Jeremy Vokt: Why Bland & Associates Said “No” to Private Equity and “Yes” to ESOPs | MOVE Like This

Employee ownership gave the firm a growth path on its own terms.

MOVE Like This
With Bonnie Buol Ruszczyk
For CPA Trendlines

In this episode of MOVE Like This, Jeremy Vokt, managing partner at Bland & Associates, discusses the firm’s journey to becoming Nebraska’s first ESOP-owned CPA firm. Vokt shares how Bland evolved from a small 17-person firm in 2006 to a thriving 130-person business today, thanks in part to its unique blend of traditional CPA services and specialized government consulting work focused on Medicare and Medicaid compliance. 

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Vokt walks through the fundamentals of an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), explaining that it’s similar to a 401(k) but without employee contributions. Instead, employees are allocated shares annually based on their compensation, which grow in value over time through third-party valuations. This approach creates an ownership culture from day one for every employee – from the front desk to the managing partner – without the typical 15- to 20-year wait to buy into ownership.