Dealmakers are helping foster success stories every day. One company has built itself up enough to be worth buying, and another entity is growing through acquisition. That’s success on both sides. But every so often, a dealmaker has the chance to push forward a deal that truly benefits sellers, buyers, employees, and the communities in which they operate. In 2022, the firm’s Minter was able to do just that.

A significant portion of Minter’s year involved fostering Guttman Energy’s transition from a multigenerational family-owned company into an employee-owned organization. The deal involved significant, complex transactional work from Minter to bring Guttman Energy and two related companies—Guttman Renewables and Source One Transportation—within a new holding company structure helmed by Guttman Holdings, with Guttman Holdings then being sold to an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP). A company with 220 employees and $4 billion in revenue, this deal understandably had countless moving parts that Minter was in charge of navigating. She served as quarterback and managed the multidisciplinary challenges along the way, including reconfiguring the organization, achieving desired tax treatment for the transaction, working with various outside consultants and advisors, and ensuring certain post-transaction advantages.