ESOP Association Blog
Employee Ownership Month is Here. How Is Your ESOP Getting Into the Spirit?
For the last few years, there has been a steady increase in momentum for Employee Ownership Month at ESOPs across the country. Every October, my social media feeds are filled with ESOPs finding new and creative ways to celebrate Employee Ownership Month and proudly display to the world what it means to be an employee-owned company.
EOM celebrations take many forms and can include both internal activities that promote a vibrant and unified ownership culture, as well as external-facing activities that highlight ESOPs’ many contributions to the communities in which we live and work. If your ESOP is still looking for EOM activities, The ESOP Association has several dedicated resources to help, and it’s not too late to get started. Please visit The HUB for a resource library and join the conversation on the EOM discussion board, where ESOPs share their best thoughts and ideas.
Many ESOPs also participate in ESOPATHON, the Employee Ownership Foundation’s annual fundraising effort that coincides with Employee Ownership Month. ESOPATHON is a fun way to embrace the spirit of EOM while also contributing to a great cause: helping more individuals become employee owners. ESOPATHON contributions go directly towards the Foundation’s vital activities: supporting academic research on the societal benefits of employee ownership; funding educational programs like the ESOP Employee Accelerator (for employees) and Leading In an Ownership Setting (for CEOs to continue their ESOP education); and most recently the Trustee Scholars program, which provides college scholarships for children of employee owners. Participation in ESOPATHON is easy, just visit the website to learn more and get started.
This year, the Foundation and The ESOP Association are offering yet another way for ESOPs to show their support for employee ownership while also proudly broadcasting their status to the world. For Employee Ownership Month, we have launched the first ever national advertising campaign to promote employee ownership throughout America, and are inviting ESOPs to take part.
We are purchasing full-page advertisements in more than 20 leading national and regional publications spanning all regions of the U.S. For a fraction of the cost of buying an ad on your own, your ESOP can be featured with just a small contribution. Publications include the Los Angeles Times, Denver Post, Dallas Morning News, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Columbus Dispatch, Orlando Sentinel, Philadelphia Inquirer, and the Boston Globe.
We have selected regions with high concentrations of ESOPs and newspapers with some of the greatest influence and readership throughout America. Each ESOP that participates will have their company’s logo and website prominently featured in the ads.
In addition, every ESOP that joins our regional campaign will also be included in a full-page ad in the Washington Post. For one contribution, your company can be featured in both a high-value publication in your area as well as one of the most influential and widely read newspapers by policymakers, influencers, and decision makers.
We are very excited about this opportunity to promote employee ownership while enhancing the employee-owned branding and image of our members, and I hope your ESOP will take advantage. To participate, you can visit the TEA Store on our website, or contact Leandra Wilder at lwilder@esopassociation.org. The deadline to be included in our national advertising campaign is October 15.
I hope you and your ESOP enjoy a fun and productive Employee Ownership Month, and I hope to see you in Las Vegas for Employee Owned 2024 in November.