What EMBAC does

EMBAC (Executive MBA Council) is a non-profit professional membership association founded in 1981 and headquartered in Gilbert, Arizona, that serves higher education institutions offering graduate degree programs for executives and working professionals. The organization positions itself as the global association of choice for this segment, with member institutions spanning the United States and international markets (including CEIBS in China and UNIL in Switzerland) and a small staff of 8 employees. Its core offerings fall into three categories: (1) research products — the annual Program Survey, Student Exit Survey, and Student Entry Survey, plus the "Research in Context" analytics resource highlighting a 17.5% graduate ROI figure; (2) professional development programs — Virtual Discussion Forums, Regional Meetings, Virtual Marketing Program, Marketing & Admissions Program, and DEI resources; and (3) the annual EMBAC Conference, with the 2026 edition scheduled for October 11–14 in Los Angeles (AI-themed) and the 2027 edition confirmed for October 3–6.

EMBAC's business model is a hybrid of recurring subscription revenue and event-based revenue. Annual membership dues from higher education institutions provide a recurring revenue base granting access to research, the member portal, and programming; conference registration fees and corporate sponsorship opportunities provide a second revenue stream concentrated in the October event window. Distribution is primarily direct: a website-driven application funnel, email outreach, and the annual conference serve as the principal acquisition and engagement channels, while the Connected Community-powered Member Portal (embac.connectedcommunity.org) functions as the operational backbone for member interaction. The organization does not own proprietary technology beyond its registered EMBAC® trademark and the curated research/benchmarking data it produces; its competitive moat is derived from network effects among member institutions and the embedded collegiality of its peer community.

Name

EMBAC

Legal name

EMBAC

Website

https://executivemba.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

EMBAC is a non-profit membership association founded in 1981 that serves higher education institutions offering executive and working professional graduate degree programs, providing research surveys, professional development programming, and an annual conference.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education Professional Association Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Professional Organizations (813920)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

MBA & Executive MBA Programs (EDAHAHAB)

Keywords

• Executive education association
• Higher education networking
• Professional membership services
• Graduate program research
• Executive MBA council

Headquarters

HQ city

Gilbert

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

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: EMBAC generates revenue through annual membership dues from higher education institutions with executive and working professional graduate degree programs. Membership provides access to the member portal, research data, networking events, and professional development resources.
2. Conference Revenue: The organization generates revenue through annual conference registration fees. The 2026 EMBAC Conference is scheduled for October 11-14, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. Conference participation includes sponsorship opportunities for corporate members.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

EMBAC is a nonprofit membership association serving higher education institutions that offer graduate degree programs for executives and working professionals. It sells annual institutional memberships, hosts an annual conference, and provides research products (Program Survey, Student Exit Survey, Student Entry Survey, Research in Context), professional development programming (Virtual Discussion Forums, Regional Meetings, Virtual Marketing Program, Marketing & Admissions Program, DEI Resources), and a Connected Community-powered member portal for peer networking, benchmarking, and best-practice sharing.

Product overview

EMBAC is a membership association serving higher education institutions with graduate degree programs for executives and working professionals. Rather than a unified software platform, EMBAC provides a portfolio of member services including: research products (Program Survey, Student Exit Survey, Student Entry Survey, Research in Context analytics), professional development programs (Virtual Discussion Forums, Regional Meetings, Virtual Marketing Program, Marketing & Admissions Program, DEI Resources), the annual EMBAC Conference, and the Connected Community-powered Member Portal. These offerings work together to provide collegiality, best practice sharing, data insights, and networking for member institutions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• EMBAC Conference Annual flagship conference bringing together EMBAC member institutions to discuss industry trends, innovations, and best practices in executive education, featuring plenary sessions, the Director's Program, networking, and sponsorship opportunities for corporate members.
• Program Survey Annual research survey collecting data from member institutions to provide benchmarks and analytics on program performance, enrollment, and outcomes for executive and working professional graduate programs.
• Student Exit Survey Research survey gathering feedback from graduating students about their program experience, satisfaction, and outcomes, enabling member institutions to benchmark learner experience.
• Student Entry Survey Research survey capturing baseline data from entering students, enabling member programs to measure growth and impact longitudinally over the course of the program.
• Research in Context Analytics and interpretive resource that surfaces key research findings and trends for executive degree programs, including ROI data such as the 17.5 percent graduate earnings increase.
• Virtual Discussion Forums Online discussion series covering topics including Recruitment, Alumni, Career Services, and P&L Structures, offered free to member institutions as a year-round professional development and peer-exchange vehicle.
• Regional Meetings In-person regional gatherings for EMBAC members that provide networking and professional development opportunities across different geographic areas, supplementing the annual conference.
• Virtual Marketing Program Virtual programming focused on marketing strategies and admissions best practices tailored for executive degree programs at member institutions.
• Marketing & Admissions Program Programming and resources supporting member institutions with marketing and admissions strategies specifically designed for executive and working professional graduate programs.
• DEI Resources Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion resources and programming for member institutions, supporting inclusive practices across executive education programs.
• EMBAC Member Portal Online community platform (powered by Connected Community) that provides EMBAC members access to resources, collaboration tools, and member-to-member networking capabilities as the primary digital interface for the membership.
• EMBA Trends News and trend reporting service covering developments in executive MBA and working professional education, distributed to members and prospects as part of EMBAC's content offering.

Quantifiable outcome

• 17.5 percent increase for graduates helps reinforce the ROI of executive degrees

Named customers3 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.

• GMACflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerGMAC (Graduate Management Admission Council) is a featured strategic partner of EMBAC. The organizations collaborate on innovations to advance educational opportunities for executive and working professionals. GMAC is the organization behind the GMAT exam and related graduate management education initiatives.
• PeopleGrovecoreTechnology or IntegrationPeopleGrove is featured as a corporate member of EMBAC, providing services and products that enhance programs for executives and working professionals. Corporate members like PeopleGrove supply products and services to member institutions through the EMBAC corporate membership program.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• AACSB International: AACSB is the leading global accreditation body for business schools, providing membership, accreditation, and thought leadership to a near-identical member base as EMBAC — schools offering business and management programs including executive formats.
• EFMD (European Foundation for Management Development): EFMD is a Europe-based international membership organization covering management development and business school accreditation (EQUIS). It directly overlaps with EMBAC's member institutions and serves the same executive-education leadership community.
• Association of MBAs (AMBA): AMBA is a UK-headquartered global organization that accredits MBA, DBA, and MBM programs and serves as an association for business school professionals — directly comparable to EMBAC's mission around MBA/executive graduate education.
• GMAC (Graduate Management Admission Council): GMAC is a global association serving graduate management education, including the GMAT and broad industry research and events. It is both a strategic partner of EMBAC and a directly comparable membership body for business schools and graduate management programs.
• MBA Roundtable: MBA Roundtable is a membership organization specifically focused on full-time MBA programs at peer institutions — a closely adjacent peer to EMBAC's executive-MBA focus, serving the same school-side audience.
• UPCEA (University Professional and Continuing Education Association): UPCEA is a membership association for professional, continuing, and online education at universities. Its member institutions overlap with EMBAC's audience (schools running executive-format graduate programs), though its scope is broader.

Emerging players

• Forte Foundation: Forte Foundation is a non-profit consortium focused on launching women into business leadership through business school partnerships. It engages the same member institutions as EMBAC but with a narrower mission around gender diversity in business education.

Broad incumbents

• CASE (Council for Advancement and Support of Education): CASE is a large global membership association serving advancement, alumni relations, marketing, and communications professionals at educational institutions. Its marketing/admissions programming overlaps with EMBAC's, but operates across all higher education rather than only executive graduate programs.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/emba-council

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 EMBAC