The Disruptive Successor Show is a podcast for next-generation leaders in family businesses and entrepreneurs who want to disrupt the status quo to grow their business and take it to the next level.
We all know that what got us here isn’t going to get us there.
If you are taking control over your family’s business or trying to get your business to the next level, you will need inspiration, advice and resources to help you create a massive impact.
Listeners of my show include not only the millennial or Gen Z but also the Baby Boomer and Gen Y. My listeners tend to be involved in these industries: business services, construction, design-build-maintain landscape contracting, food manufacturing, property management, real estate, and technology.
And are interested in issues like business coaching, branding, communication, difficult conversations, disruption, employee ownership, exit planning, financial management, leadership, innovation, intergenerational transfer, marketing, multi-generational family businesses, business operations, process documentation, security, selling, storytelling, succession, visioning, wealth management,
My guests are entrepreneurs, family business advisors, multi-generational and Gen 2 family business leaders, heads of university family business programs, consultants, coaches and firms that serve those who are growth businesses.
Clients of my show typically are running businesses with 10 to 200 employees and $1M to $20M in revenues.
Their concerns include: scaling up, exit planning, succession, leadership development, disruption, business planning, finances, growth planning, transferring generational wealth, transferring control, ownership issues, and more.
The benefits listeners receive are introductions to experts and advisors around the issues of growing and exiting a business, whether it’s a family business or entrepreneurial venture. They get a feel for the challenges other business owners and leaders face and how they overcame them. They will hear stories from people and how they came to do their work and why.
My shows feature handpicked guests who engage with me in casual conversations lasting between 30 to 40 minutes. You can expect to be entertained, engaged and may even get takeaways like business tools or ideas for implementation in your business.
I’ve led entrepreneurial adventures in art, clothing, a holistic health lifestyle magazine and trade show, shoe manufacturing. I’ve also led several non-profit organizations. I earned an MBA from the University of Southern California in Entrepreneurship.
I’ve been advising, coaching and consulting family-owned, family-run and entrepreneur-led businesses since 1989. My love for entrepreneurship follows the closure of my family’s sizeable multi-generational clothing manufacturing company after eight decades of operation because there were no successors.
After uncovering the code to scale up a family-run business - a playbook and a disruptive successor - I wrote a book called Disruptive Successor: A Guide To Driving Growth in Your Family Business.
My podcast is my effort to bring interested people into the conversation to benefit disruptive successors.
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The Disruptive Successor Show is a podcast for next-generation leaders in family businesses and entrepreneurs who want to disrupt the status quo to grow their business and take it to the next level.
We all know that what got us here isn’t going to get us there.
If you are taking control over your family’s business or trying to get your business to the next level, you will need inspiration, advice and resources to help you create a massive impact.
Listeners of my show include not only the millennial or Gen Z but also the Baby Boomer and Gen Y. My listeners tend to be involved in these industries: business services, construction, design-build-maintain landscape contracting, food manufacturing, property management, real estate, and technology.
And are interested in issues like business coaching, branding, communication, difficult conversations, disruption, employee ownership, exit planning, financial management, leadership, innovation, intergenerational transfer, marketing, multi-generational family businesses, business operations, process documentation, security, selling, storytelling, succession, visioning, wealth management,
My guests are entrepreneurs, family business advisors, multi-generational and Gen 2 family business leaders, heads of university family business programs, consultants, coaches and firms that serve those who are growth businesses.
Clients of my show typically are running businesses with 10 to 200 employees and $1M to $20M in revenues.
Their concerns include: scaling up, exit planning, succession, leadership development, disruption, business planning, finances, growth planning, transferring generational wealth, transferring control, ownership issues, and more.
The benefits listeners receive are introductions to experts and advisors around the issues of growing and exiting a business, whether it’s a family business or entrepreneurial venture. They get a feel for the challenges other business owners and leaders face and how they overcame them. They will hear stories from people and how they came to do their work and why.
My shows feature handpicked guests who engage with me in casual conversations lasting between 30 to 40 minutes. You can expect to be entertained, engaged and may even get takeaways like business tools or ideas for implementation in your business.
I’ve led entrepreneurial adventures in art, clothing, a holistic health lifestyle magazine and trade show, shoe manufacturing. I’ve also led several non-profit organizations. I earned an MBA from the University of Southern California in Entrepreneurship.
I’ve been advising, coaching and consulting family-owned, family-run and entrepreneur-led businesses since 1989. My love for entrepreneurship follows the closure of my family’s sizeable multi-generational clothing manufacturing company after eight decades of operation because there were no successors.
After uncovering the code to scale up a family-run business - a playbook and a disruptive successor - I wrote a book called Disruptive Successor: A Guide To Driving Growth in Your Family Business.
My podcast is my effort to bring interested people into the conversation to benefit disruptive successors.
Episode 181 - Kelly Finnell, Author of The ESOP Coach, Explains How ESOPs Work
Disruptive Successor Podcast
28 minutes 56 seconds
1 year ago
Episode 181 - Kelly Finnell, Author of The ESOP Coach, Explains How ESOPs Work
Kelly Finnell is a leading expert in Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs) with over 40 years of experience. As one of the nation’s premier ESOP consultants, Kelly has designed and executed numerous ESOPs and has shared his expertise at more than 300 conferences and meetings globally, including in London and Sydney.
In 2010, Kelly authored "The ESOP Coach: Using ESOPs in Ownership Succession Planning," the most comprehensive guide on ESOPs available today. He has also published numerous articles on the subject, further establishing his authority in ownership succession planning.
Kelly’s firm, Executive Financial Services, established in 1981 and based in Memphis, Tennessee, is dedicated exclusively to ESOPs. With a highly qualified team, they have successfully executed transactions in 38 cities across 19 states, focusing solely on ESOPs.
SHOW SUMMARY
In this episode of the Disruptive Successor podcast, host Jonathan Goldhill is joined by Kelly Finnell, a leading ESOP consultant, to discuss the intricacies and benefits of Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs) as an effective business succession strategy. Kelly provides insights into how ESOPs function, their tax benefits, the impact on company culture, and the feasibility for various business types. He also addresses common myths and concerns related to ESOPs, offering real-world examples and case studies. This episode aims to provide next-generation leaders and entrepreneurs with valuable information on leveraging ESOPs for successful business transitions while fostering employee ownership.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Introduction to ESOPs: An Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) is a form of retirement plan that invests primarily in the stock of the sponsoring employer, providing both an exit strategy for business owners and benefits to employees.
Target Companies: ESOPs are ideal for small to mid-sized companies with stable and predictable revenues, typically with at least $2 million in EBITDA. They are particularly beneficial for professional services firms.
Tax Benefits: Significant tax advantages exist for both the selling owner (potential deferral or elimination of capital gains taxes) and the company (operating tax-free if it's an S corporation).
Financing ESOPs: The ESOP is fully financed by the company, not by the employees, making it possible for employees to become owners without needing to invest their own money.
Ownership Culture: ESOPs promote an ownership culture within the company, aligning employees' interests with the company's success, which can lead to increased productivity and motivation.
Succession Planning: ESOPs can be used effectively in family businesses to manage generational transitions, ensuring fair distribution of the estate among family members.
Feasibility and Implementation: The process begins with a feasibility study to evaluate the potential outcomes and involves significant communication and education efforts to ensure employee buy-in and understanding.
QUOTES
"ESOP solves that problem: it is entirely financed by the company. The employees don't come out of pocket with any money. It's a benefit plan for them, not an investment plan."
"I always tell business owners that the best candidate for an ESOP is a company where the owner comes in late, takes a long lunch, and leaves early."
"You have to have a strong successor management team."
"The reason the ESOP outperforms is because with an ESOP, you're getting a leveraged rate of return on the employee's accounts."
"If a business owner sells to private equity, the way the government would look at that is you have a rich person selling to other rich people."
Connect and learn more about Kelly Finnell.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/esopcoach/
If you enjoyed today’s episode, please subscribe, review, and share with a friend who would benefit from the message. If you’re interested in picking up a copy of Jonathan Goldhill’s book, Disruptive Successor, go to the website at www.DisruptiveSuccessor.com
Disruptive Successor Podcast
The Disruptive Successor Show is a podcast for next-generation leaders in family businesses and entrepreneurs who want to disrupt the status quo to grow their business and take it to the next level.
We all know that what got us here isn’t going to get us there.
If you are taking control over your family’s business or trying to get your business to the next level, you will need inspiration, advice and resources to help you create a massive impact.
Listeners of my show include not only the millennial or Gen Z but also the Baby Boomer and Gen Y. My listeners tend to be involved in these industries: business services, construction, design-build-maintain landscape contracting, food manufacturing, property management, real estate, and technology.
And are interested in issues like business coaching, branding, communication, difficult conversations, disruption, employee ownership, exit planning, financial management, leadership, innovation, intergenerational transfer, marketing, multi-generational family businesses, business operations, process documentation, security, selling, storytelling, succession, visioning, wealth management,
My guests are entrepreneurs, family business advisors, multi-generational and Gen 2 family business leaders, heads of university family business programs, consultants, coaches and firms that serve those who are growth businesses.
Clients of my show typically are running businesses with 10 to 200 employees and $1M to $20M in revenues.
Their concerns include: scaling up, exit planning, succession, leadership development, disruption, business planning, finances, growth planning, transferring generational wealth, transferring control, ownership issues, and more.
The benefits listeners receive are introductions to experts and advisors around the issues of growing and exiting a business, whether it’s a family business or entrepreneurial venture. They get a feel for the challenges other business owners and leaders face and how they overcame them. They will hear stories from people and how they came to do their work and why.
My shows feature handpicked guests who engage with me in casual conversations lasting between 30 to 40 minutes. You can expect to be entertained, engaged and may even get takeaways like business tools or ideas for implementation in your business.
I’ve led entrepreneurial adventures in art, clothing, a holistic health lifestyle magazine and trade show, shoe manufacturing. I’ve also led several non-profit organizations. I earned an MBA from the University of Southern California in Entrepreneurship.
I’ve been advising, coaching and consulting family-owned, family-run and entrepreneur-led businesses since 1989. My love for entrepreneurship follows the closure of my family’s sizeable multi-generational clothing manufacturing company after eight decades of operation because there were no successors.
After uncovering the code to scale up a family-run business - a playbook and a disruptive successor - I wrote a book called Disruptive Successor: A Guide To Driving Growth in Your Family Business.
My podcast is my effort to bring interested people into the conversation to benefit disruptive successors.