Employee Ownership Blog

Guest Blog: Tips for Internal Trustees

Written by Chris Cooper | Sep 24, 2020 4:00:00 AM

No area has been as much of a source of questions from ESOP companies than trustee and fiduciary matters. To help clarify these issues, we are once again partnering with the Beyster Institute on its Certificate Program for Non-Professional ESOP Fiduciaries. If you are an internal trustee for your ESOP during these unprecedented times, you may be facing decisions that are both challenging and outside of your previous experience. While it’s likely that circumstances have changed for your company, the core requirements for fiduciary success remain the same: 

  1. Access to educational resources to help you understand the capabilities (and limits) of your role as trustee;
  2. Developing clear lines of communication between you as trustee, company management, and the board of directors;
  3. Establishing a process so you can get access to information—and seek professional advice when needed—to help you make decisions; and
  4. Documentation procedures that detail how, and why, you’ve made your decisions. 

Clarity about your role and purpose, as well as an understanding of best practices that allow for informed decisions, are key to meeting every challenge. This clarity and understanding are the focus of the three-day, 100% online Beyster program, starting next Tuesday, September 29. Click here for more information on the program and registration.