A Multi-Million Dollar Company, Gifted to Its Employees

Here's a succession twist: After more than three decades of building and running Bob's Red Mill foods, founder Bob Moore is actually giving away the company to his more than 200 employees.

As reported by the Oregonian, Moore announced the plan at an 81st birthday party thrown for him by his team. He said that he had been thinking about succession for almost a decade, and that despite numerous acquisition offers, he knew in his heart he wanted to keep his employees in charge.

The employees will own the company through an Employee Stock Ownership Plan, a structure by which a company places stock in a retirement account to be held in trust for the employees. Anyone with more than three years' working full time at the company is already fully vested. Under the system, vested employees are treated just like owners of any other stock, and are sent annual reports and updates about the health of the company. Whenever they leave the company, they cash out and are given whatever money that's due.

One of the striking things about Moore's move is that we're not talking about a tiny little enterprise here. In fact, one business magazine estimated the company had $24 million in revenue in 2004 -- and every year since then, the company's reported 20-30% growth. Bob's Red Mill products are distributed throughout the world.

I love this news. Not because I think every company should hand over ownership to its employees, but because I think it's one tremendous example of the way that some entrepreneurs are reexamining business's long-term goals. Sure, it's about turning a profit. But how much, for whom, and how are all questions that are increasingly up for debate. That's a good thing -- and I'd go further to argue that the search for new answers is the only thing that will successfully shift our economy in the ways that are so sorely needed.

Photo Credit: sarniebill1