Jerry Ripperger
Stock Plan Services Consulting
“We can complain because rose bushes have thorns or rejoice because thorn bushes have roses,” - Abraham Lincoln.
Whether we choose to focus on thorns or roses is often influenced by who is telling the story. This isn’t limited to just flowers. It applies to stock services offered by employers as well.
Stock services come in a wide variety of forms including Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs), Long Term Incentive Plans (LTIPs), and Employee Stock Purchase Plans (ESPPs). The plans are designed to recruit, retain, reward, and retire employees.
The employer has a great deal of flexibility in designing and implementing the plans. This flexibility is one of the greatest strengths of the plans, but also is one of the biggest challenges. Building understanding, and appreciation, of the plans is incredibly important. Creating alignment between employee actions and how it benefits them is critical if the plans are to deliver enhanced organizational performance.
A thoughtful communication and education program can overcome these challenges and help produce the desired results. A few considerations:
- Focus on the why in addition to the what. While you need to explain how the programs work, it is equally important to help employees understand why the plan was put in place and what the desired results are. Employees need to know their role and what’s in it for them.
- Use a variety of approaches as people learn differently. Some will simply want an email. Others want group or individual meetings. Using several approaches can help meet employees where they are.
- Understand it is journey, not a destination. You are never done. New staff are added. Personal circumstances change (such as reaching a vesting event). The business environment changes (a new competitor or a legislative change for example). Most organizations are not looking for just a one-time increase in performance, they want continuous improvement.
- Position education and communication as an investment, not an expense. Businesses try to minimize or eliminate expenses. But with investments, the goal is to maximize return. That is the goal of a good communication plan.
- Leverage professional expertise. It is really hard, if not impossible, to be good at everything. There are professional communication resources that have expertise in stock plans. They can help a company design and execute on their communication strategy.
It’s not about roses or thorns. It’s about both. As stated by Bret Michaels of the rock band Poison, “Every rose has its thorn”.
Learn more about stock plan services.
