BL Companies, an employee-owned, multi-disciplinary architecture, engineering, environmental and land surveying firm was recently named the 2016 recipient of the Annual Award for Communications Excellence (AACE) in the Total Communications Category by The ESOP Association. The award recognizes excellence in a total communications program. Winners are presented in two subcategories: companies with 250 employees or fewer, and those with more than 250 employees. BL Companies won the award in the smaller company category.
The AACE Awards are sponsored each year by The ESOP Association to recognize the outstanding communications and educational programs of its members. The awards are presented each May at the Association’s Annual Conference in Washington, DC to companies that have excelled in communicating the ESOP (employee stock ownership plan) and its meaning to the company’s employees.
“We are honored to have been selected as a 2016 AACE Award winner by The ESOP Association,” commented Heather Halotek, Director of Marketing & Corporate Communications. “It is no secret that we are proud to be an ESOP company and strongly believe in the power of employee ownership and share that belief through our communication efforts.”
The judges were impressed with BL Companies’ comprehensive, prominent messaging about ESOPs. BL Companies offers a strong orientation for new employee owners, explaining the benefits of joining the firm and of being an employee owner. The Company sponsored special events each day of Employee Ownership Month, which takes place in October, and provides strong communications, including a colorful newsletter, to employee owners.
AACE Award winners are chosen by a panel of five judges made up of both management and non-management employee owners, each of whom has demonstrated active experience and interest in the field of ESOPs and employee ownership communications. Awards are based on: overall quality and quantity of employee owner education, contributions of employee owners, integration of the ESOP into company culture, frequency of ownership communications, involvement and/or response of employee owners, encouragement of ownership attitudes, clear explanations, creative ideas, graphic design, and technical quality. BL Companies was recognized for this accomplishment at the Annual ESOP Association Conference held in Washington, DC in May.
The ESOP Association is the national trade association for companies with employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) and the leading voice in America for employee ownership. The core belief of The ESOP Association is that employee ownership will improve American competitiveness, increase productivity through greater employee participation, and strengthen our free enterprise economy. More information: website- www.esopassociation.org and blog – www.esopassociationblog.org.