Form 990-EZ for tax year 2025

Totals

Total revenue

$124,852

Total expenses

$81,089

Contributions and grants received

$124,852

Grants paid

— not reported

Program service revenue

— not reported

Membership dues (line 3)

— not reported

Investment income (line 4)

— not reported

Gain or loss on sale of assets (line 5c)

— not reported

Gaming and fundraising events, net (line 6d)

— not reported

Gross profit on inventory sales (line 7c)

— not reported

Other revenue (line 8)

— not reported

Total assets, end of year

$87,992

Total liabilities, end of year

— not reported

Net assets or fund balances, end of year

$87,992

Program service expenses (Part III)

$54,500

Program services were 67.2% of total expenses calculated — Part III's total program service expenses over total expenses, both as filed.

Mission and programs · 2025

• The Employee Ownership Business Training Program designed to create scalable Train the Trainer materials that help business owners understand and implement employee ownership best practices, including openbook management and financial literacy. Over a 9month period, ILCEO focused on developing People, Profits and Performance and building structured presentations, guidebooks, case studies, evaluation tools, and marketing templates that can be delivered by state center staff and ambassadors. The pilot also aimed to test outreach strategies with 3 businesses and establish a sustainable model that could be replicated across other State Centers. In Q4 we met with our first partner looking forward to bringing the content to their community. They allowed us to present an EO overview in January 2026 and we are now coordinating on a plan to deliver the first People, Power and Performance presentation. If this is successful the partner would role out the program to 19 other statewide locations based at the University of IL Extension School

  Expenses $14,500 · Grants $15,000

• ILCEO made substantial progress toward the goals outlined in the EOX Capacity Grant proposal by strengthening organizational infrastructure, expanding outreach, and increasing stakeholder engagement around employee ownership in Illinois. Key operational goals were successfully completed, including implementation of a CRM system, QuickBooks, donor processing tools, and a redesigned website integrated with outreach and automation systems. These improvements enhanced organizational planning, donor engagement, communications, and long-term sustainability. ILCEO also expanded its board by six members and began developing a formal onboarding process to strengthen leadership capacity. The organization participated in four major business conferences and 12 partner events, increasing awareness of employee ownership and reaching more than 750 participants through presentations and marketing efforts. Fundraising and development efforts included submission of 18 grant applications and direct outreach to major foundations, including the McCormick Foundation, Chicago Community Trust, and MacArthur Foundation. While grants were not awarded during the reporting period, ILCEO significantly expanded its fundraising infrastructure and relationships with philanthropic partners. The organization also launched structured donor outreach campaigns, growing its email list to more than 1,000 contacts and achieving email open rates above 40 percent. Government and policy engagement exceeded expectations. ILCEO met with the Governor's Office, Chicago City Council members, Cook County leadership, and more than 12 Illinois legislators to discuss employee ownership policy initiatives and public Offices of Employee Ownership. The organization also participated in Advocacy Day in Springfield and introduced employee ownership office legislation at the city level. ILCEO hosted its annual employee ownership celebration event with nearly 60 RSVPs from business owners, advisors, ecosystem partners, and community stakeholders. The event generated sponsorship and partnership opportunities while strengthening public visibility. Several goals were modified due to staffing and funding limitations. The Program Assistant position was reduced from full-time to part-time support, the public advocacy committee shifted to informal government engagement, and the planned employee ownership promotional video was not completed. Large-scale database development efforts were also scaled back to prioritize operational infrastructure and fundraising capacity. Despite these adjustments, ILCEO established a strong operational and fundraising foundation for future growth. Major accomplishments included CRM implementation, board expansion, public policy engagement, grant development, and expanded awareness of employee ownership throughout Illinois.

  Expenses $40,000 · Grants $100,000

As filed on the 2025 return.

Listed in Part IV

Compensation is as filed in Part IV of the Form 990-EZ: compensation, contributions to benefit plans, expense account, and hours per week. The total, marked calculated, is our sum of the three dollar columns, with a blank column counted as $0; the form itself has no total.

Grants on this return

No itemized grants to organizations on this return.

Provenance

Return type

form_990_ez

Tax year

2025

Filed

3 June 2026

IRS schema version

2025v4.0

Source object

202641549349200034

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