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ESOPs and (to a lesser extent) worker cooperatives remain the principal ways employees become owners in closely held companies, but three recent trends have created alternative paths.

Hands down, Colorado has become the most employee ownership-friendly state in the country.

Board members, trustees, and inside fiduciaries all need good insurance coverage to defend claims brought by ESOP participants or government agencies (most likely the US Department of Labor, Internal Revenue Service, or Department of Justice).

At our recent Fall Forum, Jamie Kwiatek of Polsinelli and Antony Brunsvold of Blue Ride ESOP Services discussed some of the most common errors in ESOP plan administration and how to avoid them.

Most ESOP companies will not tell employees who do not otherwise need to know that a sale is being considered.

At the recent NCEO virtual conference, Tom DeSimone of Prairie Capital discussed how companies need to communicate valuation to employees. This is especially important now when valuations may decline.

● Longtime ESOP Lifetouch is set to be acquired by California photography giant Shutterfly to the tune of $825 million in

● Oregon’s Organically Grown Company (OGC) has converted from an ESOP to a new business structure called a “purpose trust.” It is designed to preserve OGC’s social and environmental mission well into

● The Clicks Group, an 8,000-employee South Africa-based retailer of health and wellness products across

Dublin, New Hampshire’s Yankee Publishing has sold 30% to its employees through an ESOP.