Bret Keisling wraps up Employee Ownership Month by celebrating Henderson Engineers and Henderson Building Solutions and the ESOP Rap, a really fun rap video performed by Chief Legal Officer Tiffany Arnold. The Henderson companies, formed in 1970, became a 100% ESOP in 2021.
In addition to the ESOP Rap (embedded below), Bret briefly describes the company's history and growth, which is currently at approximately 900 employee owners, licensed in all 50 states as well as other areas, and operating out of 11 offices.
Listen to this episode on Soundcloud or subscribe on Google or Apple Podcasts.
The ESOP Podcast is licensed under a CC BY-NC-ND Creative Commons License.
Mini-cast 207 Transcript
[00:00:00] Bret Keisling: 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. Employee Ownership Month 2022 is coming to an end and we have thoroughly enjoyed seeing all of the great shares on social media from employee-owned companies joining in the celebration, whether it's internal celebrations of employee owners or shares about going out and doing deeds of service in the community, employee-owned companies have been inspiring us with all the different ways they celebrate EO.
[00:00:40] There's a really cool video that's posted on YouTube. I saw it shared on LinkedIn by our friend Tom Roback of Blue Ridge ESOP Associates, and the video is called the "ESOP Rap." We're going to include a link to the ESOP Rap in our show notes and I really hope you'll check it out. It's creative. It's fun. It shows the exuberance of employee ownership at Henderson Engineers and Henderson Building Solutions. A rap video about employee ownership - I love it!
[00:01:06] It was created by Henderson's chief legal officer, Tiffany Arnold, who comes across both in the video and on Henderson's leadership page as a really cool human being. In addition to her legal work for Henderson, she's a talented DJ, and she sews entire wardrobes for her children. From what I can tell on social media, Tiffany fits in really well with Henderson's vibe.
[00:01:28] I think the ESOP Rap is even cooler because Henderson's only been in the ESOP since 2021. It does, however, have a much longer and distinguished history and I want to share with you just a few of the highlights.
[00:01:40] Henderson Engineers was formed by Fran Henderson on March 16th, 1970, and even back then, he created an environment where people came first. Early on, Henderson made a name for themselves as fast and efficient, particularly in grocery and retail design. In 1989, they began work with a client that today remains their longest lasting relationship, and that's Walmart. So, chances are that you've seen Henderson Engineer's work, whether you realized it or not.
[00:02:09] We'll include a link to their website in our show notes. And I hope you'll visit and take a look at some of their projects. Certainly, they continue their emphasis in the retail sector, but they're also involved with venues, such as convention centers and stadiums, et cetera. And they have a strong presence in the health, community, and business sectors as well.
[00:02:28] This is a well-rounded firm that specializes in creating innovative designs that drive the client's business forward. In 2013, they started Henderson Building Solutions, who's experts bring hands-on experience to their roles with backgrounds is building inspectors, contractors, estimators, electricians, and more.
[00:02:47] Together Henderson Engineers and Henderson Building Solutions have more than 900 employees and licenses in all fifty states plus DC and the territories, et cetera. They currently operate eleven offices.
[00:03:00] From the culture, it's clear that even before employee ownership Henderson Engineer and Henderson Building Solutions already had a great culture and a great vibe. I think those type of companies that I expect will be enhanced by employee ownership, but they're starting off from a really great position already in terms of employee engagement and culture and it's just such a pleasure to see them in the ESOP space.
[00:03:22] I hope you'll go to our show notes and check out Henderson Engineers and Henderson Building Solutions, and especially check out the link to the ESOP Rap from Tiffany Arnold. It really is very well done and a lot of fun. Congratulations to Tiffany and thank you for creating this. And thanks to Henderson for sharing it with the world. I certainly hope you'll check it out.
[00:03:42] And finally, to the 900 employee owners at the two Henderson companies, a belated welcome to the EO/ESOP sandbox. We're glad you're here.
[00:03:51] With that we'll wrap up today's episode. Thank you so much for listening. This is Bret Keisling. Be well.
[00:03:57] Bitsy McCann: We'd love to hear from you. You can find us on Facebook at EO Podcast Network and on Twitter @ESOPPodcast. This podcast has been produced by Bret Keisling for the EO Podcast Network, production assistance by Victoria Huerta, original music composed by Max Keisling, branding and marketing by BitsyPlus Design, 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.