Steward-ownership is a structure for being a good ancestor and leaving a legacy.
‘Steward-owned’ is a non-profit organization guiding SMEs on their journey to steward-ownership and provide support to businesses to explore this alternative for succession.
SMEs and family businesses have always aimed to build a sustainable economy. However, they, too, face the risks of short-term profit maximization, which can threaten their vision. Steward-ownership offers a way to realign companies with sustainable goals, creating remarkable effects:
A structure for being a good ancestor: By separating ownership from profit distribution, steward-ownership allows a company to stay independent. It enables long-term decision-making for the company’s future.
Not an object of speculation: Steward-owned companies are protected from speculative value increases. They are unsellable, safeguarding them from short-term profit pressures and encouraging a long-term focus.
Benefits for employees, business, and society: Steward-owned companies often outperform traditional companies in employee satisfaction and customer trust, with equal or better profit margins and higher survival rates.
Securing your legacy: Entrepreneurs can ensure that their life’s work remains in good hands, continuing in the spirit of its original mission rather than being sold or divided.
Ownership is ultimately the most important factor in ensuring that a company pursues its social goals in the long term. Steward-ownership achieves this by decoupling voting rights, which represent power and control, from profit and asset rights. These stewards has a responsibility that is passed on from one generation of able, mission-aligned stewards to the next.
Steward-ownership’s core principles
Although the legal structure can vary, all steward-owned companies make a legally binding commitment to two core principles:
Self-governance In steward-owned companies, control remains with people actively involved in the business. Voting rights belong to stewards who are connected to the company’s mission and operations, and who are considered best suited to guide the company. Unlike in conventional ownership models, voting shares cannot be speculatively sold or automatically inherited; instead, they are passed down according to established principles to those closely tied to the business.
Profit serves purpose In steward-owned companies, the company’s value cannot be extracted by shareholders for personal gain. Profits are reinvested in the business, used to cover fair returns to investors, shared with stakeholders, or donated to charity. This structure keeps the focus on purpose, without falling into the imbalance of profit maximization.
The ideal succession solution for companies
Transferring ownership to the next generation or new leaders often brings uncertainty. Steward-ownership provides founders with a succession option that preserves the company’s original purpose beyond their retirement.
Advantages of Steward-ownership as a succession solution:
Maintaining corporate culture: Steward-owned companies stay independent and true to their original values for the long term.
Avoiding break-up or sale: Unlike traditional succession models, the company isn’t sold to the highest bidder but remains independent and purpose-driven.
Sustainability and permanence: By reinvesting capital, profits are used not only to enrich owners but also to secure the company’s long-term success.
Social responsibility: Steward-ownership ensures that companies continue to contribute to society, fairly treating people as more than resources.
In Germany, steward-ownership is increasingly recognized as a “third way,” especially when a sale to foreign investors or employee ownership isn’t viable or desirable. For many entrepreneurs, finding a successor based solely on family ties is challenging. Others hesitate to sell to the highest bidder, uncertain about the company’s future. Traditionally, succession options have been limited. Steward-ownership broadens the field from “blood” and “money” to “skills” and “values,” offering an attractive alternative for companies that can’t find a successor within the family or close circle. Instead of selling to outside buyers or investors, founders can establish a succession model that ensures their company’s mission endures.
The result: Purpose-Driven Profits
In steward-owned companies, profits cannot be taken for personal gain but stay within the company, serving its mission and purpose. Those connected to the company and its purpose hold control, making decisions based on values and long-term benefits for the company’s mission, its development, and its impact on stakeholders and the environment.
More and more companies are choosing steward-ownership to deal with or anticipate on the succession issue. Patagonia, for example, recently transitioned to a structure that directs profits toward environmental protection. Companies like Ecosia and Bosch also use this model to secure their independence and values over the long term. It’s not only global brands; SMEs like Orval, Waschbär, Odin, Voys, BuurtzorgT, and Westmalle Brewery have also adopted steward-ownership, making them “unsellable” and committed to their corporate purpose.
How Steward-ownership works in company succession
With steward-ownership, the company is transferred to a structure where voting rights go to “stewards.” These can be long-standing employees, members of the management team, or external experts familiar with the company’s values and mission. If family members wish to uphold these values, they are also suitable successors. These stewards lead the company in line with its purpose, without the option to sell or withdraw unlimited profits for personal gain. Instead, they receive fair compensation for their responsibilities and, when applicable, investments, ensuring the company’s long-term stability and a smooth, values-aligned succession process.
Family Business 2.0
Ownership matters. The issue of ownership is one of the most critical gaps in today’s economy, as ownership has proven to be the main factor in driving a company’s long-term social goals. As Milton Friedman stated in 1970 “the only duty of companies is to serve shareholders”—a view that frames profit as their sole social responsibility. To build companies that leave a meaningful legacy, we must rethink ownership. Steward-ownership is increasingly becoming the next generation of family business, or “Family Business 2.0.”
At Steward-Owned, a Belgian non-profit, we are your point of contact for all things steward-ownership. Whether you are an entrepreneur, founder, or investor, we offer advice on all aspects of steward-ownership and support you with financing solutions.
How we can help you:
Ask a question in the monthly open call
Every first Tuesday of the month at 1 PM the Belgian Steward-owned team is available to answer all your questions. No registration needed.
Explore your fit with steward-ownership in a 1to1 meeting
Considering a steward-owned enterprise or investment? We take time to listen to your story and needs. Lets figure out how we can help you. Happy to be your guide
Bring this concept to the public. We love invitations.
During a keynote or workshop, we will guide you through the unique world of steward-ownership. Discover why this is a crucial building block to shift the economy.