CARRIS REELS
Year Founded: 1951
Year(s) of Employee Ownership Implementation: 100% Employee Owned since 2008
Headquartered in: Proctor, VT
Additional Offices in: West Rutland VT, Center Rutland VT
Number of Employees: 750
Line of Business: Wood, metal, recycled reel production
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Carris Reels was founded in Rutland, Vermont in 1951 by Henry Carris. This business was Henry’s life’s work which he built from the ground up during the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s on a foundation of operational excellence.
Henry’s son, Bill Carris, stepped in to further develop Carris Reels into a thriving manufacturing company in the 1980’s. In early 2014, Dave Ferraro succeeded Mike Curran as President. Alberto Aguilar has succeeded Dave Ferraro as president on Jan 1, 2021.
Carris Reels is a company of employee owners. 100% of the company’s stock is held in an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP). They’ve developed a culture in which broad based employee-ownership is assumed to be normal, rather than extraordinary. Shared ownership requires a unique balance of cooperation, understanding and accountability.
They say, “We recognize that there is a spiritual component to our organization in addition to an emotional element. Our employees were hardworking and dedicated long before the company became employee-owned.
We “look out for each other,” which has dramatically improved our safety performance, and the Golden Rule serves as our code of conduct. Many long-term employees will tell you that they have stayed at Carris Reels so long because they “belong here.
