The Role of the Board in Employee-Ownership Governance
One of the common misconceptions about employee stock ownership plan companies among the general public is that they are inefficient…
The Age of Autonomy
Why is Southwest so uniquely able to succeed where others can’t? The thing that makes Southwest employees a powerful force for success is that they are autonomous workers working toward a common goal…
The 2012 Election Cycle: An Embarrassing Circus, Perhaps, but a Great Opportunity for Employee Ownership, for Sure
It is time to make the case that employee ownership is a solution to a lot of what is wrong with our country, and we need to continue to promote the concept until we have 30,000 or 40,000 employee-owned companies rather than the static 10,000 we have had for the last decade or more. If we can do that, we will have put a large part of the country on a much stronger footing, and moved toward solving some fundamental economic and social problems…
Let’s Deal with Sustainability Once and for All
I think the reason we are still undecided about the sustainability of the employee-ownership model is simply that there are still significant numbers of business leaders (and, more importantly, business advisors) for whom the idea that allowing employees to earn capital as well as salary and benefits just sounds wrong.
More than Merely Sustainable
The sustainability debate continues in the employee-ownership community. The fear that employee-owned companies will not be strong enough to survive without significant outside capital, which will end their employee ownership, is still very widespread…
Namaste Solar
Should a fast-growing, employee-owned solar electric company accept a buyout offer from a private equity investor? Could it do so without sacrificing its distinctive, high-involvement culture? Namaste Solar, a 55-person firm based in Boulder, Colorado, designed and installed solar electric systems for residential, commercial, non-profit and government customers. In 2008, the company had been growing … Read More
Employee Ownership and Equity Compensation at ATA Engineering
This PowerPoint presentation is a case study that is part of Class 4 from the Course: Topics in Corporate Governance: Techniques of Equity Compensation. The case study discusses ATA Engineering, Inc., a leading independent company in modal and dynamic testing of aerospace structures in the U.S. Their mission statement is to be the leading provider … Read More
Topics in Corporate Governance: Techniques of Equity Compensation
This course is designed to give students the capacity to understand and evaluate the various tools and techniques available under current law and practice for applying corporate equity as a compensation and motivation vehicle for employees.
The Beyster Fellowship Symposium Video Series
The Beyster Fellowship Symposium brings together academic leaders and new scholars involved with evaluating broad-based employee ownership (EO) and entrepreneurism. The first symposium was held July 2009 in La Jolla, CA. Over 40 academics shared their research findings and participated in an MIT Enterprise Forum panel discussion, which was attended by more than 200 people. The following are videos of Symposium presentations highlighting multiple dimensions of the history, development, and process of employee ownership.
Lightworks Optics
The firm was meeting to grapple with a thorny issue—whether or not to expand their production capability and, if so, where. Early in its history, LightWorks had set up an employee stock ownership plan, or ESOP, under which employees gradually built up equity in the closely-held firm.
Employee Ownership Culture Building: Process and Success Measures
This presentation outlines ways to measure success in an employee owned company, how to achieve positive results, and learn from the ‘best companies to work for.’
Who Runs an ESOP Company?
This presentation discusses the governance structure of employee-owned companies, including trustees, fiduciaries, administrators and plan participants…
Employee Ownership Video Collection Teaching Addendum
The Employee Ownership Video Collection Teaching Addendum presented by the Foundation for Enterprise Development is divided into four sections, Teaching in Entrepreneurship Programs, the History of Broad-Based Ownership, Innovation and High-Tech, and Money and People. This video outline is designed to explore the ways to incorporate employee ownership in your class curriculum, learn about the early beginnings of employee ownership and how it has evolved especially in the high-tech fields, and to discover the culture of participation embraced by employee-owned businesses.