A major theoretical objection against employee ownership is that workers become inadequately diversified and exposed to excessive financial risk. Recent theory concludes that 10-15% of a worker’s wealth portfolio can be prudently invested in employer stock provided the rest of the portfolio is properly diversified. This paper analyzes employee share ownership in U.S. family financial … Read More
In 2015, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation engaged the Institute for the Study of Employee Ownership and Profit Sharing, at the Rutgers University School of Management and Labor Relations, to conduct a qualitative study examining the asset building impacts of employee ownership for low- and moderate-income employees and their families.
This 2019 MIT Sloan case by Zeynep Ton and Katie Bach describes how the executive team at Mud Bay, a privately held pet store chain based in Olympia, Washington, implemented a good jobs strategy by offering better wages and benefits and seeking to recoup the costs by increasing sales growth and lowering other expenses.
Employee-owned businesses tend to outperform their competitors, a growing body of research shows. According to the National Center of Employee Ownership, businesses with employee ownership models grow sales and employment at a faster rate than businesses without such programs. Employee-owned firms also perform better than their counterparts during recessions, per research from Georgetown University. For … Read More
Co-opLaw.org is an online legal resource library supporting democratic, worker-owned businesses from the Sustainable Economies Law Center.
We examine the impact of the cultural norm of uncertainty avoidance on employee stock option (ESO) exercise behavior using proprietary data from a multinational firm. We find that employees from countries with higher levels of uncertainty avoidance exercise their stock options earlier. These findings lend support to a maintained assumption in the ESO literature that … Read More
Mission-led employee-owned firms embody a powerful model of enterprise design for a new era of environmental sustainability and social equity. These companies have much to teach the business world about ownership design for the 21st century and beyond. This report shares the story of this emerging model, embodied in 50-plus firms that are employee owned … Read More
This book from the National Center for Employee Ownership shows ESOP companies how to communicate the plan to employees as well as customers.
Over the years, the NCEO has reported on new research on employee ownership and corporate performance. Now that a substantial body of work exists on the subject, they thought it would make sense to summarize it in one place.
This short book from the National Center for Employee Ownership explains how ESOPs work in a clear and concise manner.
Olivia Nash, an analyst at leading hedge fund BlueShark Capital Management, had just finished listening to the hour-long earnings call for Twitter’s Q4 2017 results. Was Twitter doing well? That depended on which numbers she chose to believe. According to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), Twitter had recorded a $108M net loss for 2017. But … Read More
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to evaluate how the public at large perceives employee ownership, and how public perceptions of employee ownership translate into consumer valuation of goods and/or services produced by employee-owned firms. To the extent that consumer interest regarding the governance and ownership structure of firms matters in their purchasing decision, … Read More
Congress designed ESOPs to be the most cost-effective means for both owners and companies to provide for business transition. One of the most difficult problems for owners of closely-held businesses is finding a way to turn their equity in a business into cash for retirement or other purposes. The decision to sell is more than … Read More
This article focuses on the unique organizational structure, ownership model, and decision-making process at Mondragon Corporation, the world’s largest consortium of worker-owned cooperatives.
While family firms tend to be highly committed to their employees, scholars contend that founding family owners are likely hesitant when it comes to sharing ownership broadly with non-family employees. Taking a heterogeneous view of family firms, this study investigates the implications of different familial control‐enhancing mechanisms on the use of broad‐based employee ownership programs … Read More
This PowerPoint presentation is Class 5 from the Course: Topics in Corporate Governance: Techniques of Equity Compensation. The session explores shareholders concerns regarding equity, building a culture of ownership, and effective leadership in an engaged company. This presentation is part of the Teaching Module: Topics in Corporate Governance: Techniques of Equity Compensation.
This PowerPoint presentation is Class 4 from the Course: Topics in Corporate Governance: Techniques of Equity Compensation. The session explores two employee-owned business, ATA Engineering, Inc. and Chatsworth Products, Inc. Case Study #1: ATA Engineering, Inc. Case Study #2: Chatsworth Products, Inc. This presentation is part of the Teaching Module: Topics in Corporate Governance: Techniques … Read More
This technical note explores the many different forms of equity compensation. Equity compensation, defined as compensation that provides for the delivery of equity securities, aligns employees’ incentives with shareholder value driven by a company’s stock price. Equity compensation is used extensively to attract and retain key employees. However, the types of equity compensation differ in … Read More
This PowerPoint presentation is Class 3 from the Course: Topics in Corporate Governance: Techniques of Equity Compensation. The session explores the legal implications of equity compensation covering tax law and labor considerations; as well as future trends. This presentation is part of the Teaching Module: Topics in Corporate Governance: Techniques of Equity Compensation.
This PowerPoint presentation is Class 2 from the Course: Topics in Corporate Governance: Techniques of Equity Compensation. The session explores what non-qualified plans are covering legal factors, basic types, direct and indirect ownership tools, stock options and settlement choices. The session also explores synthetic equity. This presentation is part of the Teaching Module: Topics in … Read More
This PowerPoint presentation is Class 1 from the Course: Topics in Corporate Governance: Techniques of Equity Compensation. The session explores the notion of equity as a currency of business; and explores the most “tax favored” techniques, qualified plans. This presentation is part of the Teaching Module: Topics in Corporate Governance: Techniques of Equity Compensation.
This Teaching Module, designed by Anthony Mathews, covers the techniques used in equity compensation. The module consists of the course syllabus, five class sessions, two case studies and an Equity Compensation Cheat Sheet. Topics include qualified and non-qualified plans, legal implications, shareholders concerns regarding equity, building a culture of ownership, and effective leadership in an … Read More
In a chart format, offers summaries of common equity compensation instruments, categorized with type of plan, benefits, tax and accounting treatment, and drawbacks. Also provides guidance on implementing equity compensation.
This case study focuses on Wawa, the convenience store, gas station and restaurant company. Founded in 1803, Wawa morphed over time from an iron foundry to a textile mill, to a dairy farm, dairy delivery business, grocery store, then convenience store. Dark clouds descended with the 2008 financial crisis. As competitors converged on Wawa, management … Read More
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to review the historical background for broad-based ownership in the USA, the development of forms of employee ownership and profit sharing in the USA, the research literature on employee ownership and profit sharing and related employee participation, the development of policy and options for new policies. Design/methodology/approach It … Read More