# Ramsey Solutions

The Lampo Group, LLC, doing business as Ramsey Solutions, is an American company specializing in self-improvement products and services in personal finance, leadership development, interpersonal relationships, and professional development. Founded in 1991 by Dave Ramsey and his wife Sharon, Ramsey Solutions is based in Franklin, Tennessee.

## Business model

Ramsey Solutions specializes in products and services in several self-help categories such as personal finance, business and leadership development, relationship building, career development, estate planning, etc. All of it is done under Dave Ramsey's philosophy of what he calls "helping people through people" In keeping with Ramsey's principles, Ramsey Solutions operates with no debt—all expenses are cash flowed. Ramsey says that he sees what his company does as a ministry to spread his Christian faith.
Ramsey Solutions is owned by Dave Ramsey (who is also CEO) and the Ramsey family and is governed by an operating board. Ramsey Solutions employees, called "team members," are held to a moral and ethical standard based around traditional Christian principles such as putting family first, Colossians 3:23, no gossip, and "righteous living."

## History

After going bankrupt buying and selling real estate on margin in September 1988, Dave Ramsey developed a personal wealth-building system based on his study of biblical money principles.
In the midst of his financial recovery, Ramsey began providing one-on-one financial counseling sessions in the evenings at his church. His counseling demand grew over time and Ramsey formed The Lampo Group in 1991 as a financial counseling service, which included live group seminars conducted by Ramsey himself. The name came from the Greek word for "glitter" or "shine"—a reference to Matthew 5:14 ("You are the light of the world…").
In the summer of 1992, Ramsey self-published his first book, Financial Peace, in which he explained his personal finance principles and sold the book out of the trunk of his car. Viking Press picked up the book and published a revised edition in 1997—becoming Lampo's first New York Times bestseller.
Also in 1992, Ramsey was a guest on a local radio show on WWTN in Nashville, answering money-related questions from callers. The experience went well and after the host quit when the station was going bankrupt, Ramsey and two other money experts began hosting a show called The Money Game, where one of the three would provide callers with financial counseling on the air.
In 1994, Ramsey began offering a financial course—a once-a-week, six-month seminar called "Life After Debt." The course was eventually renamed Financial Peace University (FPU) and was streamlined from six months to nine weeks.
In 1996, Lampo established its first website (FinancialPeace.com). Also in 1996, Dave Ramsey became the solo host of The Money Game and took the show national, handling syndication himself. Three years later, the show was rebranded from The Money Game to The Dave Ramsey Show.
Though Dave Ramsey had been teaching his Financial Peace University course in-person since its inception, in 1997, Lampo began producing live events around the country featuring Ramsey—26 in the first year alone. Lampo also began to offer FPU on VHS in 1997, which went to DVD in the 2000s, and finally became an all-digital product. Ramsey claims FPU has helped over 10 million people with their finances.
In 2000, Lampo went into the youth market with the Financial Peace Jr. program, a child-centered version of FPU. Lampo also began offering personal finance education curriculum for schools called Financial Peace for the Next Generation (now known as Foundations in Personal Finance). And with The Dave Ramsey Show now self-syndicated, Lampo built a new radio studio at the company office in Nashville.
In 2002, Lampo moved to the Cool Springs commercial center between Brentwood and Franklin, Tennessee. The grouping of offices and buildings Lampo occupied became known as "Financial Peace Plaza" and included a coffee shop and seating for visitors to view the radio show broadcast, and a designated area for people to come do their "debt-free scream" live on the air.
Lampo went into the leadership development business in 2005 when Dave Ramsey first began teaching EntreLeadership, a combination of entrepreneurial and leadership principles. Originally created to build up his own team of leaders, Ramsey adapted the system for outside business leaders as a weeklong workshop series. Ramsey wrote the book EntreLeadership, outlining his business and leadership philosophy, in 2011.
In 2007, Ramsey began hosting a TV version of his radio show for Fox Business (one of the channel's original programs when channel launched). The Dave Ramsey Show was broadcast from Lampo headquarters and was broadcast from 2007 to 2010.
Dave Ramsey began a long-term succession plan in 2008. Ramsey would "incrementally let go" of his CEO responsibilities over a period of years until he is no longer in corporate leadership, but simply talent for the radio show and speaking engagements (though he will remain an owner of the company with his wife and children).
A large part of Ramsey's succession plan was establishing new people to carry on his teachings. In 2010, Ramsey created the Lampo Speakers Group and handpicked a group of keynote speakers to be his surrogates—appearing at live speaking engagements, doing media appearances, and writing books. The Lampo Speakers Group evolved into the Ramsey Personalities program in 2012. The personalities also act as co-hosts on The Ramsey Show and several host their own podcasts and YouTube-based shows as part of the Ramsey Network.
Also in 2012, the company established an operating board with "key players at the top of the leadership food chain" who advise and collaborate with Ramsey to make long-term decisions for the company. Ramsey and his children are all operating board members.
The Lampo Group was publicly rebranded as Ramsey Solutions in 2014—though the company is still legally named The Lampo Group, LLC. The same year, Lampo launched EntreLeadership Summit—an annual event dedicated to Dave Ramsey's leadership and business teachings, featuring the Ramsey Personalities and several well-known keynote speakers.
Also in 2014, The Daily Beast reported that Dave Ramsey had lashed out against former Ramsey Solutions employees he claimed were discussing working conditions at the company on Facebook and Twitter. At company staff meetings, Ramsey recounted conversations from a private Facebook group of former employees that he had infiltrated, offered cash rewards for the identities of some members who took to anonymous Twitter accounts once they realized Ramsey had joined the private group, and "pulled a gun out of a bag to try to teach a lesson about gossip."
In July 2019, Ramsey Solutions moved to a new campus in the Berry Farms commercial area of Franklin, Tennessee. The campus opened with one office building, studio facilities for The Ramsey Show and other Ramsey Network productions, an employee cafeteria, and a lobby for visitors featuring a café, museum displays, seats for watching live broadcasts, a new debt-free stage, and a gift shop. In 2021, the second office building was opened, and a 2,500-seat auditorium for weekly staff meetings and live events was finished in 2023. All the land purchases and building construction were paid for with cash, and a tax incentive program was established between Ramsey Solutions, Williamson County, and the city of Franklin to ease the cost.
The Dave Ramsey Show was renamed The Ramsey Show in 2020 to better incorporate the show's Ramsey Personality co-hosts, the company's gradual conversion from being centered around Dave Ramsey, and to, according to Ramsey, "set the show up for generational success; that it doesn’t die when I do." Ramsey says that he will continue to co-host The Ramsey Show "as long as I make sense." The show remains the largest self-syndicated radio show in the United States.
Ramsey Solutions released its first full-length documentary in October 2021. Titled Borrowed Future, the film was about the student loan industry and highlights several individuals who are living with large amounts of student loan debt.
In 2023, Ramsey continued his gradual succession plan by making his son, Daniel, president of the company, with the goal of Daniel eventually taking over as CEO. Ramsey's two other children, Rachel Cruze and Denise Whittemore, also work for the company—Rachel is a Ramsey Personality and Denise is director of the Ramsey Family Foundation, the company's philanthropic arm.

## Controversies
### Workplace

In July 2020, Caitlin O'Connor, a former Ramsey Solutions employee, filed a federal lawsuit against the company alleging that she was fired for being pregnant and, since she wasn't married to the baby's father, for violating Ramsey Solutions' employee conduct policies. On May 27, 2021, O'Connor gave her first interview about the termination and her experience working for Ramsey.
On March 10, 2021, Ramsey Personality Chris Hogan left the company, citing "things going on in my personal life . . . that are not in line with Ramsey Solutions." Hogan's resignation followed accusations of having several extramarital affairs, including one with a co-worker at Ramsey Solutions.
In May 2021, Religion News Service (RNS) obtained recordings of Dave Ramsey mocking employees over the policy and explaining Chris Hogan's 2019 absence as a "rest break" following the affair accusations. Melissa Hogan, Chris Hogan's ex-wife, issued a statement to RNS claiming that the company downplayed Chris's behavior, covered for him, and characterized her behavior as "anger, hyperbole, and drama."
According to a September 2021 lawsuit, when Julie Anne Stamps, a Ramsey Solutions employee on the customer care team, approached her supervisor regarding coming out as a lesbian in May 2020, the supervisor allegedly explained that company policy would not allow Stamps to continue to be employed at Ramsey Solutions. Stamps alleged that her departure from the company was further expedited once the United States Supreme Court June 15, 2020, ruling in Bostock v. Clayton County was decided. Ramsey Solutions denied the accusations and the matter was settled without the need for a trial.

### COVID-19

In December 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, a complaint was filed with the Williamson County Health Department alleging that caterers hired for the Ramsey Solutions Christmas party at its company headquarters were instructed not to wear masks or gloves while serving, which the company said was "absolutely not true. There was no prohibition on that." Ramsey Solutions responded further that there was no truth to the complaint and a worker indicated that many workers in fact chose to wear masks and/or gloves. Earlier in the pandemic, the company remained open after employees tested positive for the virus, ignored recommendations to avoid large gatherings, and hosted a July business conference at the company headquarters after the Marriott hotel originally booked for the event canceled citing safety concerns.
In a December 2021 federal lawsuit, a former employee alleged that Ramsey Solutions violated his religious rights by firing him when he took scientifically prescribed precautions against COVID-19. The employee, Brad Amos, stated he was following the Golden Rule in protecting others from the virus. The lawsuit said Dave Ramsey ran a "cult-like" environment where employees who worried about the pandemic were accused of "weakness of spirit" and told to pray if they wanted to ward off the virus. Ramsey Solutions has denied all accusations and has claimed the suit was "completely false." In December 2023, A U.S. district judge dismissed the lawsuit, ruling there was no proof of religious discrimination. But in August 2024, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit overturned the dismissal, allowing the case to proceed.

### Efficacy of teachings

Critics of Ramsey Solutions’ core teachings point out that they are often a "one-size-fits-all" approach that disregards income disparities, investment horizon, and ignores financial emergencies. The debt snowball method is debated, and studies have returned results that both support and oppose its efficacy. Ramsey's investing advice has also drawn criticism over its reliance on stock investment, as opposed to bonds, using mutual funds with load fees, and its frequent claim of 12% annual returns on investments.
In his teachings, Dave Ramsey has described the timeshare industry as "scummy." In April 2023, a group of listeners of The Ramsey Show filed a $150 million lawsuit against Ramsey Solutions alleging Ramsey received $30 million to promote a timeshare exit company who engaged in deceptive practices. Ramsey Solutions disputes the allegations and is currently fighting the litigation. In December 2023, a U.S. district judge allowed the lawsuit to move forward, though one of the claims was dismissed.