Now he’s an owner

Then, working as a garbage collector. Now, a part owner of a consulting company.

In 2017, WP had just graduated from a University in Canada with a degree in environmental science. After taking a break for a couple months in the summer, to help with his job search he did some preparation that included performing a skill assessment, as well as reviewing his experiences and considering his interests. One of the things this process highlighted for WP was his desire and fit for being a consultant. This kind of work resonated strongly in his heart and he began to seek out this kind of job.

“I applied to various companies, many of which had job postings for junior environmental consultants, but I didn’t hear back from anyone,” says WP.

As the fall season was beginning, he conceded that a change was needed and sought an interim solution. Something temporary.

“I worked as a garbage collector during university studies,” he says, explaining that physical labour was a nice change from academia. He noticed a job posting online for garbage collection work. After reaching out, he got a job right away and worked hard through the fall up until Christmas.

But this wasn’t the work he was meant to do as a career. “I liked the job but it didn’t align with the sense of career direction my parents and trusted advisors had encouraged me in, nor my science degree, nor the conclusion of my career discovery assessment.”  So, WP acknowledged another change was needed and he did what he had done in the past that produced wonderful results. He said a prayer. “God, whatever you have in store for me, help me find work that is a good fit.”

Shortly after, he was excited to find a posting from a chemical company. Interested in how close it was to his current work, he searched the address in Google Maps. Before going any further, he noticed another company icon right next door which happened to be an environmental consulting company.

Here was the answer to his prayer.

“The whole reason I studied what I did was environmental stewardship–the concept of wisely caretaking the earth.”

WP began researching this company, clicking through the website and watching videos. He learned about an engineering consulting firm that helps businesses waste less and move towards net zero, but who also prioritizes volunteer work.

“The values, the field of work, the associated charitable work,” says WP, “that really drew me in.”

The next day after collecting garbage all day, WP followed up in person. “I showed up in the office. I had my resume and a cover letter I created specifically for them. I asked them if they could use a worker. Shortly after, I had an interview, and a few weeks later, another one.” On January 2nd of 2018, WP began his first day of work on the water team at his new employer.

Fast forward to March 2020 when the WHO declared COVID-19 a pandemic. As the country went into lockdown, the Company’s founder and owner decided the best way to secure his company’s future was to create an ESOP–an employee share ownership plan.

WP wasn’t management. He had been with his company for just over two years. But when the owner launched a plan to sell shares to employees every year for 10 years and until the company is 50 per cent employee-owned, WP bought his allotted number of shares. The following year, he did the same and purchased some extra that became available.

That moment when the Company’s icon popped up on Google Maps, is a very notable point in WP’s journey. Now, along with his co-workers, he owns part of an environmental consulting firm whose notable clients include Maple Leaf Foods, Campbell Soup and Tim Hortons.

While the share value is nice, many employees also value that ownership makes them truly invested in the company’s purpose, cause and future.

“I am very thankful to be a part of this company, and this initiative is a good way for me to affirm that I want to be more than a standard 9:00 to 5:00 employee,” says WP “I can invest my time and my effort, but here is a way to invest further. It is a nice way to be more involved and helps instill a further sense of accountability with my fellow workers and with the work that I do.”

Culture was top of mind when the owner started the Company 22 years ago. As a young engineer, he had found that most employers wanted their staff to work full-time, even overtime.

“They promoted workaholism,” he says.

The Company founder is a dedicated volunteer, always looking for community organizations that could use his time. But most conventional firms disapproved when he took time off to volunteer. He founded his own Company to create a culture that encouraged employees to work and at the same time stay engaged with what they love and care about.

“People aren’t just engineers,” he says.

When the founder reached his mid-fifties, he knew he would need to transfer ownership in the not too distant future. He also knew that selling a company can quickly destroy a positive workplace culture.

“I have seen people sell to these multinational companies,” he says. “The employees are the first to go, while you stay with the new owners for maybe three years and then leave. If I were to do that, I would make a fair amount of money but whatever I built would be gone.” 

Instead, he chose employee ownership. He turned to ESOP Builders, who then helped his company design and build their own employee share ownership plan or ESOP.

ESOP Builders started with interviews and surveys and then reached out to select employees to establish an ESOP transition team. They created a plan that was attractive to most employees–one that would ensure that the company’s culture survived and thrived.

The current leadership team already embodies the company values of community service plus environmental stewardship. That team will gradually take on more and more responsibility, as the founder hands over control.

During October 2022, WP travelled with three colleagues and the founder to work with the locally owned and operated Safe Water Social Ventures that the company helped establish in Uganda and South Sudan

The founder created his dream company, one that reflects his personality, abilities and values. He doesn’t want that dream to go away. Instead of selling to an investor who may have deep pockets but only a shallow understanding of the culture he has built, he can now pass ownership onto his employees, so decades from now young environmental stewards like WP will still find it a great place to work.

“What’s important to me is the people I’m working with, the mission we are living out, and the kind of work we get to do,” says WP “It’s a long-term thing. It is a pleasure to see how what we do can be helpful for society. Being a part owner is meaningful.”

The Company was one of the first certified B Corporations in Canada. The B Global Network, which measures companies’ positive impact on their workers, community, customers and the environment, has ranked this organization among others in the “best in the world” category.