Create Amazing

Turning Your Employees into Owners for Explosive Growth

By: Greg Graves

Narrated by: Rich Miller

Length: 6 hrs and 19 mins

Publisher's summary

There are more than 10,000,000 employee owners in America today. The results of employees owning a piece of the pie has been proven throughout American history, even before ESOPs became IRS law in 1974. Employees with even a small capital interest in their firms' successes are more likely to stay, have greater loyalty and pride, are willing to work hard, and make more suggestions for improvement.

Economic injustice caused by wealth disparity is quickly becoming the hottest debated topic in America. Employee ownership is not the only answer for economic justice, but it can be a critical puzzle piece for tens of millions of Americans where the current inherent disadvantage of circumstance stands in their way.

Create Amazing demonstrates how ownership can provide the ultimate competitive advantage to a growing company - and the nation. Greg Graves, who operated one of the most successful ESOPs in American history, shares: the history of employee ownership in America and the principles of its purpose; why employee ownership is a viable solution fiscally and futuristically; what an ESOP is, what it does, and what's happening in Washington, DC, to promote this model; how ESOPs work, and how they're structured legally, fiduciarily, and financially; and the impact of ESOPs on America and on employee owners personally.

©2021 Greg Graves (P)2021 Gildan Media

Great Read for Company Culture

Really enjoyed reading this book! As an EO from Burns & Mac it was great to hear the history and the path that an ESOP has set us on.

Turn your employees into employee owners

Excellent read on the clear benefits of Employee Ownership and how to realize it for your firm.

I got to the end and wanted more.

Great book

Had never heard anyone sell ESOP so well. I relisten often prior to interviewing candidates to bring to BMcD. Thank you.

This changes everything

If every legacy owner and most employees in the us read this book we could super charge a change to the way businesses value employees forever. This type of capitalism and individualism combine to build the most efficient corporate structure, something both Smith and Marx would celebrate. People first could mean company first. Satiating both Main Street and Wall Street.

Great read for business and political leaders alike

First off, for anyone considering or wanting to learn more about the power of an ESOP, this should be your first stop. Greg does a great job of moving quickly through the benefits, legal aspects, and financial benefits of an ESOP while not getting lost in the minutiae. Further, he lays out a compelling argument for why and how ESOPs can and should play a major role in future political solutions intended to drive income and wealth equality in our nation.

Beyond this, the book tells an inspiring story of Burns & McDonnell's remarkable ascension from a small Midwest engineering firm to a global design and construction leader. Also, while perhaps not intended to be a leadership book, it is chock-full of insightful leadership nuggets from the man who led much of that growth.

Overall, a great read for any current or aspiring business and/or political leader.

Employee Ownership in Action

If you want to develop a company that outperforms its competitors, read this book. If you want to develop a company that creates a more just economy, read this book. The author, Greg Graves, gets down to the nitty gritty of creating the secret sauce that makes employee-owned enterprises more successful than companies with other forms of ownership. He not only tells his own story, but it is well supported with references to body of research that supports his point of view. Read this book to learn how profits, people, and the planet can benefit from shared entrepreneurship.
Frank Shipper, editor and co-author of award-winning "Shared Entrepreneurship: A Path to Engaged Employee Ownership."

Burns & McDonnell's ESOP

There are definitely chapters with good information. Wish it had more info on forming and managing ESOPs and less on Burns & McDonnell and some political views. B&M sounds like a wonderful company with a great ESOP plan. The author shares a lot of good advise with his years of experience managing a large successful company.