2016 Employee Ownership Conference in Minneapolis This Spring

Representatives from employee-owned companies (and companies seeking to learn about employee ownership) from across the nation and around the world will gather April 12-14, 2016 in downtown Minneapolis for the 2016 Employee Ownership Conference, hosted by the National Center for Employee Ownership (NCEO). More than 1,500 people will attend the conference which will be held at the Minneapolis Convention Center, with four headquarter hotels.

The U.S. presently has close to 9,000 employee ownership companies who employ over 14 million people. These companies grow 2.5% per year faster than they would have without employee ownership, and provide employees with two to three times the total retirement assets of their counterparts who lack employee ownership. Companies choose employee ownership as a tax-favored means of business transition, as well as a way to engage employees. As employee ownership has grown, the number of conference attendees has also grown by 50% since 2011.

Dean Mead is proud to be sponsoring this conference. Additionally, Joseph “Jay” Van Heyde will be presenting on April 12, 2016 from 10:30 AM to 11:45 AM about “Warrants and Stock Appreciation Rights (SARs) offer viable ESOP finance and awards alternatives — especially for S Corporation ESOPs”. This session will introduce warrants and SARs, explore their uses and highlight the Federal tax, corporate law, valuation and fiduciary issues surrounding their use in ESOP transactions and by ongoing ESOP companies.

For more information and to register, go to the NCEO website (www.nceo.org) or call the NCEO at 510-208-1300. We urge interested companies to register soon, as this conference often sells out in advance!

Highlights of the conference include:

  • Morning Keynote Address on Wednesday, April 13 by Bo Burlingham, author and editor at large of Inc. Magazine and author of the business best sellers Small Giants and Exit Big.
  • Special Closing Address on Thursday, April 14 by Timothy Hauser, U.S. Dept. of Labor
  • Over 120 sessions in five learning tracks
  • Three half-day preconference sessions offered on the afternoon of Monday, April 11: Compensation Issues for Privately Held Companies, Building a Culture of Ownership in an Employee-Owned Company and Corporate Governance at ESOP Companies.
  • The Innovations in Ownership Award Ceremony at the opening lunch on Tuesday, April 12
  • Numerous opportunities to network, discuss, participate, learn, and share
  • Exhibit hall with a wide representation of firms doing business in the field

What past participants say about this conference:

“The NCEO community is encouraging, inspiring, and helpful. The sense of camaraderie at this event is wonderful.”

“We will continue to go to the NCEO conference as we always come away with ideas to implement at our company, and we see the conference as a great team-building experience…”

“The NCEO has routinely provided a great foundation for education about ESOPs. We have representatives attend every year and feel it to be an exceptional conference.”

“We are not yet an ESOP, and the event did exactly what we wanted it to do…make us feel comfortable taking the next step to become an employee-owned company!”

The NCEO (www.nceo.org) is a self-sustaining nonprofit membership organization that provides practical resources and objective, reliable information on ESOPs, equity compensation plans, and ownership culture. Learn more about employee ownership from the NCEO (www.nceo.org) or our informational Web site www.esopinfo.org.