In this episode we speak with six experts in the field of employee ownership about how to approach 'regular' operations that all ESOPs must undertake while at the same time keeping an eye on planning for the long term. The discussions, which are adapted from our Annual Conference Short Take videos, focus on ESOP processes and procedures, sustainability, and more. We talk about valuations and preparation strategies, the role of third party administrators, how to best approach repurchase obligations, the evolving concept of ESOP sustainability, what ESOP sustainability studies are, and how to put them into action.
Pete Shuler is a partner of Crowe LLP and has almost 30 years of experience assisting his clients by administering and consulting on ESOPs and other qualified retirement plans. His current responsibilities include managing the administration of over 525 ESOPs; consulting with companies considering ESOP-related transactions; performing feasibility studies; consulting on the termination and merger of ESOPs; forecasting the impact of new legislation on the compliance and operation of ESOPs; and coordinating and reviewing repurchase liability studies. Pete frequently speaks and writes on technical topics regarding ESOPs. He has a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance from the University of Notre Dame.
Nick Adamy is a Managing Director and the President of Adamy Valuation. He has extensive experience providing valuation, financial advisory, and expert witness services to private and public companies, business owners, corporate finance executives, investors, trustees, and attorneys for a variety of purposes. He has advised clients on transactions and cases involving mergers & acquisitions, shareholder stock purchases, initial public offerings, leveraged buyouts, shareholder litigation, estate and gifting, divorce, commercial litigation, and employee stock ownership plans. He has worked with companies ranging in size from under $5 million in revenues to over $4 billion across a broad swath of industries.
Nick, an Accredited Senior Appraiser (ASA) of the American Society of Appraisers, is Managing Director in ComStock Advisors’ Cincinnati office. He has 25 years of experience in valuation, finance, and banking. Nick has completed valuations for ESOPs, estate taxes, estate planning, gifting, mergers, acquisitions, sales, lending, litigation support, and marital dissolution. In addition to appraising businesses, he has appraised intellectual property including patents and trademarks. His consulting experience on behalf of ESOPs includes feasibility studies, implementation of ESOPs, purchases of large blocks of stock, annual updates, sales of ESOP companies, and acquisitions of companies by ESOP companies.
Tom DeSimone is Director at Prairie Capital Advisors. He has extensive experience in advising middle-market companies on ESOP transactions (representing both companies and ESOP trustees), mergers and acquisitions (M&A), financial opinions, corporate valuation and other investment banking advisory services. Tom also works with boards of directors and companies on mature ESOP planning and sustainability. In addition, Tom is instrumental in ensuring operational efficiencies across Prairie’s offices and production teams. Tom is a frequent speaker in various forums, including the National Center for Employee Ownership, The ESOP Association, the Illinois CPA Society and the Great Game of Business, as well as at corporate speaking engagements. He presents on topics such as ownership transition, ESOP transactions, and culture and communication within ESOP companies. Tim Jamison is Director at Prairie Capital Advisors. He is responsible for business development and growth initiatives and focuses on advising business owners about ownership transition alternatives including employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) and mergers and acquisitions (M&A), among others. Services include adequate consideration analyses, feasibility studies, transaction financing and restructuring, fairness and solvency opinions, post-transaction cash flow analyses and annual valuations. Tim has performed valuation and M&A work on a variety of companies in various industries. He also frequently presents webinars and speaks at conferences, including those hosted by Prairie as well as The ESOP Association, the National Center for Employee Ownership and the Ohio Employee Ownership Center on topics including ESOPs, sustainability and other ownership transition matters. Tim also serves on the Advisory Committee of the Ohio/Kentucky ESOP Chapter.
Tina Dicroce is Vice President at Chartwell where she is a leader in Chartwell’s Repurchase Obligation and Sustainability practice, working with ESOP companies to develop custom solutions for achieving long-term sustainability. With a strong background in ESOP repurchase obligation modeling and plan design consulting, Tina works with Chartwell clients on comprehensive studies which provide analysis of the impact on a company’s financials of all future claims on capital, and go beyond what is typically explored in a traditional ESOP sustainability study, delving deeper into a company’s strategic plan and exploring broader issues like compensation and optimal capital structure. Throughout her career, Tina has worked with companies of all sizes in diverse industries across the country.
The Owners at Work Podcast is a continuation of the biannual Owners at Work Newsletter which ran for 19 years (1990-2019). We are hoping to continue the same conversations and focus on providing updates on everything employee ownership. We plan to interview practitioners with expertise in different facets of employee ownership, academics doing new and interesting research, and most importantly, individuals who have a personal experience with employee ownership, including current and former employee-owners, mid-level to C suite management, and selling owners.
We want to produce a show that engages with relevant questions and provides practical lessons and information. We want this podcast to include the voices of those who practice employee-ownership each and every day. To that end we want to hear from you! We want to highlight what you are doing, whether you are an employee-owned company, a practitioner, or researcher.
***Please reach out via email: oeoc@kent.edu
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