Relinea Attends Annual Employee Ownership Association Conference
Relinea’s General Manager Chris and Marketing Manager Marlene attended the Annual Employee Ownership Association (EOA) Conference in Telford on the 25th and 26th of November. The two day event brought together employee-owned businesses, advisors, and speakers to discuss the future of employee ownership and the importance of shared values at work.
Key Talks On Employee Ownership
The conference began with a keynote from Henry Rose Lee, who spoke about the range of generations now working together and the need to understand each other’s expectations. She explained how employee ownership can help bring people together through shared purpose, responsibility, and longer-term thinking.
Throughout the event, attendees joined several breakout sessions. One key session, The EO Mindset: Your Guiding Star for Shared Success, introduced the EO Mindset Model, which aims to help businesses strengthen a sense of collective ownership. Delegates looked at practical ways to encourage participation, shared responsibility, and meaningful involvement in the business.
Another important session, Creating an Impactful EO Culture & Sustaining Business Values, focused on the role of communication in employee ownership. It highlighted that EO works best when everyone understands what it means, before, during, and after the transition.
Through an interactive workshop, attendees learned how to build and carry out a communication plan that involved employees clearly and consistently. Key points included:
- The role of clear communication in supporting employees throughout the EO journey
- How to explain EO in a straightforward and inclusive way at each stage of transition
- Tools and methods for encouraging two way communication to support an ownership culture
The session Getting People Engaged: Cracking Your Comms & Understanding EO continued this theme by showing how simple, honest, and regular communication helps people feel informed and involved.
A highlight of the conference was a talk from Jamie Roberts, former Welsh rugby union player, who explained what employee-owned companies could learn from sports teams. He spoke about participation, teamwork, involvement, and celebrating success, qualities that benefit both a rugby team and an employee-owned business. His session, sponsored by Howden, offered a practical view of how groups can work better together.
Taking Ideas On Employee Ownership Home
The Relinea team left the conference with useful ideas about strengthening its employee-owned culture, improving communication, and supporting long-term stability. We look forward to putting these insights into practice as the business continues to grow as an employee-owned company.
