ESOP and Employee Ownership in Deal Structure?

One of the biggest risks in small-business (especially professional services) acquisitions isn’t the valuation—it's what happens after close. The minute ownership changes, long-tenured technicians and key employees sometimes head for the exits. And when they leave, the thesis can fall apart fast. That’s why the Teamshares model https://www.weforum.org/stories/2023/06/amnc23-employee-owned-small-business-plan caught my eye. They lean into employee ownership to keep people engaged and aligned through the transition. ESOP research backs this up: employee-owned firms tend to have lower turnover and more stability. So it got me thinking: 1. Should we be using employee ownership—equity grants, simple rollovers, or lightweight ESOP-style mechanisms—as part of deal structure to protect continuity 2. Anyone else here already doing this in lower middle market ETA transactions? Does it actually help retention, or just add complexity?