programs, advisory business training, and the Upstream Academy Network membership community.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Leadership Development Training

NAICS

Professional and Management Development Training (611430), All Other Schools and Instruction (61169)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Executive Leadership & C-Suite Development (EDABAAAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Mentorship & Coaching (Career, Academic, Industry-Specific) (EDAMAKAA)

Keywords

• Leadership development training
• Professional education services
• Accounting firm consulting
• Executive coaching programs
• Professional development programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Helena

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. Professional Development Programs: Revenue generated from structured leadership development programs including Emerging Leaders Academy, New Manager Academy, Advanced Partner Academy, and Career Development Series. Programs are sold on a per-firm or per-participant basis with tiered pricing and UAN member discounts.
2. Advisory Business Development Training: Specialized business development training program for accounting firm professionals. Sold at fixed prices per participant tier ($4,500-$12,500) with optional coaching sessions.
3. Upstream Academy Network (UAN) Membership: Annual membership providing free access to certain programs, discounts on all services, and peer network participation. Creates recurring revenue and customer retention.
4. Speaking Engagements and Retreat Facilitation: Customized consulting services including retreat facilitation and speaking engagements for accounting firms.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Upstream Academy delivers leadership development and professional education programs targeted exclusively at public accounting firms. Its core offerings include a portfolio of structured training academies (Advanced Partner Academy, Emerging Leaders Academy, New Manager Academy, Career Development Series), the HeadWaters annual conference, the Upstream Academy Network (UAN) membership, and Advisory Business Development training, complemented by retreat facilitation and speaking engagements.

Product overview

Upstream Academy is a leadership development and professional education company for the accounting profession. The core offering is a portfolio of training programs and academies including the Upstream Academy Network (UAN) as a membership program, alongside discrete programs such as Advanced Partner Academy, Career Development Series (with Pre-Manager, Manager, and Operational Professional tracks), Emerging Leaders Academy, New Manager Academy, and HeadWaters Conference. Additional services include Advisory Business Development training, Retreat Facilitation, and Speaking Engagements. The company also provides content resources including the Upstream Leader Podcast, Articles & Insights, and Recommended Reading. These offerings are delivered through a combination of in-person events, live webinars, virtual classrooms, on-demand learning, coaching, and peer networking to create continuous development experiences for accounting firm professionals at all career stages.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Upstream Academy Network (UAN) Annual membership program for public accounting firms providing free access to Management Presentations, registrations in Emerging Leaders Academy, Advanced Partner Academy, and New Manager Academy, a free Career Development Series, Upstream Peer Network participation, and discounts on all Upstream services.
• Advanced Partner Academy

Quantifiable outcome

• More than 150 firms annually trust Upstream for leadership development
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• NASBA (National Association of State Boards of Accountancy)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUpstream Academy is registered with NASBA as a sponsor of continuing professional education on the National Registry of CPE Sponsors. Programs recommend CPE credit based on level of participation. State boards of accountancy have final authority on acceptance of courses for CPE credit.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Becker Professional Education: Becker is a large incumbent in accounting education, offering CPA exam prep and continuing education; it competes for the same accounting-firm training dollars though focused earlier in the career lifecycle.
• AICPA: The AICPA is the broad incumbent professional association for CPAs and offers its own leadership, practice management, and continuing education programs that overlap with Upstream's portfolio at the industry-wide level.

Emerging players

• CPA Practice Advisor: CPA Practice Advisor is an industry publication and resource hub for accounting firm leaders, providing thought leadership content that partially overlaps with Upstream's podcast and articles channel.

Direct peers

• K2 Enterprises: K2 Enterprises provides technology and practice management training for accounting professionals, sharing Upstream's CPA-firm training buyer base although with a technology rather than leadership focus.
• Surgent Accounting & Financial Education: Surgent is a CPE and professional education provider for accountants, competing for the same training dollar as Upstream's academies and Career Development Series.
• Boomer Consulting (Empower Advisory): Boomer Consulting is a direct peer — an advisory and training firm exclusively serving CPA firms with consulting, coaching, and leadership development services, very similar in niche focus to Upstream Academy.
• PASS (Professional Accounting Sales School): PASS specializes in sales and business development training for accounting professionals, competing for the same advisory-services training wallet that Upstream targets.
• The Rainmaker Companies: Rainmaker Companies delivers business development, sales training, and coaching to accounting and legal professionals, directly overlapping with Upstream's Advisory Business Development program.
• ConvergenceCoaching: ConvergenceCoaching provides coaching, leadership development, and management consulting specifically for accounting firms, directly competing with Upstream's academy and coaching offerings.

Others

• AEIdeas / CPA Trendlines: CPA Trendlines and similar industry research/content firms serve the same accounting firm leadership audience with research and insights, acting as adjacent ecosystem players rather than direct training competitors.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/upstream-academy

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Upstream Academy