NMC & CTCEO discuss ESOPs

Naval & Maritime Consortium (NMC) and the Connecticut Center for Employee Ownership (CTCEO) discuss Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs)

Thames River Working Group | July 21, 2023

The Naval & Maritime Consortium (NMC) and Connecticut Center for Employee Ownership (CTCEO) bring you a special presentation on Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs) and employee ownership.

Every July, the NMC partners with a special guest for the Thames River Working Group meeting. In lieu of our usual short presentation and open-floor format style meeting, we give this guest the full hour to present about their topic and educate our community about an important business topic.

This year, we were excited to partner with Amy Huot - Executive Director of the CT Center for Employee Ownership, and Steve Storkan - Executive Director of the Employee Ownership Expansion Network to address the growing retirement trend among small business owners as well as the rising employee dissatisfaction that causes employees to move from one manufacturer to another. While other presenters are addressing things like quiet quitting and looking at changing the culture through increased employee activities and fringe benefits such as remote work or four-day workweeks, we'd like to take a look at it from the perspective of succession planning and benefits consideration by discussing the Employee Stock Ownership Plan as a retirement plan option that can increase the value employees feel when they come to work each day.

While we address this presentation from a CT manufacturing point of view, Amy and Steve interview Jill Dinsmore and Matt Duchesne of employee-owned New Hampshire contract manufacturer Cirtronics. EVERY business owner or employee within a company experiencing some growing pains and looking for new ways to change the culture and bring new levels of employee engagement and long-term contentment into the mix will learn something as they listen to the conversation and presentation. The EOX network, which oversees the Centers for Employee Ownership in each state, spans the United States and can help any business in any state.

Enjoy this next hour as we listen in on Amy Huot and Steve Storken discussing ESOPs by having a chat with Jill Dinsmore and Matt Duchesne of Cirtronics and then sharing some stats that show what an important discussion this is during these uncertain times. Hear what it's like from the Controller's eyes and one of their long-time shipping employees' eyes, as Matt was there prior to the company transitioning to an ESOP.

We bring you both views so you can hear how the transition to an ESOP plan back in 2002 came to be and how Jill and Matt feel about working at an employee-owned company with a strong family-like culture making a difference in their company and in their employees lives post-retirement thanks to the plan. You will learn how to approach your employees if you are a business owner and how to approach your leadership team to begin these discussions if you are an employee. Whatever seat you hold within your company, you will walk away with an understanding of how employee stock ownership plans can benefit your company and increase employee satisfaction and tenure.

If you have questions after the presentation, learn more about CT CEO by visiting https://ctceo.org/ or contact Steve Storkan, Executive Director Employee Ownership Expansion Network, at 651.319.1874 or sstorkan@eoxnetwork.org. You can also find helpful articles and information from the CTCEO by following them on LinkedIn (@CTCEO) and Twitter (@CT_ESOP). You can learn more about the EOX Network at www.eoxnetwork.org.

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The Naval & Maritime Consortium (NMC) is an active network of member companies, community partners, and OEMs that collectively addresses challenges, shares solutions, and collaborates to develop opportunities within the growing Blue Tech industrial sector. Our programs and goals focus on Naval submarine shipbuilding, undersea technology, submersibles, and offshore wind supply chains within New England and beyond. To learn more about us and our member benefits, visit https://www.nmconsortium.com/join-the....Placeholder Paragraph Box