Employee Ownership Ideas Forum

The Employee Ownership Ideas Forum brings together leading policymakers, practitioners, experts, and the media for a robust discussion on how we can grow employee ownership for the shared benefit of American workers and businesses.

It is hosted by the Aspen Institute Economic Opportunities Program and Rutgers Institute for the Study of Employee Ownership and Profit Sharing.

Blog Posts

Institutional Investment and Employee Ownership
Blog Posts

Institutional Investment and Employee Ownership

Securing The Future of America’s Critical Industries
Blog Posts

Securing The Future of America’s Critical Industries

Graphic image featuring headshots of four speakers: Adria Powell, Michael Quarrey, Xavier de Souza Briggs, Chris Griswold
Blog Posts

The Future of the American Worker

Graphic image featuring headshots of four speakers: Sarah St.Onge, Adrian Flores, Ashley Bell, and Juan Carlos Lopez.
Blog Posts
Graphic image featuring headshots of three speakers: Rachel Hockenberger, Sean-Tamba Matthew, and Kevin Clegg.
Blog Posts

Small Business, Community, and Local Ownership

Publications

Policy Brief on the Study, “Employee Share Ownership, Management Practices, and Labor Productivity: An Analysis Using Establishment Level Micro-Data from the US Census”
Publications

Policy Brief on the Study, “Employee Share Ownership, Management Practices, and Labor Productivity: An Analysis Using Establishment Level Micro-Data from the US Census”

  • Fidan Ana Kurtulus
  • Eric Hoyt
  • Paige Ouimet
  • Joseph Blasi
  • Douglas Kruse
  • Richard Freeman
  • William Castellano
Employee Ownership and ESOPs: What We Know from Recent Research (2026)
Publications

Employee Ownership and ESOPs: What We Know from Recent Research (2026)

  • Joseph Blasi
  • Douglas Kruse
Employee Ownership and ESOPs – What We Know from Recent Research
Publications

Employee Ownership and ESOPs – What We Know from Recent Research

  • Joseph Blasi
  • Douglas Kruse
Placeholder
Publications

How Many Firms Are Good Candidates for Employee Ownership?

  • Matt Mazewski, Ph.D.
Placeholder
Publications

Ownership With a Purpose

This profile of Clegg Auto illustrates the company’s experience becoming employee-owned, the innovative holding company model it pursued, and its employees’ perspective on the transition and what ownership means to them.

ATTACHMENT DETAILS Cover-ESOPs-in-the-Manufacturing-Industry
Publications

ESOPs in the Manufacturing Industry

ESOPs in Rural Areas
Publications

ESOPs in Rural Areas

  • Douglas Kruse
  • Joseph Blasi
  • Jack Moriarty

Events

Employee Ownership Ideas Forum 2026: Owning America’s Future
Economic Opportunity
Ownership During the AI Revolution
Economic Opportunity

Ownership During the AI Revolution

| Washington, DC

View Event

Industry Spotlight: Healthcare

Industry Spotlight: Healthcare

View Event

The Future of the American Worker

The Future of the American Worker

View Event

Five Big Ideas for Employee Ownership

Five Big Ideas for Employee Ownership

View Event

Video Archive

Videos from the Employee Ownership Ideas Forum

The Ford Foundation’s Margot Brandenburg Speaks at the 2025 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum
Videos

The Ford Foundation’s Margot Brandenburg Speaks at the 2025 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum

In this clip, the Ford Foundation’s Margot Brandenburg speaks at the 2025 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum.

Owning It: Experiences from the Front Lines of Employee Ownership
Videos

Owning It: Experiences from the Front Lines of Employee Ownership

Hear from employee-owners about their experiences with ownership and the effects it has had on their lives and communities.

NCEO Executive Director Loren Rodgers Speaks at the 2025 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum
Videos

NCEO Executive Director Loren Rodgers Speaks at the 2025 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum

In this clip, NCEO Executive Director Loren Rodgers speaks at the 2025 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum.

Five Big Ideas for Employee Ownership (2025)
Videos

Five Big Ideas for Employee Ownership (2025)

In this session from the 2025 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum, we hear five thought leaders discuss their new ideas and fresh takes on the role of employee ownership in our economy and society and what we can do to help it grow.

Maureen Conway and Joseph Blasi Give Opening Remarks at the 2025 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum

In this clip, the Aspen Institute’s Maureen Conway and Rutgers University’s Joseph Blasi give opening remarks at the 2025 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum.

Employee Ownership, Strategic Sectors  and Supply Chain Resilience
Videos

Employee Ownership, Strategic Sectors and Supply Chain Resilience

Hear business leaders of employee-owned companies in manufacturing and other critical sectors talk about their work and how employee ownership strengthens it.

Bernie Sanders Talks Employee Ownership at the 2024 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum
Videos

Bernie Sanders Talks Employee Ownership at the 2024 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum

US Senator Bernie Sanders shares the reasoning behind his support for employee ownership and the steps Congress is taking to expand ownership opportunities.

Innovations in State Employee Ownership Policy
Videos

Innovations in State Employee Ownership Policy

States around the country are increasingly recognizing the benefits of employee ownership in creating and retaining good jobs and successful businesses in their communities. And in response, they are developing new legislation and policies to support the growth of employee ownership within their states by offering additional tax incentives, financial support, and other assistance and resources.

Opening Remarks — Dan Porterfield and Maureen Conway
Videos

Opening Remarks — Dan Porterfield and Maureen Conway

Aspen Institute President and CEO Dan Porterfield and Vice President Maureen Conway provide opening remarks at the 2024 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum.

Closing Remarks — Gwyneth Galbraith, JPMorgan Chase
Videos
US Rep. Larry Bucshon of Indiana Talks Employee Ownership
Videos

About the Rutgers Institute for the Study of Employee Ownership and Profit Sharing

The purpose of the Institute for the Study of Employee Ownership and Profit Sharing is to study the various models that have emerged and will emerge of employee ownership shares and profit shares in the corporation and society of the United States and around the world.

About the Economic Opportunities Program

The Aspen Institute Economic Opportunities Program advances strategies, policies, and ideas to help low- and moderate-income people thrive in a changing economy.

Join Our Mailing List

To receive occasional emails about our work — including new publications, commentary, events, fellowships, and more — join our mailing list.

Connect on Social Media

For news and updates every day, connect with us on the social media platform of your choice.

More from the Economic Opportunities Program

Placeholder
Podcasts Videos

What Employee Ownership Means to Workers

E

Resource Roundup: Wages and Affordability
Blog Posts
Room for Growth: A Survey of Upskilling Approaches — 2026 Analysis
Publications

Room for Growth: A Survey of Upskilling Approaches — 2026 Analysis

This publication examines how fragmented skills, credentialing, and workforce data systems limit the potential of skills-based hiring and advancement, and outlines a shared vision for building the interoperable infrastructure needed to create a connected skills ecosystem that benefits workers, employers, educators, and governments.

Building Economic Security: A Book Talk with Arindrajit Dube and Carrie Joy Grimes
Podcasts Videos

Building Economic Security: A Book Talk with Arindrajit Dube and Carrie Joy Grimes

Economic security shouldn’t be a lottery. Yet for millions of working families, stagnant wages and precarious jobs collide with the daily grind of managing money on shaky ground — leaving stability feeling less like a plan and more like a gamble. Fixing that takes more than one lever. It takes structural reform and the tools people need to take control of their financial lives, working together.

What Employee Ownership Means to Workers
Publications

What Employee Ownership Means to Workers

Insights from Focus Groups with Employee Owners

Employer-Friendly Practices: A Guide for Higher Education
Publications

Employer-Friendly Practices: A Guide for Higher Education

This resource is designed to help colleges and universities become more employer-friendly and build the kind of institutional capacity that sustains and grows partnerships while simultaneously better serving working learners. It offers role-specific guidance for leaders across the institution, a self-assessment spanning five domains of practice, and a process for turning results into action, grounded in the conviction that institution/employer partnerships can become easier without compromising academic missions.