Steward-Ownership

October 1, 2024

Ditch the Old Org Models: Embrace a Social Economy!

What do you do if you want to establish an organization that fully serves a sustainable, social society while also being able to generate revenue? An organization where profit is merely a means and never an end in itself? Then you switch to an entirely new organizational structure. Meet Steward-ownership: the path to a sustainable business world. At Local Happinez, we believe the world is rich in knowledge and time. Imagine all people sharing their expertise and time. This would allow people worldwide to connect, solve local problems, and educate one another about local culture and nature. This is the mission we are committed to at Local Happinez—a mission that guides everything we do. For us, purpose comes before profit!

When Classical Business Models Simply Don’t Fit

If an organization fully serves a sustainable and social society, the classical business model—where rapid growth and profits are prioritized—does not suffice. What’s even more off-track is to be acquired after a couple of years, with the mission replaced by a profit-driven focus. Conclusion: the classic model doesn’t align with what we stand for.

Additionally, a structure based solely on a foundation doesn’t fit either, as we want to keep growing with the times, be self-sufficient and remain flexible. We want to generate value models to pay off social investors, cover operational costs and innovation, and eventually grow to a point where net profits can be distributed to social causes that align with the mission of Local Happinez.

The Inspiration We Needed

At the end of 2020, the episode of Tegenlicht titled “Making Good Money” aired. In this episode, there was an extensive focus on organizations that had switched to the Steward-ownership model. It was precisely the inspiration we needed.

" Steward-ownership is a way of structuring ownership of a company. The core of steward-ownership is that a company exists to serve its mission. By eliminating profit maximization and putting the mission at the center, a company can focus on long-term goals and maximizing positive impact. Investors have little or no say—they invest solely in the mission. "

— We Are Stewards —

Relatively New The Netherlands

Together with a legal/tax team and the organization “We Are Stewards,” we worked hard to design our legal structure to meet all our requirements:

Our mission must always remain at the center.
Local Happinez must never fall into the hands of shareholders who prioritize shareholder value.
The founder and other stakeholders prioritize impact over profit.
Local Happinez becomes independent of third-party capital. We generate value models.

One Size Doesn’t Fit All

Practice shows that Steward-ownership organizations in the Netherlands have their own structure. It’s not one size fits all; it’s customized. That’s why we’d like to take you along with us as we share our experience in forming a Steward-ownership organization. Why? Because I hope more and more organizations will choose a structure where the mission takes precedence. And because we believe in sharing knowledge. We’d love to inspire you to look at the classic organizational model through a different lens and join us, along with other Steward-ownership organizations, in developing new economic models.