3 Reasons to Work FOR an ESOP & 3 Reasons to Work WITH One

C.O.nxt is many things. We are a full-service communications agency specializing in food and agriculture since 1992. We are a collective of talented farm kids and foodies always in search of what’s possible for our clients. And we have been a 100% employee-owned company since 2018.

Being an employee-owned company has many perks, both for our employee owners and our clients. With October being National ESOP Month, we wanted to share a few reasons why it’s better to work FOR an ESOP, as well as why it is great to work WITH an ESOP.

Reasons to work FOR an ESOP

1. Ownership mentality

   When everyone is an owner, everyone has a stake in the success of the company. That changes how you show up every day. Instead of simply clocking in and out, employee owners naturally look for ways to improve processes, strengthen relationships and create better outcomes.

   We call it an ownership mentality — the belief that each decision, interaction and innovation contributes directly to the success of the business. Ideas can come from any person in any department, and we encourage employees to come forward and share those ideas if they can help. It’s a mindset that fosters accountability, collaboration and pride in everything we do.

2. Profit sharing

   ESOP stands for Employee Stock Ownership Plan, which is essentially a second retirement plan that doesn’t require employees to contribute. Every year, an independent auditor reviews the company’s performance, considering variables like incomes, expenses and debt, to determine the company’s valuation and how many shares will be distributed. If the company does well, so do the employee owners because the value of those shares increases with the success of the company.

   At C.O.nxt, we’re 100% employee-owned, so the employee owners receive all the value they helped produce. Then, after a specific number of years and they are fully vested, those shares become a meaningful nest egg that grows with you until you choose to leave the company or retire.

3. Greater worker satisfaction

   According to The ESOP Association, the largest employee ownership advocacy organization in the world, employees at an employee-owned company report higher job satisfaction, which motivates employees to stay longer. That makes sense because when you feel like your work directly impacts the success of the company, and you get a share in that success, you are more likely to put your best work forward and feel greater satisfaction.

   At C.O.nxt, we have a team of employee owners motivated by that shared purpose. Our employee owners want to see the company succeed, so they collaborate, challenge each other, find unique solutions and produce outstanding work. It’s like working on a big group project where everyone pulls their weight, but when the project is done, we get to do it all again on the next one.

Reasons to work WITH one

1. Employee engagement

   Greater job satisfaction means people are likely to stay longer, but it also means greater employee engagement. The ESOP Association reports that employees in ESOPs are more engaged in their jobs because their work has a direct correlation with the success of the company.

   Since the success of our agency lies in the success of our clients, having actively engaged employees is instrumental in bringing new, unique and creative ideas to the table to help them achieve their goals. Another way to describe engagement is passion, and this passion manifests in many ways, such as better work, proactive problem solving, more responsive service, deeper commitment and, ultimately, greater client satisfaction.

2. True partnership

   When you work with an ESOP, you may notice an extra level of care and consideration you haven’t seen before. That’s because having an ownership mentality isn’t just internal. It changes how we show up in every partnership. When you work with us, you work with a collective of owners who are as invested in the success of your business as you are.

   This means you get all the good things that come with that level of care – great creative, reliable service, honest budget management and candid feedback. It also means we may not always agree at times, but that’s what happens when you work with people who truly care. We recognize the value in bringing in different perspectives because good ideas can come from anywhere, and the great ones come when we work together to bring them across the finish line.

3. Spark

   At the end of the day, our goal is to help our clients succeed. We do this by treating our clients like our ESOP, because when they win, we all win. We are invested in their growth and constantly thinking of new ways to help them achieve their goals. We call this “Spark,” and it is our commitment to our clients to always stay curious, ask, “What if?” and challenge ourselves to be bolder.

   This shows up in big ways – like taking new research and blowing it out into a full campaign – and in smaller, everyday moments, like finding a smarter way to tell a story, streamline a process or stretch a budget. Spark is about lighting the fire that moves ideas forward. It’s our way of ensuring that our clients don’t just meet expectations — they exceed them.

National ESOP Month may be once a year, but we get to celebrate the benefits of being employee-owned and the people who make it all happen every day. Are you wondering what a partnership with C.O.nxt could look like? Click here to get started today.