The third option
in succession
No sale. No family handover. Instead, a path that preserves your life’s work and secures jobs. Carried by the people who shape the company every day.
Hundreds of thousands of SMEs are searching
for an answer to succession
The classic paths are well known. But they don’t always fit. And when they don’t, the consequences for a life’s work, culture, and jobs can be severe.
If there are no children, or they have chosen different paths, or don’t want to repeat what their parents experienced as sole decision-makers, this path is not an option.
A sale may yield an adequate sum at best. But it often collides with a company culture built over decades. Values and identity are frequently lost in the process.
The solution often already exists within the company. Ownership, leadership, and responsibility are transferred to those who know and shape the company every day.
The key question: How can you pass on your life’s work without it losing its soul — while securing jobs for the long term?
One structure, many possibilities
The third option is built on one foundation: the Employee Owned Company model. How that foundation is shaped depends on your situation. Steward Ownership and Collegial Leadership are not alternatives — they are design dimensions.
Employee Owned Company (EOC)
Ownership in the hands of the workforce
Employees become co-owners. This creates genuine shared responsibility, long-term commitment, and an ownership structure that sustains the company. The EOC collegium can lead the company together — with or without additional design dimensions.
Steward Ownership / Responsible Ownership
Ownership that serves the mission
The company belongs to its mission, not the market. External interests are structurally excluded. Attitude, values, and independence are preserved permanently — even as the collegium changes.
Collegial Leadership
Leadership carried by the collegium
Collegial Leadership is the leadership system through which the EOC collegium runs the company together. Decisions are made where the knowledge is. With clear structure, without chaos. And without new individuals at the top.
me&me supports EOC successions with Collegial Leadership as the leadership system — with or without Steward Ownership. What fits your company, we clarify together. How this works in practice →
When this path fits your organisation
We support business successions as learning transitions. For this deep transformation to succeed, certain fundamental prerequisites must be in place.
Your company employs between 15 and 150 people. This size enables effective structures for shared responsibility.
15 – 150 employeesYou are in a fundamentally stable financial situation. We do not support acute restructuring or crisis cases.
No restructuring casesYou are fundamentally open to rethinking responsibility, leadership, and ownership. This path changes the company structurally.
Structural change welcomeThe handover is not planned for tomorrow. You have at least two to three years to shape the transition consciously and carefully.
At least 2 – 3 years lead timeThis is how long we accompany companies on average. Responsibility needs time to truly grow and become stable.
We deliberately work with existing or new partners and coordinate collaboration where it makes sense.
How you can explore this path now
You don’t have to decide today. But you can start right now to gain clarity and explore the possibilities for your company.