Internal Data Resources, an IT staffing services provider, is now employee-owned, announced CSG Partners, a New York-based investment bank that advised IDR on the deal known as an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP).

IDR is based in Atlanta and has offices in Dallas, Nashville, and Washington, D.C. Selling owner Eric French will remain as president.

"The fastest way to achieve excellence is to adopt the beliefs and behaviors of successful people, and I've seen the success of employee-owned companies," French said. "At IDR, we are proactive and intensely focused on growth. The ESOP is an ideal strategy to inspire our employees and help IDR achieve its goal of being the best IT staffing company the world has ever seen."

"ESOPs primarily are used as a tax-efficient exit strategy for business owners," said CSG Partners' George Thacker. "With IDR, however, the owner wasn't looking to exit the business and he wanted to use the ESOP structure to aggressively grow the company."

CSG Partners has recently closed other ESOP transactions inlcuding Penmac Staffing in October 2010 and Burnett Staffing in December 2010.