Bret Keisling discusses why October’s Employee Ownership Month (EOM) is his favorite time of year, an intriguing campaign tease by the Employee Ownership Foundation, the NCEO’s decision to make the Fall ESOP Forum virtual only, and why anti-mask is anti-employee.
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Mini-cast 146 Transcript
Bret Keisling: [00:00:00] Welcome to the ESOP Mini-cast. Thank you so much for listening. My name is Bret Keisling, and as it says on my business cards, I'm a passionate advocate for employee ownership. As I was preparing to record this episode on Friday, August 6th, two items crossed my social media feeds. One of them got me really excited and the other one bummed me out just a touch.
[00:00:31] First, the Employee Ownership Foundation, EOF, just started teasing a campaign about Employee Ownership Month which will be held this October, just as it is every October. At the moment all I've seen on social media posts is a portion of a graphic and the hashtag #EOM2021. Which if you're in employee ownership, you already recognize EOM as Employee Ownership Month. So I can't tell you what the EOF has planned for Employee Ownership Month, but if they're already teasing it in early August, I'm pretty sure that when it rolls out it'll be exciting.
[00:01:09] I'm also excited because, as I've said with all sincerity on the podcast, October and Employee Ownership Month has become my favorite time of the year. We see so many great companies and organizations promoting educational activities, team training, the good deeds that EO companies perform in their own communities, and most importantly, to me, it's a chance for EO companies and all of us to celebrate employee owners. It's a great reminder for advocates like me, ESOP and worker co-op practitioners, and even the EO organizations themselves, that every single thing we do is actually about the employee owners and not about ourselves. So I'm looking forward to seeing what the EOF has planned and I'm really looking forward to Employee Ownership Month.
[00:01:57] Less happy was the news that the NCEO Fall ESOP Forum to be held September 22nd through the 24th has become an online event only. As I've shared on the podcast, I was registered to attend in person and had actually planned a four-week drive across the United States to and from the Forum which was to be my first major trip since COVID began.
[00:02:20] So I'm a little sad, but there are two things about the announcement that made me happy. First, the NCEO's annual national conference this past spring was online only and NCEO really knows how to do an online event. Of course there were, and probably will be, minor technology glitches, but I loved being surrounded even virtually by my EO colleagues. With the amazing content they've announced, the Fall ESOP Forum will be excellent.
[00:02:49] Second. I'm grateful that the decision to go virtual was made in early August so that there wasn't any uncertainty in the next four to six weeks. Like many people I've been concerned that the United States is trending in the wrong direction and I'm afraid that we'll see a number of events remain virtual this fall. So, I'm going to renew a theme I've made throughout the first 12 months of the pandemic: anti-mask is anti-employee. I don't care who you voted for. I don't care if you got the vaccine or not. And I don't care how people feel visiting a business or restaurant and being required to wear a mask. If a business has posted a sign requiring masks, wear a mask or you are anti-employee. And if you're in the EO space, and you stake out a personal position that is anti-employee, then you certainly are less likely to grasp the importance of the work that's so many of us are doing that has nothing to do with masks whatsoever.
[00:03:49] With that I'll wrap up today's episode. I'm excited for Employee Ownership Month and I can't wait to see what the Employee Ownership Foundation has in store for us.
[00:03:57] And I hope to see you virtually at the NCEO Fall ESOP Forum. By the way, when you register, use the discount code EOPod25, that's capital E, capital O, capital P, small od 25, and receive a $25 discount off your registration.
[00:04:17] Take care of yourself and those around you and thank you so much for listening. This is Bret Keisling. Be well.
Bitsy McCann: [00:04:25] We'd love to hear from you! To contact us, find us on Facebook at KEISOP, LLC and on Twitter @ESOPPodcast. To reach Bret, with one "T", email Bret@KEISOP.com, on LinkedIn at Bret Keisling, and most actively on Twitter at @EO_Bret. Again, that's one "T". This podcast has been produced by The KEISOP Group, technical assistance provided by Third Circle, Inc. and BitsyPlus Design. Original music composed by Max Keisling, archival podcast material edited and produced by Brian Keisling, and I'm Bitsy McCann.
Standard Disclaimer: The views expressed herein are my own and don't represent those of my own firms or the organizations to which I belong. Nothing in the podcast should be construed as guidance or advice of any kind in any field and the fact that I mentioned an organizational website or an advocate or a company on a podcast does not reflect an endorsement, but if you've heard your name or your group's name mentioned on this podcast, I'd love to have you come on and talk about it yourself.
A note on the transcript: This transcript was produced by Descript, an automated transcription service. While it has been reviewed by The ESOP Podcast, we can not guarantee the accuracy of the transcription. Please refer to the original audio when citing sources.
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