by Sandy Shoemaker and Karla Whittenburg
 
Over the past several years, the ability to think about business succession and transition has been difficult for most business owners.  But I have to say, none of us are getting any younger.  As you contemplate your golden years, Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs) are a vehicle that you should consider in your business transition plan.  The credit markets may not be overflowing with lending opportunities, but companies are seizing this chance to structure a deal that works for the Company, the lender and you the seller.
.
Read More

Dick was interviewed by AM 760's David Sirota at 8 am Monday, December 5th, in response to his guest commentary in the Denver Post. Listen to the edited interview HERE or HERE. (Thanks to AM 760 for their free podcast.)

Read More

by Dick Peterson - Bill Kirton
Published as Guest Commentary by the Denver Post 11/14/2011

Across the nation, the numbers are growing. Thousands are marching in protest and in hope for a different way. The "99 percenters" are saying that Wall Street and other entities that Wall Street represents have left them in the dust. 

Certainly it is hard to defend Wall Street and corporate America when the evidence seems to indicate that the rich are getting richer, the poor poorer and the middle class is in decline.

On the other hand, the intensity of the drama playing out on the streets often drowns out the voices of reason that say "we need business." Business not only hires people, but it also provides the goods and services that are necessary for living. In addition, the owners of many businesses are good people who care for their employees, work hard to serve their customers and contribute to their communities. The protesters will hopefully, at some point, be employed by a business.     Read More

 Bill Kirton, Director of Communications of RMEOC, attended this year's annual meeting of the National Cooperative Business Association in Minneapolis.

  What Is A Cooperative?

  “A cooperative is an organization consisting of  members who own the organization and democratically determine its policies and operations in order to serve their interests. This is in contrast to an investor-owned business in which investors, whether inside or outside the business, maximize their profits from the business. It is also in contrast to nonprofit organizations, in which no entity owns the organization’s assets, which are meant to serve the public interest.”     --Babson College, Curriculum on Cooperatives

Read More

 

Building A Sustainable Common-Wealth - A Better Way

The Rocky Mountain Employee-Ownership Center was launched in the summer of 2010, in response to a political meeting which offered little more than a heavy dose of fear. The speaker lamented the dark economic and political condition of our community and nation. No positive alternatives were offered. Bill Kirton, now Communications Director of the RMEOC responded with asking: “Why are we afraid? Is fear all we can offer to the community? There must be a better way.”

Read More

by Linda D. Phillips
Published in The Colorado Lawyer, Vol. 40., No. 9, September 2011
This article provides an overview of the worker cooperative as a business model, including how these cooperatives are formed and their unique characteristics. Tax advantages when selling a company to employees using a worker cooperative also are discussed.

Cooperatives, as business entities, including agricultural, electric, telephone, utility, and consumer cooperatives, have been formed and operated in Colorado since the early part of the 20th century. However, "worker" cooperatives have been largely ignored until recently, perhaps because the business community is not fully aware of their usefulness as a business entity. This article explores the worker cooperative as a business model whose time may have arrived.

Read More

by David Erdal
Published by The Bodley Head, London. 2011

Reviewed by Dick Peterson

I think a couple of quotes from the Introduction to this book will give a perspective reader a sense of what it is about. Erdal is a British author - and this is the best overall book on employee ownership worldwide I have read.

Read More

by Bill Kirton: 10/25/10 notes

Interview/Story:

I interviewed a group of four employees of Crop Quest, a company that advises farmers in regard to various aspects of their agricultural operations. They are headquartered in Dodge City, Kansas. The web site address is http://cropquest.com. They are a 100% ESOP company. The company was originally owned by an individual. The owner wanted to retire, and the company was sold to an ESOP. The employees were very committed to their ESOP business arrangement. Their story included the perspective that an ESOP gives the employee power in the company.

Read More

by Dick Peterson - Bill Kirton

To live well is to work well or display a good activity. --St. Thomas Aquinas

Jobs

Unemployment and the accompanying consequences are painfully evident in contemporary America. We are familiar with “outsourcing.” As a consequence of the “downturn,” millions of Americans are suffering  financial loss and economic devastation, as well as a loss of confidence in themselves, and perhaps, with equally or greater danger, confidence in what has been understood to be “America” and “American.” In light of our present circumstances, it is apparent that we need to find ways to support the stability, growth, and longevity of the small business sector of the economy. In this effort, we must recognize that human beings are our most valuable resource. We must cultivate and energize the ingenuity, talent, and capability of human beings, so as to discover and realize new ways of “doing business.”

Read More