Alternative Exit #031 | How to Exit Without Leaving: Tim Rettig’s Playbook for Purposeful Ownership

What happens when you witness the worst possible exit scenario and vow never to repeat it? In this episode, I sit down with Tim Rettig, CEO of Intrust IT, to explore his deliberate 8-year journey from sole ownership to employee ownership. Tim shares the pivotal moment in a Texas manufacturing plant that changed everything—watching employees discover their company had been sold without warning, their owner vanished overnight, and their futures thrown into uncertainty. This traumatic experience sparked Tim's commitment to creating a radically different legacy through employee ownership.

We dive deep into Tim's methodical approach to ESOP transition, starting with his father's successful employee ownership story and evolving into his own strategic implementation. From introducing open-book management and the Great Game of Business to building a culture where 70 employees understand financials and forecast P&L line items weekly, Tim reveals how transparency and education became the foundation for shared ownership. This conversation is packed with practical insights on financial literacy training, daily huddles, quarterly bonuses, and the governance structures that make employee ownership thrive.

Timestamps:

00:00 Introduction and Guest Overview
02:48 The Flexibility and Complexity of ESOP Structures
08:28 The Catalyst: Witnessing a Traumatic Business Sale
16:23 Setting the 8-Year ESOP Goal and Employee Involvement
20:51 The Accounting Game: Teaching Financial Literacy
25:42 Cultural Changes Moving to 100% Employee Ownership
32:05 Innovation from Employee Ownership: The AI Security Solution
34:07 Quick Fire Questions and Final Advice

Key Takeaways:

• How witnessing a traumatic business sale in Texas became the catalyst for Tim's ESOP commitment
• Why announcing ESOP goals 8 years in advance gets employees invested in the journey
• The power of the "Accounting Game" workbook to teach financial literacy in just 8 hours
• How 35 of 70 employees forecasting P&L line items gives real-time financial visibility
• Why the 30% ESOP threshold enables 1042 tax-deferred exchanges for business owners
• How employee-driven innovation led to an AI-powered cybersecurity solution becoming a new product
• The governance shift from advisory board to external board with firing power at majority ownership

About Tim Rettig:

Tim Rettig is the CEO of Intrust IT, a technology services company he founded in 1992 and transitioned to 30% employee ownership in 2019. Currently in due diligence to become 100% employee-owned, Tim has set an ambitious goal to create 10,000 employee owners in his lifetime. He's also the interim owner of Staff Nation, which he plans to transition to employee ownership as well, continuing the family legacy started by his father's successful ESOP transition in the early 2000s.

Connect with Tim Rettig:

Linkedin: https://linkedin.com/in/timrettig/
Website: intrust-it.com/

Connect with Andy Farquharson:

LinkedIn - https://linkedin.com/in/andyfarquharson/
Instagram - https://instagram.com/andyfarq
Website - https://abettermonday.me/
Email - [email protected]