Today, the most visible paths are easy to find—private equity, strategic buyers, competitors. These are established, well-funded, and readily available.

But they are not designed around the owner.

There is another path that has existed for decades—one that allows ownership to transition to the people already inside the business.

For many small and mid-sized companies, it simply hasn’t been accessible.

That is changing.

In this session, Bill West walks through how Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs) are now being used as a structured, financeable transition strategy for founder-led businesses.

This is not a conceptual overview.

It is a practical explanation of how these transactions are structured, how they are financed, and what conditions must be in place for them to work.

What You’ll Learn

• What an ESOP is—and what it is not
• How ownership transfers to employees through a trust structure
• How transactions are financed using business cash flow, SBA lending, and seller participation
• When this approach is viable—and when it is not
• How ESOPs compare to third-party sales and internal buyouts

Who Should Attend

Owners of established businesses with consistent cash flow

Founders with a team in place but no clear successor

Business owners beginning to think about transition within the next several years

Owners who want to understand all available options before making a decision

Why Attend

Because most owners are only shown the paths that are easiest to execute—not the ones that best preserve what they have built.

This session gives you a clear understanding of an option that has been available—but not widely accessible—until now.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER: Bill West

Bill West has been an entrepreneur helping other Florida entrepreneurs since 1992. Over the years, Bill has consulted, owned, operated and served as an officer or director of numerous Florida businesses, several banks and commercial loan companies, multiple independent authorities, public/private partnerships, and non-profit organizations. He has been fortunate to have been honored with several major awards for his work.