Documentation
Everything you need to form, govern, operate, and grow your cooperative on OwnFold.
Getting Started
Go from a new account to a working cooperative workspace.
- Create Your Co-opLearn how to register your organization, pick a cooperative business type, invite your founding members, and start coordinating formation.8 min
- Design OwnershipConfigure member classes, set voting rights and profit-sharing rules, record member buy-ins, and define capital lockup and redemption terms.10 min
- Generate BylawsLearn how to use the AI formation wizard in the Formation Studio, edit your draft Articles and Bylaws, and take them through member ratification and legal review.15 min
- Onboard MembersLearn how to add members, send account invitations, assign module permissions, record KYC status, and open each member's capital account.10 min
Module Guides
Deep-dive guides for the core ownership, governance, finance, and operations modules.
- Ownership DesignerOperational guide to designing member classes, setting buy-in amounts and voting rights, configuring preferred investor classes, and defining lockup and exit payout terms.
- Governance EngineOperational guide to drafting proposals, running open and anonymous ballots, setting proxy delegates, recording meeting minutes, and compiling board packets.
- Patronage EngineLegal and operational guide to surplus allocations, Subchapter T compliance, qualified vs. non-qualified dividends, the review and approval workflow, and Form 1099-PATR preparation.
- Financial CoreOperational guide to the double-entry general ledger, the Chart of Accounts, importing bank transactions with Plaid, and compiling co-op financial statements.
- Member LedgerOperational guide to tracking member capital accounts, recording buy-in payments, reviewing capital history, and logging manual identity (KYC) verification.
- Formation StudioOperational guide to the formation readiness checklist, AI-drafted Articles and Bylaws, the first ratification vote, and keeping formation records.
- CRM & ProjectsGuide to managing your customer pipeline, building estimates, converting accepted estimates into projects, and tracking project budgets against logged labor.
- TimesheetsOperational guide to clocking time, scheduling worker shifts, approving timesheet entries, and using approved hours as patronage inputs.
- Invoicing & ExpensesOperational guide to creating customer invoices, accepting online payments through Stripe, recording expense claims, and how both post to the general ledger.
- InventoryOperational guide to inventory stock tracking, low-stock alerts, purchase orders with member-vote approval, and consolidated co-op purchasing.
- Work OrdersOperational guide to creating service tickets, scheduling crews on the dispatch calendar, field updates from the Worker Console, and job completion costing.
- AI AdvisorOperational guide to the AI Cooperative Advisor: what it can see, how credits work, prompt templates, and sample governance and tax questions.
Sector Modules
Modules for specific cooperative types, plus the business conversion planner.
- HR & MediationLearn how members file workplace grievances (signed or anonymous), how the HR committee works cases through investigation and mediation, and who can see each case.
- Housing & LeasesLearn how housing co-ops record resident leases, assess monthly rent, collect payments, and credit part of each payment to the resident's capital account.
- Internal Share TradesLearn how members request capital share purchases and redemptions, the verification and lockup rules that apply, and how approved trades post to the ledger.
- Equipment LedgerLearn how equipment-sharing co-ops register shared assets, book them for members, log hours used, and split maintenance costs by usage.
- Gig DispatcherLearn how platform cooperatives dispatch gigs to members, record completed jobs with a transparent fee split, and log member payouts.
- Timebanking CoreLearn how time-banking co-ops log service exchanges between members, read hour balances, and convert earned hours into capital account equity.
- Utility BillingLearn how utility cooperatives register member meters, log meter readings, and bill consumption at a per-unit rate.
- Co-op ConversionsLegal and operational guide to selling an existing business to its employees, IRC Section 1042 capital gains deferral, and modelling a buyout in OwnFold Convert.
Network
Find advisors and lenders, connect with other co-ops, and compare against peers.
- Advisor MarketplaceLearn how to find cooperative attorneys, accountants, and consultants, review their profiles, and send a consultation request by email.
- Lender MarketplaceLearn how to find cooperative lenders (CDFIs, credit unions, cooperative banks), prepare loan packets, track submissions, and run community capital campaigns.
- Co-op DirectoryLearn how to search the directory of cooperatives on OwnFold and send B2B trade inquiries to other co-ops.
- Federation BenchmarksLearn how to compare your cooperative's membership, member capital, revenue, and reserves against the average of similar co-ops on OwnFold.
Compliance & Records
Track deadlines, manage contracts, and keep sealed records.
- Compliance CalendarLearn how to track state filings, tax deadlines, annual reports, and governance events, and export your workspace audit log.
- Legal & Contracts LibraryLearn how to start agreements from the Template Library, move them through attorney and board review in the Legal Hub, and sign them electronically.
- Document VaultLearn how the Document Vault keeps your governing documents and archived records, and how SHA-256 content hashes show whether a sealed document has changed.
Account & Support
Plans, AI credits, billing, and getting help.
Can’t find what you need?
Signed-in members can ask the AI Advisor or open a support ticket from their workspace. Everyone else can reach us through the contact form.