Carris ESOP Award

Carris Reels Named 2008 ESOP Company of the Year by The ESOP Association

May 13, 2008 (Washington, DC) – Carris Reels, a 100% employee owned company located in Rutland, Vermont, has been selected by The ESOP Association as the 2008 ESOP Company of the Year. The award was presented at the Association’s 31st Annual Conference in Washington, DC. 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.

Founded in 1951 by Henry Carris, and bought by his son, Bill Carris, in 1980, Carris Reels sells a full line of manufactured reel products for a wide variety of industries. Today, Carris Reels has about 550 employee owners and eight locations nation-wide. The company became 100% employee owned in January 2008.

One of the unique characteristics of Carris Reels is the company’s Steering Committee which goes beyond the basic functions of most ESOP committees and takes responsibility for allocations of benefits, quality of work-life issues, communications, training, and governance. The Committee meets twice a year to review financial information and hear operational updates from all departments.

The Committee is made up of both management and corporate employees who serve three year terms. In addition, the Committee keeps alive the vision of former owner Bill Carris who moved the company toward employee ownership in 1995. Mr. Carris’s Long Term Plan states that “organizations consist of three dimensions: spiritual, emotional, and physical.” The Committee has invested time to evolve all three at Carris Reels.

“Carris Reels is an example of the value and potential that employee ownership can bring to company,” said J. Michael Keeling, President of The ESOP Association. “The employee owners of Carris Reels strive to make their company stronger each day and it shows in the work they do and in the value they place on the individuals who make up their company.”

The core cause of The ESOP Association is the belief that employee ownership will improve American competitiveness, increase productivity through greater employee participation, and strengthen our free enterprise economy.

The ESOP Association works to promote the best and brightest throughout the ESOP community. Each year the Association names an ESOP Company of the Year and an Employee Owner of the Year as well as presents awards to Chapters that have done extraordinary work throughout the year.