In partnership with the North Carolina Employee Ownership Center
A page of NCEO resources for visitors from North Carolina
For a general overview, see our article How an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) Works.
For a step-by-step guide to assessing an ESOP for your company, check out our ESOP Pre-Feasibility Toolkit.
Recommended books:
Selling to an ESOP and Financing the Deal
A detailed guide for owners, managers, and advisors of closely held businesses who are considering a sale to an ESOP.
This concise book explains the rules, uses, benefits, and other aspects of employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs).
Join our EOT Peer Gatherings: Online meetings for companies that have or are considering an EOT. Participants share experiences, discuss challenges, and gain insights from different parts of the employee ownership community.
For an overview of how EOTs work, see our Introduction to EOTs.
Recommended book:
Using an Employee Ownership Trust for Business Transition
Learn how EOTs work, whether one is right for your company, and how they are created, financed, and governed.
See our overview of the types of equity compensation or a webinar on direct employee ownership.
Recommended books:
Describes models for direct employee ownership, with technical details plus case studies.
The Decision-Maker's Guide to Equity Compensation
How to find and implement an equity compensation strategy that works for your company.
Equity Compensation for Limited Liability Companies (LLCs)
A guide to creating equity compensation arrangements for LLCs.
News
A February 17, 2026, memo to the Federal Accounting Standards Board (FASB) from the Private Company Council (PCC), the primary advisory body to the FASB on private companies, raises the issue of ...
Continue Reading about FASB Advisory Body Asks Whether ESOP Repurchase Reporting Rules Should Be Enhanced
The Worker Ownership, Readiness, and Knowledge Act (the WORK Act), part of the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022, directed the Department of Labor (DOL) to establish an Employee Ownership Initiative to promote ...
Continue Reading about New DOL Report on Its Employee Ownership Initiative
Employee ownership creates meaningful potential, but that potential is only realized when the organizational culture actively supports it. ESOP ownership combined with a strong ownership culture is ...
Continue Reading about Think Like an Owner: Building the Culture That Makes Employee Ownership Work
When we gathered over 100 women from the employee ownership community at the beginning of this month, the result was magical. But it was also much more.
Continue Reading about Building a Brand New Room: The NCEO's Inaugural Women's Summit
A new analysis from KPMG shows a record gap between the share of GDP going to profits and the share going to compensation. Corporate profits were 8% of GDP in 1992 but are 15.85% today; compensation ...
Continue Reading about Record Amount of GDP Going to Profits Shows Kelso Was Right
Upcoming events
We'll walk through the essential operational, governance, and cultural shifts that occur in the first year, sharing practical insights about the complexities and demands you'll face as you transition to employee ownership.
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This session demystifies the "Section 4" testing that every ESOP goes through. You'll learn what each test is actually measuring, why certain plan designs are more likely to pass or fail, and how your ESOP's testing might interact with an affiliated 401(k) plan.
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Join McDermott Will and Schulte partners in exploring the latest developments in litigation and DOL and IRS regulation relating to ESOPs.
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