MyPath, an employee-owned family of companies that provides comprehensive services to children and adults with physical and mental disabilities, has been named the ESOP Company of the Year by the Wisconsin chapter of The ESOP Association.
Based in Oconomowoc, WI MyPath has over 2,000 employee-owners serving Wisconsin and Indiana. They have been 100% employee-owned since 2016.
The employee-owners of MyPath provide specialized services and dignified care for those with disabilities.
The ESOP Association bestows its ESOP Company of the Year award based on a number of criteria, chief among them “clear communication with employees,” which is a fundamental aspect of a healthy employee ownership culture. That is an area where MyPath has clearly excelled. As reported in Greater Milwaukee Today, MyPath supported its nomination with examples like, “production of a video series to support co-owner understanding of how the ESOP benefits them,” and “implementation of an employee communications mobile app.”
The embrace of technology like a mobile app for employee communications is a clever way to keep employee-owners connected when they are often working far from any centralized office setting. MyPath offers in-home care, therapeutic day schools, residential homes, independent living communities, training centers, and more. Keeping employee-owners informed, engaged, and empowered across such a broad spectrum of settings is a challenge, but one that is well worth overcoming.
ESOPs offer substantial tax savings, as well as a powerful retirement benefit. A robust benefit package will always be an advantage for recruiting and retaining talent. But to unlock the full value of an ESOP, the employee-owners need to see their ESOP as more than a line on a benefits statement. They need to feel connected to the business’s direction and growth, and feel that the company’s success is their success. That’s when productivity starts to rise, and sales along with it.
When a company’s workforce is spread out—something many companies can relate to these days—finding a way to communicate with employees in a way that takes little effort or time out of their day is important. Doing it with a mobile app, like MyPath, is a smart solution that will only become more popular in the coming years.
From all of us here at The Menke Group, congratulations to MyPath on their ESOP Company of the Year award.
Contact the Menke Group to find out what an ESOP could mean for your business.
Menke & Associates, Inc. has helped over 3,500 companies successfully transition to employee ownership. Our holistic ESOP approach enables a positive outcome for the company, its employees and its shareholders. We believe ownership is powerful.
