By Ron Johnson, Haldeman Homme
In the 1950s, Haldeman Homme launched the first iteration of its profit-sharing program and over the years our employee-based focus has continued to evolve. In 1987, we introduced our employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) and we’ve been one-hundred percent employee-owned ever since.
As we don’t manufacture products or own any intellectual property, our people are the secret to our success. We believe our ESOP is one of the biggest advantages we have in recruiting and retaining talented, hardworking employees. It provides our staff members with more insight into how we run our company leading to more passionate and engaged employees. HHI is very collaborative in our management; we seek and deploy our employee’s feedback and ideas in making improvements to our business. In 2017 our employee voluntary turnover rate was under 3%.
Our ESOP also allows us to focus on long-term goals. When you look at the mentality of a one-hundred percent employee-owned company, there are limited benefits to someone who only stays for a couple years. The benefit comes after twenty to thirty years. As a result, we invest in employee training and development. In fact, this year we started a leadership development program called the Ascent Academy to help our employees strengthen the skills necessary for a long career.
When we say long-term focus, we mean long-term. In 1998, one of our founders Jack Homme along with his wife Dorothy started the Homme Education Foundation which provides scholarship money to subsidize the costs of post-secondary education for the children and grandchildren of our employees.
In 2017, Haldeman Homme was named one of the nation’s “Best and Brightest Companies to Work For” by the National Association for Business Resources. This award is unique in that it’s based on employee survey feedback. It feels good to know that our employees appreciate us as much as we appreciate them.
Since 1924, Haldeman Homme, Inc. has been a trusted resource for design, installation, project management, and product repair services. It is based out of Minneapolis, MN and has locations around the country.
Ron Johnson is the President of Haldeman Homme.