The Leadership Experience · Membership
"Membership" is intentional language — it's about belonging to a community, not buying a product. It's still a gift; we're not selling anything. We've taken sponsors for 3+ years and added membership more recently, and the two got tangled. The direction: one clear ladder of ways to belong, a clean path for businesses to give through it, and sponsorship reserved for the few moments where it truly fits.
Why we're shifting
The old model blurred two very different things. The new model separates them.
For 3+ years we've taken sponsors, and then layered a newer membership program on top. People couldn't tell whether they were a "member" or a "sponsor," what they'd already paid for, or what any given dollar bought. The fix isn't more options — it's a single, legible ladder to belong, priced so stepping up is easy, with real event sponsorship kept separate for the gatherings where it belongs.
The idea underneath it
Three things people can do — and we stopped mixing them up.
A commitment to belong. Ongoing, year-over-year support we invite people into. Everything is included at each level.
Support the mission. A charitable gift with no expectation of return. We issue a receipt; clean from a compliance standpoint.
Partner in a specific gathering. For the Weekender, Summits, and Evenings of Generosity, where an organization wants to be meaningfully present.
The key distinction we have to get right
A business can pay for membership — and when it does, that's a qualified sponsorship: acknowledgment only (name, logo, gratitude at gatherings). It's a legitimate marketing expense for them and stays clean for us as a nonprofit.
What it is not is advertising — no calls to action, pricing, product claims, or endorsements. A true tit-for-tat advertising exchange lives only with our specific event sponsors, not with membership.
Membership levels
One ladder. Do what you can. Everything included.
At LX, membership is a commitment to the community and what it's becoming. Members can fulfill it personally (as a donation) or through their business (as a qualified sponsorship). Each level below adds only what's new — everything from the level before is already included.
Builder is set at $6,000 on purpose — it's the full cost of sending one new leader through a cohort.
That makes the level tangible: your commitment funds a seat. And because a flagship ticket (~$1,000 value) is included, stepping up from Member is nearly cost-neutral for what you receive — the point is the generosity, not the perks.
Event sponsorship — a separate track
We won't sponsor the main event. We'll acknowledge people there — and keep sponsors for gatherings like the Weekender.
We're not taking event sponsors for the main annual event. Instead we recognize supporters at each membership level through slides and signage — Builder, Steward, and Patron — while regular Members belong without being singled out. Gratitude, not a sold placement.
Weekender sponsorship sits above and beyond membership — so it doesn't include tickets (those are already a membership benefit). It's purely recognition, with a possible opportunity to introduce a speaker. Summits, Evenings of Generosity, and dinners continue too.
| Gathering | Tier | Range | Includes |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Weekender Above & beyond membership · supporting couples |
Sponsor | $5K floor | Recognition for supporting couples gathering · possible speaker introduction · no tickets (already a membership benefit) — scales with the event above the floor |
| Evening of Generosity High-trust, mission-driven room |
Lead | $10K–$15K | Speaker intro · prominent acknowledgment · 4–6 attendees · pre/post relational access |
| Supporting | $5K–$7.5K | Acknowledgment · 2–4 attendees | |
| Industry Summit e.g. Finance Summit — targeted, professionally relevant |
Lead | $15K–$25K | Panel/speaker intro · prominent acknowledgment · 4–6 attendees · potential curated breakout |
| Supporting | $7.5K–$12.5K | Acknowledgment · 2–4 attendees | |
| Small Gatherings / Dinners Underrated, high value |
Host | $3K–$7.5K | Intimate access (the real value) · light acknowledgment · direct relationship building |
That should push pricing up, not down.
Where this is headed
Three legs, one sustainable model.
Membership isn't a standalone program — it's the base of how LX funds its future, anchored by the endowment, with sponsorship as the shrinking delta. A hypothetical path: hold today's ~$750K, then rebuild that same $750K on a healthier mix, and stretch toward ~$1M — needing less sponsorship as the base and anchor grow.
Membership Endowment Sponsorship ($50K in Stretch)
Why the endowment matters to this whole shift
Since the beginning, LX has leaned on external partner support. The endowment is how we replace that with internal structure — so we can keep access to the community at an accessible price point and preserve the legacy. Membership is the accessible, ongoing base; sponsorship flexes with the calendar; the endowment makes it durable. When we give together, the work outlives us.
Hypothetical, not a budget. Membership + endowment do the heavy lifting; sponsorship only fills the gap (~$100K, shrinking to ~$50K). Endowment assumes a funded $3–5M campaign at ~5% over its 5-year window; membership assumes ~240 members growing as levels rise.
They're not competing asks. Membership is how you belong now; the endowment is how the work outlives us. We invite both — membership first, the endowment over and above.
Your annual commitment to the community you're part of. It funds this year's gatherings and relationships. Everyone starts here — and renews here, year over year.
A one-time gift across the 5-year campaign that becomes permanent. Over and above your membership, never instead of it. When you give here, you ensure LX outlives us.
The guidance for a supporter: Renew or step up your membership every year — that's how you belong. Then, from capacity, give to the endowment as an over-and-above gift while the window is open. Membership keeps the lights on; the endowment keeps them on for good.
Rollout & operations
How we move from here to launched.
Two things to get right: a gracious rollout that turns 3+ years of sponsors into members, and — with the shift to a July–June fiscal year — a funding mechanism so commitments actually convert to dollars and event tickets are honored only once paid.
Lock levels and pricing (incl. Builder at $6K), Weekender sponsor pricing, recognition rules, and the capture mechanism below. Get team sign-off. Build the member-facing page.
Brian & Bryce reach current multi-year sponsors personally. Frame it as an upgrade into belonging, not a takeaway — map their current giving to a membership level so no one feels downgraded.
Announce the four levels, open commitments, and publish the page — with the endowment presented alongside as the 5-year "over & above" push, not a competing ask.
Recognize supporters by level at the main event (not regular Members). Run an annual renewal cycle so commitments roll year over year.
The piece we most need to nail
How membership funding actually works
We're moving to a July–June fiscal year, and membership needs to track cleanly against it — including getting paid before the main event so an included ticket is real. Recommended mechanics:
Decisions to lock: (1) card-on-file default vs. allow upfront-only; (2) the payment cutoff date relative to the main event; (3) the RSVP-release deadline. Recommendation: card-on-file + installments, payment cutoff ~30 days pre-event, RSVP release ~45 days out.