Staff at subsea engineering and training firm Jee were taken by “complete surprise” when their boss announced he was handing the business over to them.
Trevor Jee, who founded the consultancy in 1988, said the move to employee-ownership, would help take the company, which has offices in Aberdeen and Kent, “forward into its next chapter.”
He set the transfer process in motion earlier this year by establishing an Employee Ownership Trust (EOT).
When Trevor announced at a company meeting that he was going to give the company to the staff the next day, it was a complete surprise to everyone. ”
Charlie Guy, courses operations manager
Mr Jee, the company’s executive chairman, said: “Since founding Jee Ltd more than 30 years ago, looking after our team has always been central to our success.
“It has been a great journey, the team has the talent, drive and skills to take the company forward into its next chapter, so I decided that now was the right time to move to this new model which recognises and rewards the contribution that all our employees make.”
He continued: “In practical terms, the business is continuing as before, and our culture and values live on, a key factor for the team.
“As usual, we are all engrossed in subsea engineering and training, and are feeling bullish about the future, particularly as we work on the extra challenges energy transition is bringing, and our own ambitions to get to net-zero.”
‘Warm feeling that staff actually own the company’
Jee specialises in design, integrity management, pigging, lifetime extension, decommissioning and renewables and has offices in Westhill’s Arnhall Business Park and Tonbridge.
Courses operations manager, Charlie Guy, said: “When Trevor announced at a company meeting that he was going to give the company to the staff the next day, it was a complete surprise to everyone.
“Once we got over the shock and figured out what an EOT is, everyone I know feels it is a positive change.
“Pretty much nothing has changed except we can look forward to an extra dividend in the medium term, and there is a warm feeling that the staff actually own the company and have a say in its future.”
Move provides ‘secure platform’ for growth
Grant Adam, Jee’s head of energy transition, said: “The move to an EOT fits perfectly with our strong team culture, values and emphasis on the quality of our people.
“It provides us with a secure platform to support the growth of Jee moving forward on our energy transition journey and helps us maintain our position as a business which attracts and retains the industry’s best talent.
“This is particularly evident at present from the strong response the company has received when going out to hire executive and non-executive directors with a change-management and renewables background.”
Research published earlier this year suggested that employee-owned firms fared better than other businesses during the Covid-19 pandemic.