Essential Speech and ABA Therapy 2025 Year in Review

As 2025 comes to a close, we are taking a moment to reflect on the milestones, lessons, and successes that shaped our year. Over the past twelve months, our team came together in countless ways: through innovative projects, collaborative problem-solving, and steady growth, both individually and collectively.

In this Year in Review, team members from across the organization share their perspectives on what made this year meaningful. From leadership and operations to clinical care and marketing, each section offers a distinct viewpoint while contributing to a shared story of progress, learning, and impact.

We are proud of what we accomplished together and energized by what lies ahead. As we look toward 2026, we carry forward both the wins and the lessons that defined this year.

Leadership: Excellence That Grows Into Mastery

Nafisa Obi

In 2025, leadership at Essential Speech and ABA Therapy evolved from excellence into mastery. This was a year of increased focus, discipline, and intention in how we lead; not because quality was ever lacking, but because growth requires greater clarity, stronger systems, and deeper accountability.

Everything we built this year was guided by a single principle:

Families deserve excellence.

Owners deserve leadership.

Systems should make both possible at scale.

Leadership That Delivers

We did not shift our values this year. We strengthened our execution.

In 2025:

• 100 percent of franchise owners received direct leadership support.

• Every owner participated in training, mentoring, or structured check-ins.

• A Director of Operations joined the leadership team to oversee system-wide execution and strengthen owner support.

• A performance benchmark system was introduced to provide clarity, foresight, and accountability.

• A real-time KPI dashboard was deployed across the network.

• We expanded into four new states and five active markets while opening additional locations.

• The franchise leadership team completed over 300 hours of industry conferences and professional development focused on billing, compliance, franchising, and ABA innovation.

• We worked directly alongside franchisees to strengthen training, clinical oversight, and business operations.

• CEUs and clinical mentorship were expanded system-wide.

We did not build for optics. We built for precision.

What Leadership Learned This Year

The challenge of 2025 was not whether owners were committed. It was whether commitment alone was enough.

We learned that strong intention must be matched with strong infrastructure.

Owners did not need more encouragement. They needed visibility.

They did not need pressure. They needed clarity.

Dashboards replaced assumptions with reality.

Benchmarks replaced isolation with context.

Check-ins replaced uncertainty with direction.

Leadership did not become heavier this year. It became sharper.

A Moment Worth Remembering

One moment captured the transformation we worked toward.

An owner reviewed their dashboard and said, “I finally understand my business.”

It wasn’t a slogan or a sound bite. It was clarity. That moment reflected what leadership delivered in 2025 - confidence built through structure, visibility, and tools.

Carrying This Forward Into 2026

The systems are built. The team is in place. The standard is clear.

In 2026, execution becomes tighter, faster, and more exact.

Our focus includes:

• Advanced leadership development tied to clinic performance.

• Reduced onboarding friction for new locations.

• Expanded KPI dashboards with deeper clinical, financial, and staffing insights.

• Earlier intervention protocols for operational risk.

• Stronger internal auditing and compliance systems.

• Continued focus on owner profitability through benchmarking and coaching.

Growth will never outrun structure.

What distinguishes this organization is not how quickly it grows, but how intentionally it grows. Excellence built this company. Mastery is taking it forward.

Clinical: Scaling Clinical Excellence Without Compromising Care

Shelby Nelson

In 2025, we nearly doubled the number of clients receiving direct support services through our dedicated clinicians. This meant more children learning to communicate their needs, build new skills, engage socially, and reduce interfering behaviors by gaining the ability to advocate for themselves.

We also continued strengthening relationships among clinicians across locations. Each month, BCBAs participated in collaborative meetings to discuss cases, refine clinical approaches, and expand their skillsets, despite physical distance.

This year, CEUs were offered on topics including:

• Clinical Efficiency

• Assent and Trauma-Assumed Care

• Family Guidance strategies

• Titration and Discharge Planning

• Lead RBT utilization

• Clinical dosage and recommendations

• Universal protocols and RBT training

• Complex cases and coping strategies

• Preparing for updated BACB protocols in 2026

Working across multiple states allowed us to collaborate with clinicians from diverse backgrounds and exceptional skillsets. Our BCBAs consistently report high satisfaction, citing autonomy in practice paired with strong support through mentorship, CEUs, and access to the Director of Clinical Quality.

Client outcomes continue to be the most meaningful measure of success. One family shared that within two weeks of services, their daughter began labeling emotions, imitating peers, and showing significant reductions in aggression, progress that had not previously been seen at home.

Our goal remains supporting the entire family unit. Clinicians are trained to deliver strong family guidance and ensure support extends beyond the clinic into the home and community.

Looking ahead to 2026, we are focused on expanding support for RBTs through a tiered supervision system and developing in-house training modules aligned with our values, Early Start Denver Model principles, and assent-based care. We are also increasing engagement with external CEU speakers and national conferences to ensure continued learning and collaboration across the field.

Operations: Creating Stability While the System Scaled

Jessica Camp

In 2025, Operations centered on one core responsibility: ensuring growth remained sustainable, ethical, and operationally sound as the organization expanded. As visibility increased and clinical teams served more families, Operations worked behind the scenes to maintain stability, clarity, and consistency.

One major focus was improving intake and onboarding processes to support increased demand without overwhelming staff or compromising care. Across the system, the average time from assessment to first therapy session moved closer to the 25-day benchmark, with nearly 60 percent of newly created clients progressing to active therapy.

As clinics expanded, Operations worked to protect clinician time, align capacity with demand, and reduce friction. System-wide data reflected this balance, with consistent average monthly revenue per client and billable time averaging approximately 72 percent.

Much of the work this year focused on reducing operational noise: clarifying expectations, addressing bottlenecks, and supporting clinics through moments of strain. One of the most meaningful indicators of progress was hearing owners express a clearer understanding of how intake, staffing, scheduling, and performance data connect.

By the end of 2025, growth was supported, systems were tested, and lessons were learned. This work laid the foundation for a more refined, efficient, and scalable future.

Marketing: Expanding Visibility, Driving Growth, and Empowering Parents

Ben Gerding

2025 marked the start of our second full year as a franchise system, making it a pivotal year for strengthening our marketing foundation as we prepared for growth in new markets.

Historically, many clinics grew primarily through word-of-mouth. While this reflected strong trust from families, it was not a scalable strategy nationwide. Expansion required predictable systems, consistent brand visibility, and marketing infrastructure franchisees could confidently operate.

We consolidated tracking across platforms and introduced a centralized management framework, giving franchisees autonomy while simplifying setup and ensuring consistency.

We also expanded our content team, increasing access to templates, customized materials, and educational resources. Our content strategy moved beyond enrollment-focused messaging to deliver meaningful, educational information for parents, whether or not they were clients.

Through November, results included:

Website Growth

• Total users increased by 217 percent

• New users increased by 215.7 percent

• Key website events increased by 733.9 percent

Social Media Growth

• Reach increased by 236.7 percent

• Impressions increased by 681.5 percent

• Engagement increased by 57.6 percent

Every clinic experienced year-over-year organic social growth, reinforcing the value of meaningful content.

One standout initiative was the “ABCs of ABA” mini-series, offering short, accessible explanations of ABA terms for parents. It became a favorite across communities and exemplified our commitment to education.

As we head into 2026, these systems are ready to support new franchisees while helping existing clinics maximize capacity and impact.

Conclusion: Looking Ahead

As we close the chapter on 2025, we are grateful for the collaboration, commitment, and care that defined this year. Each challenge and achievement strengthened our foundation and prepared us for what’s ahead.

In 2026, we will continue building on this momentum—growing thoughtfully, refining our systems, and deepening our impact for families, communities, and our team.

Here’s to another year of progress, purpose, and shared success.