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registration & continental breakfast (7:30 - 8:30)
morning plenary (8:30 - 9:30)
"Breakthrough Moments: Critical Events that Made Employee
Ownership Work"
Panel: Clay Adams, Resource Systems Group; Jim Feinson, Gardener’s Supply Company; Mike Sessions, Pizzagalli Construction Company; Steve Voigt, King Arthur Flour Company
Top leaders of some of Vermont's best-known employee-owned companies will describe events that helped make employee ownership more meaningful and effective.
workshops, session a (9:45 - 11:00)
| Workshop Interest Area Legend | |
| Newcomers | Anyone new to employee ownership |
| ESOP EE | Those already working in an employee-owned company |
| ESOP L | Leaders of employee-owned companies |
| Co-op | Members of existing worker cooperatives or those interested in becoming one |
1. Introduction to Employee Ownership
Steve Magowan, Steiker, Fischer, Edwards & Greenapple; Newell Lessell, The ICA Group
This is the place to start if you want to learn the basics about employee ownership: the reasons for considering it, the basic structures, and the ways to implement it. You’ll learn about the two most common forms of employee ownership – Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs) and worker cooperatives – and discover which structure might work best for your company.
NEWCOMERS
2. Hot Topics for ESOPs
Barbara Clough, Blue Ridge ESOP Associates; Chuck Coyne, Empire Valuation Consultants; Bob Massengill, SES Advisors; Joe Marx, Principal Financial Group
Come hear a panel of experts discuss what they consider to be the most important technical issues currently facing leaders in ESOP companies. Among the contenders: What’s the new thinking on how the repurchase obligation should affect annual valuations? How should you respond to purchase offers? What’s the latest from the IRS on plan document issues such as reshuffling and diversification?
NEWCOMERS, ESOP EE, ESOP L
3. Governance in Worker Co-ops: A Comparison of Approaches
Erbin Crowell, Cooperative Fund of New England; Aaron Dawson, Equal Exchange; Adam Trott, Collective Copies
The worker cooperative structure provides for “one-person, one-vote” governance on shareholder-level decisions, such as electing the board of directors. Beyond that, a variety of governance and operational structures are possible, from “flat” structures, in which most decision-making is shared, to more hierarchical structures, where authority over many day-to-day decisions is delegated to department leaders or committees. We will hear about a range of options, and learn about practices in two worker co-ops.
NEWCOMERS, CO-OP
4. Best Leadership Practices: Learning from the Experienced
Clay Adams, Resource Systems Group; Jim Feinson, Gardener’s Supply Company; Mike Sessions, Pizzagalli Construction Company; Steve Voigt, King Arthur Flour Company; Ginny Vanderslice, Praxis Consulting Group (moderator)
A panel of top leaders from employee-owned companies will share their reflections on the leadership practices that they each have found to be the most effective in engaging and motivating their employee owners in a way that has led to their company’s success. In addition, they will discuss what they learned along the way and how they changed as a result.
NEWCOMERS, ESOP EE, ESOP L
5. How an ESOP Works: An Employee’s Eye View
Alex Moss, Praxis Consulting Group
This session uses a highly interactive role play format, with cash, stock, and other props, to illustrate how an ESOP works in simple and entertaining terms. We will cover why ESOPs are set up, how the ESOP buys stock and pays for it, the basic account rules (eligibility, contributions & allocations, vesting, and distributions), how the stock value is determined, and how employees' day to day actions drive growth, profits, and stock value, with significant time for attendees questions throughout.
ESOP EE, ESOP L
workshops, session b (11:15 - 12:30)
6. Forming and Operating a Worker Cooperative
Erbin Crowell; Newell Lessell, The ICA Group
This session will provide a step-by-step roadmap for converting an established company into a worker cooperative or creating one from scratch. We’ll focus on the nuts and bolts of setting up a worker cooperative and making it run smoothly over time. Governance roles, sharing of profits and day-to-day operations will be discussed.
NEWCOMERS, CO-OP
7. Transitioning to an ESOP
Steve Magowan; Giles Willey, Vermont Systems
Learn the steps involved in creating an Employee Stock Ownership Plan, with examples drawn from one company’s experience. Attendees will leave with a roadmap for creating, funding and managing an ESOP at their company, and a list of ways to involve employees from early-on in the process.
NEWCOMERS
8. Management Succession and Leadership Development in an ESOP
Ginny Vanderslice; Suzanne McDowell, King Arthur Flour Company; Kelly Mousley, King Arthur Flour Company
A company’s stability over time depends to a great degree on the depth of leadership that exists within the company. Although sometimes seeking managers from outside the company makes sense, it is important to develop a cadre of potential leaders and managers within the company who will be committed to the company’s core values and who will know both the business and the culture. This session will present some best practices in designing leadership development programs, examples of one such program in an ESOP company, and alternative leadership development models that other ESOP companies have implemented.
NEWCOMERS, ESOP L
9. Creating Effective ESOP Committees
Alex Moss; John Dionne, Windmill International; Carolyn Maloney, Hypertherm
The work of helping employees understand their ESOP and “think like owners” should begin early, and should be re-energized often. This session will describe how to start and sustain effective ESOP committees that provide informative and inspiring communications to employees. Whether your company already has a committee in place or is just getting started, this session will help you get the most out of your committee. NEWCOMERS, ESOP EE, ESOP L
10. Leveraging Ownership Culture
Chris Mackin, Ownership Associates; Kathy Brytowski, Carris Reels; Aaron Dawson, Equal Exchange
Employee ownership alone does not necessarily lead to improvements in company performance. The most successful companies are those that combine employee ownership with participation. Learn in this session about the ingredients that make a high-performance ownership culture in which employees are engaged and committed.
NEWCOMERS, ESOP EE, ESOP L, CO-OP
lunch (12:30 - 1:45)
workshops, session c (1:45 - 3:00)
11. Basics of Business Valuation
Chuck Coyne
A third-party appraisal of a company’s worth is advisable for most ownership transitions. For ESOPs, one is required annually. This workshop will provide an introduction to the criteria used to determine the value of any business. It will also cover special considerations for ESOP valuations.
NEWCOMERS, ESOP EE, ESOP L
12. Building the Movement: New Initiatives to Grow Employee Ownership
Don Jamison, VEOC, moderator; Phil Fiermonte, Office of U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders; Chris Mackin, Ownership Associates; Adam Trott, Valley Alliance of Worker Cooperatives and Cooperative Capital Fund
Employee ownership can help create a more stable, productive and equitable economy by preserving local ownership and sharing the wealth companies create with all those who help produce it. This panel will share news of new federal legislation and innovative efforts by a variety of organizations, all aimed at creating more – and stronger – employee-owned companies.
ALL
13. Lessons Learned from Recent ESOP Transactions
Joe Marx, moderator; Clay Adams; Rick Gile, Kalow Technologies; Cindy Turcot, Gardener’s Supply Company
Hear from those involved in recent ESOP transactions about what went well and not so well. How did the process differ from what they’d expected? Did they have adequate counsel and advice? What would they have done differently?
NEWCOMERS, ESOP L
14. What ESOPs and Co-ops Can Learn from Each Other
Steve Magowan; Alex Moss
While ESOPs and worker co-ops may sometimes seem to be distant cousins, they both represent forms of a new capitalism and have much to teach each other. In this session, we will take a look at the underlying principles of both ESOPs and co-ops and consider possibilities for cross-fertilization of ideas for organizational development, corporate governance, financing buy-outs of retirees and other core employee ownership issues.
ALL
15. Fifty Ways to Improve ESOP Communications
Merryn Rutledge, moderator; John Dionne, Windmill International; Erich Finley, Birdseye Building; Dave Fitz-Gerald, Carris Reels; Jason Mazur, Gardener's Supply Co.
In this fast-paced session, representatives of ESOP companies known for the quality of their communications will share their best ideas for educating and engaging employees. Attendees will come away with several ideas to try out in their workplaces.
NEWCOMERS, ESOP EE, ESOP L
workshops, session d (3:15 - 4:30)
16. Financing Employee Ownership
Bob Massengill
What are banks looking for these days, and what terms are they typically offering? How can seller financed transactions be structured to give both flexibility to the company and a fair return to the seller? Are there alternative funding sources that can play a role in a deal? This session will give an overview of the range of possibilities for financing transactions involving ESOPs and other forms of employee ownership.
NEWCOMERS, ESOP L
17. Consensus Decision-Making
Merryn Rutledge; Adam Trott
When done right, consensus can be an excellent decision-making tool for employee-owned companies. Commonly viewed as appropriate only for very small companies, consensus can work in larger companies when decisions are delegated to committees. This session will present the basics of working by consensus, and you’ll hear from a business that has been successfully using consensus for many years.
ALL
18. Marketing Employee Ownership
Susan Reid, King Arthur Flour Company, moderator; Kate Guerrina, Chroma Technology; Chris Quinn, Red House Building
Once you’re an employee-owned company, how do you draw on that fact to attract new customers and new employees? In this session, a panel of experienced employee owners will explore how to use employee ownership as a marketing tool, both internally and externally. Attendees will leave with an arsenal of ideas that can help them capitalize on employee ownership.
ALL
19. Sustaining your Culture Over Time as a Competitive Strategy
Ginny Vanderslice; Carolyn Maloney
Why all the talk about core values and culture? How do values and culture connect to a company’s ability to achieve its business goals? How do you decide which values are your company’s core values and how do you get employee owners to commit to them?
ESOP EE, ESOP L
ice cream reception (4:30 - 5:00)