Wiley|Wilson has been named a winner of the ESOP Association’s 2018 Annual Award for Communications Excellence (AACE). The award recognizes excellence in communications and educational programs among employee-owned companies. Wiley|Wilson earned the AACE Award in the video category, for a piece that explains and promotes the firm’s unique ownership culture. This is the third AACE the company has received, winning first in 2013 and again in 2015.

“We are honored to receive this AACE Award and are very pleased that the ESOP Association continues to recognize our efforts to promote our ESOP,” said Fred Armstrong, PE, Chairman and CEO. “Our ownership culture is one of our firm’s defining characteristics and we proudly advocate for the benefits of employee-ownership — to current employee-owners, business partners, and potential recruits.”

Working with Parker Productions, Wiley|Wilson created a video that features short interviews with employee-owners. Participants from all offices and all departments and disciplines were asked to explain why ownership is important to them and to describe what makes the ownership culture at Wiley|Wilson unique. (This and other videos are available on the company’s YouTube channel.)

About the AACE Award
AACE Award winners are chosen by a panel of five judges from the ESOP community, each of whom has demonstrated active experience and interest in the field of ESOPs and employee-ownership communications. Awards are based on several factors, including:
• Overall quality and quantity of employee-owner education
• Contributions of employee-owners
• Integration of the ESOP into company culture
• Frequency of ownership communications
• Involvement or response of the employee-owners
• Encouragement of ownership attitudes
• Clear explanations
• Creative ideas, graphic design, and technical quality

About the ESOP Association
The ESOP Association is the national trade association for companies with employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) and the leading voice in America for employee-ownership. The core believe of the ESOP Association is that employee-ownership will improve American competitiveness, increase productivity through greater employee participation, and strengthen our free enterprise economy. For more information, visit www.esopassociation.org or www.esopassociationblog.org.