Employee Ownership: The Secret Ingredient for Building Lasting Businesses
Employee ownership strengthens companies while boosting local economies and creating generational wealth. Employee-owned businesses have proven to be more resilient, especially in times of crisis. Statistics show that companies with meaningful employee ownership exhibit stronger growth, productivity, profitability, and survival rates compared to their competitor
For example, California Solar Electric Company, a solar installation company that transitioned to employee ownership in 2019, managed to thrive during the COVID-19 pandemic despite challenging economic forces. Because the employees owned a stake in the company, they continued innovating and generating sales even when times were tough. Their shared sense of ownership kept the business afloat.
Cal Solar’s founder, Lars Ortegren, believes that "if everyone is working on building a business and putting energy into the company, it should be partially theirs." He credits Cal Solar’s cooperative model with fostering an environment where "everyone feels vested in the success of the business."
Photo Credit: California Solar Electric Company, employee-owned since 2019 with the support of Project Equity.
For business owners looking to strengthen their company, employee ownership offers many benefits. Transitioning a portion or all of the business to employees now boosts engagement, productivity, and resilience.
Embedding employee ownership into your culture today preserves what you've built, while readying the company to continue thriving for decades to come. Explore the power of employee ownership by taking these three steps:
Learn more about the three types of employee ownership — Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs), worker cooperatives and Employee Ownership Trusts (EOTs) — by visiting Project Equity’s website.
Download this Employee Ownership Workbook, developed by EO Equals, to understand if employee ownership is right for you.
Attend a free webinar to learn how employee ownership can help your business thrive.
