The 23rd of June 2023 is the annual Employee Ownership Day (EO Day). This is a time for employee-owned businesses – like Rubric – to look how employee ownership is working for our company and spread the word to other companies.
Here at Rubric, we moved to employee ownership back in April 2022. And, since then, we haven't looked back! The move has been exciting and beneficial for our employees, suppliers, and clients.
The theme for EO Day 2023 is #TheEOeffect. This aims to raise further awareness of employee ownership to accelerate the growth of this already flourishing sector.
Employee ownership can be a force for good, particularly at a time where many businesses are affected by challenges like the increased cost of living, the fallout from the 2020 global pandemic, and climate issues.
Here's how you can benefit by celebrating EO Day 2023 with us…
Celebrating employee ownership: the benefits of our transition to Rubric EOT
We transitioned our company to employee ownership just over a year ago. This meant that the co-founders (Françoise and Ian Henderson) sold all their shares into an employee trust (Rubric EOT), handing control of the company over to the employees.
We focused on benefits of the move for our clients, employees, and partners. The new structure would give clients the confidence of consistently high level of service long into the future, while strengthening the long-term relationships between our suppliers and employees.
Irene De Pedro, Employee Representative on the Rubric EOT Board, said in a recent discussion:
"Since moving to employee ownership, there is definitely a sense of belonging. We already had a great sense of community and camaraderie, but the collective responsibility of bringing success to the company has also given us a sense that each of us plays an important role. We have a say."
As we celebrate our second EO Day, we are delighted to continue to grow Rubric and generate profits. This month we have given our second tax free profit share bonus to the team which everyone has appreciated.
Introducing the 11th Annual Employee Ownership Day
The 11th Annual EO Day, on 23rd June 2023 marks over a decade of growth in the employee ownership sector.
The day serves as an opportunity for both companies and individuals to come together to celebrate and recognize the benefits of employee ownership. It is hosted by the Employee Ownership Association (EOA) which has been extremely helpful during our move to this new ownership structure.
Opportunities to spread the word about EO Day 2023 include spreading the word about how employee ownership has benefited your company – as we are doing now – connecting with other employee-owned companies, and finding fun ways to raise awareness of the #TheEOeffect.
5 ways Rubric is thriving since becoming an employee-owned company
Over the last year or so, we have made employee ownership a core part of how we operate at Rubric.
Here are just 5 of the many ways we are thriving since we made the move:
- Increased employee engagement — Being an employee-owned company gives employees more opportunities to feel engaged. This increased engagement has led to a stronger commitment and ownership of Rubric's goals, such as the profit share bonus which gives everyone a tangible marker of their co-ownership of Rubric.
- Continuity of operations — One of our goals when adopting employee ownership was to maintain continuity for our clients. After just a year, the feedback we have had from clients has been extremely encouraging.
- Sense of collective responsibility — Everyone in the team has a greater sense of ownership and responsibility for our strategic direction of the company.
- Enhanced client relationships — Many of our clients have also been very interested in hearing about employee ownership and see how it has affected our operations.
- Commitment to continuous improvement — We have always had a strong culture of continuous improvement here at Rubric. Employee ownership has strengthened that culture even further by giving everyone a say.
Why we want to create awareness for employee-owned business
One of the main challenges of moving to employee ownership is helping others to understand what the model means and how it works.
This is where the community of fellow employee owned businesses comes into play. Together, we can support each other to become stronger employee owned businesses that can thrive on the global stage.
At Rubric, we are dedicated to connecting with fellow employee-owned companies and creating more awareness of employee ownership. Last year, we attended the EOA's Employee-Ownership Conference where we created relationships between companies and learned strategies to improve our own business.
Rubric EOT is a living example of the potential of employee ownership. We want others to see similar benefits for their business.
Thinking of joining the movement of employee ownership?
If you are thinking of moving your company to an employee-owned model, this EO Day is a great opportunity to learn about it.
Where should you start? A good place is the EO Day Website where you can find ways to get involved with employee ownership right not.
Every journey to employee ownership starts by learning about the model and listening to companies that have already made the move.
During this process, keep your entire team informed and engaged throughout. Create a culture of ownership and employee engagement by involving people in this early process of learning about employee ownership.
Unlock the power of employee ownership - Celebrate #TheEOeffect to see your business thrive
We hope you are also inspired to join the movement towards more employee ownership. This 23rd of June 2023, we are joining an entire community of companies by sharing how we are benefiting from moving to employee ownership.
We've seen the positive impact of employee ownership first hand. Follow the hashtag #TheEOeffect to see how companies just like yours are increasing engagement and setting up for long-term business continuity with employee ownership.