World of Coffee San Diego 2026

Founder to Future: Preserving Legacy Through Transitions to Worker Ownership (Room 23 BC)

How can coffee businesses preserve their mission and impact through leadership transitions? This 75-minute, insight-rich panel explores how worker ownership can secure a company’s legacy, deepen impact, and empower the employees who drive its success. Attendees will hear directly from three women leaders who are shaping the future of worker owned coffee businesses in a candid conversation moderated by a revered icon in the field of worker ownership. Their experiences - from guiding a legacy company through ownership transition, to rising through the ranks to lead a cooperative, to sustaining long-term effective governance - offer invaluable lessons in leadership, resilience, and creative, mission-driven decision-making. Participants will leave with practical strategies, actionable insights, and inspiration for considering worker ownership as an option for the next big leadership transition in a way that can build lasting, values-driven legacy.