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VEOC Announces Conference Keynoter

The Transforming Power of Employee Ownership: One Company's Journey

The Vermont Employee Ownership Center is thrilled to announce that this year’s keynote speaker at our June 3rd Annual Conference will be NewAge Industries CEO Ken Baker. Ken will be kicking off the day of virtual learning and networking with a talk titled “The Transforming Power of Employee Ownership: One Company's Journey.”

NewAge Industries is a plastic and rubber, tubing, hose and single use manufacturer and RFID tag solutions provider located in Southampton, Pennsylvania, and founded in 1954 by Ken’s father, Raymond Baker.  Ken joined the family business in 1985, and became sole owner and CEO in 1998.  NewAge provides solutions to many Fortune 500 companies and serves customers worldwide.

In 2006, Ken established the company’s Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), and, as of 2019, its employees own 100% of the company.  A passionate advocate for the power and impact of employee ownership, he is a founding member and Chairman of the Pennsylvania Center for Employee Ownership (PCEO), and is also a board member of the Employee Ownership Expansion Network (EOX), which seeks to grow the number of employee ownership centers nationwide. With an eye towards addressing the deficit in coverage of employee ownership in business education, he recently made a $3 million donation to Montgomery County Community College to start the Baker Center of Excellence for Employee Ownership and Business Transformation.  

To hear Ken’s talk and attend a variety of informational sessions focused on employee ownership, stay tuned for upcoming registration details for our 19th annual conference taking place on June 3rd, 2021. 

Additional Links to Explore:

http://www.newageindustries.com/award.asp

https://www.buckscountycouriertimes.com/story/news/2021/02/10/newage-ind...