Critical Mass Radio Show Featuring Keith Molchan and Martin Staubus
This Critical Mass Radio Show discusses why, when and how business owners should choose the ESOP path as the correct succession strategy…
The Fiduciary Trustee’s Role in ESOP Governance
In this issue, we close the loop on the triangular governance structure that supports ESOP companies and discuss the role of the ESOP itself as reflected in the duties and functions of the ESOP fiduciary (the trustee).
Deck the Malls!
A tale of entrepreneurship – and a leading holiday decoration company becomes employee owned…
Opinion: Looking for the Perfect Buyer?
With all the news about company bankruptcies, increased government regulations, higher equipment costs and economic uncertainty, some motor-carrier owners are looking for options…
Don’t Wait for a Crisis, Fix it Now
When things go wrong at work, as they occasionally do, a common first reaction is to look for the culprit(s). This can lead to punishment which may result in the ‘evildoer(s)’ being severely reprimanded, or even terminated. Unfortunately, not only does the problem often remain unsolved, the organization is left with another challenge of replacing a person or two. There may be a better way that doesn’t result in a lose-lose situation…
Talks at Google: Joseph Blasi on “The Citizen Share: Putting Ownership Back into Democracy”
The idea of workers owning the businesses where they work is not new. In America’s early years, Washington, Adams, Jefferson, and Madison believed that the best economic plan for the Republic was for citizens to have some ownership stake in the land, which was the main form of productive capital. This book traces the development … Read More
The Role of Management in an Employee-Ownership Company
What is the function of senior management in the governance of ESOP companies? Simply put, the function of management in an ESOP company is the same as in any other company – to manage very well to achieve strategic objectives and to participate in the strategic operation of the company by giving the board feedback on how the strategic plan is being successfully implemented and, more important, where it is failing.
How Do I Get More Employees to Actively Participate in Our Plan?
You just received the dreaded call from your friendly 401(k) third-party administrator – your average deferral percentage (ADP) test is failing…again! Some of your highly compensated employees will be disappointed to learn that money they deferred will be returned to them and is taxable.
Requirement, Guidance, Advice and Implication: A Brief Look at a Couple of Recent ESOP Legal Events
Several recent legal events have given the ESOP community a great deal to consider…
Shared Capitalism: Lessons from the 6th Annual Beyster Summer Fellowship Symposium
What are the best strategies for aligning equity incentives for all stakeholders, and what lessons can be drawn from cutting-edge research in the area?
Shared Entrepreneurship: A Path to Engaged Employee Ownership
In many ways the persistent top-down command and control theme that supports established leadership thought and practice prevents organizations from fully tapping into their human resources, in turn limiting their flexibility to meet the challenges of increasingly dynamic, complex, and competitive environments. Shared Entrepreneurship replaces the top-down approaches of the past with a new framework that draws strengths and innovation from collaboration and sharing.
Herman Miller: Unrelenting Pursuit of Reinvention and Renewal
Herman Miller is widely recognized as the leader in the office furniture industry and has built a reputation for innovation in products and processes since D. J. De Pree became president over 90 years ago. Herman Miller is one of only four companies and the only non-high-technology enterprise named to Fortune’s “Most Admired Companies” and “The 100 … Read More
W. L. Gore & Associates: Developing Global Teams to Meet Twenty-First-Century Challenges
In 2008, W. L. Gore & Associates celebrated its fiftieth year in business. During the first four decades of its existence, Gore became famous for its products and for its use of business teams located in a single facility. To facilitate the development of teams, corporate facilities were kept to 200 associates or fewer. Due … Read More
Got Stock? Employers Take Note – Future Employees Want Their Share
New research from Fidelity shows that over 80 percent of employees say that a company stock plan influences their decision to change employers…
Wawa Inc.
The Wawa associates have an ESOP which plays a key role in Wawa’s culture of ownership. This case explores the role of incentives and levers of control to create a successful retail chain.
ESOP Governance Collaborators: The Board of Directors
Many closely held company boards only meet in the virtual world of corporate counsel’s template minutes and perform their important functions without much more thought than what is required to make a signature. In ESOP-owned companies (or any structure that provides for broad ownership among employees of the company) the landscape changes, and the independent role of the board of directors as well as its oversight function become significantly more important.
The Benefits of Outside Directors in ESOP Companies
Selling a business to an ESOP often requires significant changes to the company’s governance structure. If your board of directors has consisted solely of family members, or close friends, you may not welcome this change, but outside directors can help you run the business more judiciously and effectively…
Employee Ownership: A Theoretical and Empirical Investigation of Management Entrenchment vs. Reward Management
Employee ownership is often used not only as a reward management tool but also as an entrenchment mechanism. The literature suggests that good managers use employee ownership as a reward management tool, whereas bad managers implement it for entrenchment, thus suggesting the existence of an equilibrium level of employee ownership. The contributions of this paper … Read More
The SAIC Solution: Built by Employee Owners
This book is a guide to implementing principles and practices developed and used by SAIC to drive exponential growth, global expansion, and diversification across science and technology customers and markets…
The Millionaire Truck Driver And Other ESOP Miracles
I hate to say it, but here goes: too many Americans, including highly-educated and experienced business people, have just plain given up on this country’s manufacturing industries, believing low-cost producers in China and elsewhere are unbeatable. And many of these same knowledgeable people would also tell you that solving the country’s retirement savings crisis is … Read More
Workplace Democracy in the Lab
While intuition suggests that empowering workers to have some say in the control of the firm is likely to have beneficial effects, empirical evidence of such effects is hard to come by because of numerous confounding factors in the naturally occurring data. We report evidence from a real‐effort experiment confirming that worker performance is sensitive … Read More
Mary Ann Beyster
Engineer and philanthropist Mary Ann Beyster discusses free enterprise, broad-based ownership, innovation and the documentary film ‘We the Owners’ with Harold Channer in this two-part video interview.
“We The Owners” Film Garners Awards, Attention and National Distribution
Most people know either first-hand or through someone close to them what it feels like to not be valued, to not have a say, to not have control, or to be demotivated at work. A feel-good movie about three companies – New Belgium Brewery, Namasté Solar, and DPR Construction – that strive for the opposite is a welcome relief.
Choosing Between Government Procurement Preferences and Employee Ownership
Adworkshop currently is considering a transition to 100 percent employee ownership over the next 10 years. Unfortunately, employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) companies have encountered obstacles when trying to participate in procurement programs…
Taking an Employee-Owned Company to the Next Level
All employee-owned companies must pay attention to succession planning. BL Companies has elected to face this challenge head-on…