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  • March 2023
  • Case
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Ownership Works: Scaling a Profitable Social Mission

By: Ethan Rouen, Dennis Campbell and Andrew Robinson
  • Format:Print
  • | Language:English
  • | Pages:18
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Abstract

Pete Stavros was on a high after his latest experiment with employee ownership. As the head of industrial investments for KKR, Stavros orchestrated the sale of CHI Overhead Doors, which turned into KKR’s best investment in more than two decades and created $360 million in wealth for CHI’s blue collar workforce through broad-based employee ownership. This case examines Stavros’s attempt to scale this strategy of creating shared value through the creation of a non-profit, Ownership Works (OW). The mission of OW is to create a knowledge base for strategies to implement employee ownership and to encourage other private equity firms to adopt the practice. The case provides an opportunity to examine how to scale a shared-value strategy and the challenges that come with building industry cooperation.

Keywords

Employee Ownership; Knowledge Sharing; Nonprofit Organizations

Citation

Rouen, Ethan, Dennis Campbell, and Andrew Robinson. "Ownership Works: Scaling a Profitable Social Mission." Harvard Business School Case 123-079, March 2023.
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About The Authors

Ethan C. Rouen

Accounting and Management
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Dennis Campbell

Accounting and Management
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More from the Authors

    • March 2025
    • Faculty Research

    Taylor Guitars: Making Employee Ownership Work the Taylor Way

    By: Dennis Campbell, Petros Kusmu and Stacy Straaberg
    • March 2025
    • Faculty Research

    Haidilao: Changing Your Future with Your Own Hands

    By: Yuan Zou and Dennis Campbell
    • February 2025
    • Faculty Research

    Ingersoll Rand: Broadening Employee Ownership

    By: Ethan Rouen and Jenyfeer Martinez Buitrago
More from the Authors
  • Taylor Guitars: Making Employee Ownership Work the Taylor Way By: Dennis Campbell, Petros Kusmu and Stacy Straaberg
  • Haidilao: Changing Your Future with Your Own Hands By: Yuan Zou and Dennis Campbell
  • Ingersoll Rand: Broadening Employee Ownership By: Ethan Rouen and Jenyfeer Martinez Buitrago
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