Today Ryan and Steve interview Dave Diehl, the CEO of Prairie Capital Advisors, about the ins and outs of the transaction and what it takes to turn into an ESOP.
This episode lays the groundwork for the next three episodes. Dave covers how ESOPs are valued, the process of selling to an ESOP, the unique tax breaks and how they work, the deal structure, when and how the seller (owner) gets their money, the role of the trustee, and how employees can begin to earn equity in the company they work for.
Our goal in this episode is to give you the foundation–and context–you need to level up your understanding on how ESOPs work, what it’s like to run a company once it is an ESOP, and introduce the different topics we’ll be diving into in the next few weeks.