James G. Steiker
ChairmanJim is Chairman of SES ESOP Strategies, an affiliate of the Stevens & Lee Companies. He is a corporate, pension and tax attorney and financial advisor with more than 35 years of experience in ESOPs and other employee ownership matters. He focuses his practice primarily on ESOP design, transactions and compliance in entrepreneurial companies.
Jim has served on the ESOP Association Board of Governors and is a past Chair of the ESOP Association’s Advisory Committee on Finance. He is also a former Trustee of the Employee Ownership Foundation and a former member of the Board of Directors of the National Center for Employee Ownership. He is a Director and Co-Chair of the Employee Ownership Expansion Network and also serves as a Director of seven ESOP companies.
A frequent author on ESOP matters, Jim has contributed to numerous National Center for Employee Ownership publications, including ESOPs and Corporate Governance, The ESOP Company Board Handbook, Responding to Acquisition Offers in ESOP Companies, Administrative Issues for ESOP Companies, Seller-Financed ESOP Transactions, Warrants in ESOP Transactions and Don’t Do That: Common Mistakes in Operating an ESOP and What to Do About Them. He has also authored articles on ESOPs for many trade journals.
Jim presents regularly on ESOP topics to the annual and regional meetings of the ESOP Association and the National Center for Employee Ownership, ESOP state employee ownership center conferences, and to general and professional audiences. Recent presentations include “LLC Structures and ESOPs,” “The Evolving Fiduciary Process: Practical Guidance for Plan Sponsors and Fiduciaries,” “Selling Your Company to an ESOP,” “Highly-Leveraged ESOP Transactions,” “ESOP Transaction Structures” and “Is an ESOP Right for You.”
Education
- New York University School of Law, J.D., 1985
- Wesleyan University, B.A., 1981
Bar Admissions
- Pennsylvania
Memberships/Affiliations
- ESOP Association Advisory Committee on Finance, past Chair
- Public Policy Council, Member
- Employee Ownership Foundation, Trustee
- National Center for Employee Ownership, Board of Directors, former Member
- The Employee Ownership Expansion Network, Board of Directors
- Pennsylvania Employee Ownership Center, Co-Founder
Selected Speaking Engagements
- “Warrants in ESOP-owned Companies,” moderator, The ESOP Association’s Employee Owned 2019 Conference, Las Vegas, NV, Nov. 14, 2019
- “Legal and Practical Aspects of an ESOP Transaction,” Rutgers NJ/NY Center for Employee Ownership’s 3rd Annual Employee Stock Ownership Plans and Equity Compensation Conference, New Brunswick, NJ, Oct. 29, 2019
- “Legal and Regulatory Update—a Practical Guide,” co-presented with E. Thomas Henefer, 2019 Multi-State ESOP Conference, Pocono Manor, PA, Sept. 20, 2019
- “Legal and Regulatory Update,” 2019 NCEO Employee Ownership Conference, Pittsburgh, PA, April 9, 2019
- “The Evolving Fiduciary Process: Practical Guidance for Plan Sponsors and Fiduciaries,” 2018 Las Vegas Conference and Trade Show hosted by The ESOP Association, Las Vegas, NV, November 9, 2018
- “ESOP Fiduciary Issues,” Is an ESOP Right for You? An In-Depth Look at Employee Stock Ownership Plans Seminar hosted by NCEO, Memphis, TN, October 18, 2018