Why DMS Employee-Ownership Is Good For Your School
Participative employee-ownership companies outperform their non-employee owned counterparts due to increased employee engagement and involvement. Since every employee is an owner, they all care like owners – resulting in better customer service, higher client satisfaction, and high client retention.
Much like engaged students do better – so do engaged employees. In 2011, DMS established our ESOP (Employee Stock Ownership Plan) to ensure each DMS employee-owner has a personal stake in your school’s success. In 2017, we became 100% employee-owned. Our employee-owners are dedicated to providing high quality customer service ensuring all our client schools are fully and accurately supported. Creating a company where employees think and act like owners means better collaboration with you, more responsiveness to you, and more innovative problem-solving for you – making both DMS and your school succeed. What does this mean for you? Let’s explain why this is part of ”The DMS Difference”.
Five Ways Our ESOP Structure Benefits Your School
Why do you use those six little words: Can I talk to the owner? You know they have a personal stake in your satisfaction as a customer. You know how much they want your business. And, you know how invested they are in your school’s success. Now imagine every person at your business services provider is an owner. Think they’ll do more to keep you smiling? Think they’ll do more to support you so you can focus on educating children? Absolutely!!! Let’s have a look.
1. Happier employees serve you better and smarter.
When you love your job, just like when you love your school, it shows. Long before DMS converted to an ESOP, we were known for our warm, genuine company culture. Our ESOP only made this stronger with a culture of true ownership. Everyone here is passionate about your school. We’re more excited to help you succeed. We’re more curious about your goals. And, we’re more engaged – meaning employee retention is higher and the knowledge base we build about your school is more enduring.
FACT: Studies show happy employees are up to 20% more productive than unhappy employees.
2. We’re more accountable to you.
When everyone owns a piece of the company, they think of every project as personally as their signature – making each of us more responsive, more productive, and more innovative problem-solvers for you. This is why our clients stay with us.
FACT: Long-term relationships matter – since 2006, 4 out of 5 clients are still with DMS!
3. We empower people to make things happen.
When everyone’s an owner, more employees have greater personal decision-making power so they can react to your needs faster. This same empowerment also means they are better stewards for your school and budget.
FACT: DMS employee-owners have a continuous focus on professional development through our DMS University.
4. Our work is thorough and efficient.
When you have a stake in the business where you work, you are dedicated to both accuracy and efficiency – never sacrificing one for the other – ensuring DMS is a trusted partner for your school. We continuously focus on employee development through our DMS University and have a continuous focus on process improvements for your benefit. Plus as an ESOP, we invest in technology that gives employees more time to think strategically and build their relationship with your school – spending less time on drudgery – leading to greater problem-solving power for you.
5. We think about your school’s future as if it were our own.
Each of us recognizes the direct link between your future and ours. We have regular, company-wide work groups where we talk about the state of our business, the charter community, and how we best serve you. We follow your story. Attend charter events. And, think about your challenges. It keeps us all engaged as owners – and invested in the health of your school and the charter community. Thinking about our linked futures keeps everyone excited about our business and your school. It also attracts committed, curious, thoughtful employees to serve you.
FACT: We practice a slow growth model taking a limited number of clients each year and striving for a 1:1 charter to staff member ratio to make sure we provide the highest quality service.
The bottom line
Becoming an ESOP is one of the best moves we’ve ever made! Our employees are excited! Our clients are happy resulting in high client retention! One of the biggest factors in our success is our ownership mentality. Because DMS employees are owners, they’re dedicated and laser-focused on your school’s success. Think about it this way: would you wash and wax the car you own or the one you rent more often? Ownership makes a difference. When everyone at your business services provider has a stake in the business, they work harder to keep your school shining.