About Opolis
Work city. Owned by workers.
Opus — work. Polis — community. A member-owned employment cooperative providing community, education, group purchasing power, and optional W-2 employment infrastructure for independent professionals.
Vision & Purpose
A new paradigm for independent work.
Opolis exists to enable solopreneurs, the self-employed, and independent workers to express their unique creativity — to choose from where, with whom, and how much work makes sense for their personal goals. With an estimated 90 million self-employed workers in the U.S. by 2028, virtually all existing HR and employment technology is still designed for corporations, not for the people doing the work.
Opolis is a different model — a cooperative where mutualistic outcomes prevail for workers and the clients they serve. Employment infrastructure belongs to the workers who use it.
Genesis
Where we came from.
Founded in 2019 by John Paller and Eddie Pastore, Opolis set out to bring employment-grade infrastructure to independent workers through a member-owned cooperative. The first payroll ran in 2020. Since then, the cooperative has processed over $210M in payroll and issued 1,150+ W-2s across all 50 states.
| Year | Milestone |
|---|---|
| 2000 | Lakeshore Founded - Staffing company employing 40,000 workers in 36 states |
| 2017 | Sold to Employees - Lakeshore sold; cooperative thinking takes root |
| 2019 | Opolis Launches - Web3-first market; Employment Commons LCA formed in Colorado |
| 2022 | 25x Growth - A community is born; operating in 50 states |
| 2023 | Expanded Reach - Partnered with Freelancers Union and beyond |
| 2024 | $100M Processed - Cooperative milestone; traditional solopreneurs onboard |
| 2026 | $210M+ Processed - 1,150+ W-2s issued across all 50 states + D.C. |
Our Ethos
What we believe.
Work should be chosen.
Independent professionals choose their work, their clients, and their schedule. Opolis exists to make that choice economically viable without sacrificing stability or benefits.
Ownership changes incentives.
When workers own the platform, the platform works for workers. The cooperative succeeds only when Members succeed.
Infrastructure is a collective good.
Payroll, benefits, and compliance shouldn't require a corporate employer behind you. Pooled purchasing power makes it possible for anyone.
Independent work is better together.
Every Member is part of a community of professionals who share infrastructure, knowledge, and a stake in something they collectively own.
Governance
Board of Stewards.
The Board of Stewards is elected by Employee Members and provides oversight of the cooperative's direction, finances, and values.
- John Paller - Chair & Founder
- [Vacant] - Executive Board Member
- Auryn Macmillan - Community Board Member
- Spencer Graham - Community Board Member
- Barry Goers - Board Member
- Felix Machart - Board Member
- [Vacant] - Board Member
Team
The people behind the platform.
A small, focused team of operators who have spent their careers in payroll compliance, HR technology, and cooperative finance.
Will Morgan - Executive Steward
Becky Guinan - Accounting Steward
Matt Tyus - Payroll & Support Steward
Robert Hamilton - Accounting Steward
Danielle Jones - Ops & Admin Steward
David Jenkins - Membership Steward
Carlos Londoño - Dev & IT Steward
Micah Baylor - Insurance & Benefits Steward
Be part of the cooperative.
Ownership, community, and access to the full employment stack — when you're ready.