Karen Thomas, OEOC Associate Director
BS
Ed. Ohio University (1973), Masters of Public Administration, Kent State University
(1994), and Ph.D. candidate in Organization Development, Kent State University.
Thomas coordinates the educational programs for Ohio's Employee-Owned Network,
a learning community of employee-owned firms. She has been involved with ESOP
ownership education since she joined the OEOC staff in 1991. Her background includes
customized company training programs for owner education and employee participation
in numerous Ohio and Pennsylvania firms and industries, including most of the
development work on Republic Engineered Steels week-long Joint Leadership Development
workshop for supervisors and their union bargaining committee and grievance counterparts.
Thomas has also developed multi-company training programs which specifically address
the needs of non-managerial and supervisory staff in ESOP companies. Before joining
the OEOC, Thomas spent seven years doing training and counseling for dislocated
workers in the Akron area with the Private Industry Council. Thomas is a former
president and current board member of the Northeast Ohio chapter of the American
Society for Training and Development.
Steve Clem, OEOC Senior Program Coordinator
BS,
Shepherd College (1964) in economics and graduate study in Economics at the University
of Delaware. Clem joined the OEOC staff in June 1998 after a career in the labor
movement which included twenty-eight years with the United Rubber Workers' research
department; he served as URW Research and International Director from 1977 to
1995. Subsequent to the URW's merger with the Steelworkers in 1995, Clem worked
in the Research and Benefits Department of the USWA. Clem's initial areas of work
for the OEOC include technical assistance in buyout situations, safety training
in employee-owned firms, and basic ownership and financial education for union
members.
Olga Y. Klepikova, OEOC Russian Regional
Program Coordinator
Klepikova
joined the OEOC staff in 1994. She coordinates the OEOC's Russian regional employee
ownership assistance program, funded by the Eurasia Foundation. She has adapted
a variety of American training materials for use in Russian employee owned firms.
Prior to joining the OEOC staff, she worked as a bookkeeper for a Russian firm.
Among her roles with the OEOC has been doing financial training for Russian trade
unionists through the AFL-CIO's Free Trade Union Institute.
Bill
McIntyre, Program Coordinator
Bill
McIntyre is a Program Coordinator at the Ohio Employee Ownership Center and was
the President of the ESOP Small Business Services consulting firm. Prior to that,
for over 15 years, he was the Director of Finance and Chief Financial Officer
for ComSonics, Inc., in Harrisonburg, Virginia, a cable TV equipment manufacturer
and repairer. While at ComSonics, Bill was a member of the Board of Directors,
the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors, the ESOP Administrative Committee,
the ESOP Employee Advisory Committee (two years), and served as an ESOP Trustee.
Further, Bill was responsible for the internal administration of the company's
ESOP. Bill has a BA in Psychology from Cornell University and has an MBA with
a concentration in Accounting and Finance from Stanford University's Graduate
School of Business. He is a CPA and a member of the Institute of Management Accountants.
Prior
to joining ComSonics, Bill worked as a Senior Management Consultant for Arthur
Andersen & Company; then as Manager of Financial Analysis for Perdue, Inc.;
as Corporate Controller for American Safety Razor Company; and as Chief Financial
Officer for Weinschel Engineering, Inc. In addition, he has served as an Instructor
in the School of Accounting at James Madison University. Bill has also served
on the Board of Directors of ShenVentures, Inc., a small venture capital firm
in Harrisonburg, Virginia. Bill has also served on the ESOP Association's Board
of Governors, the Chapter Council Executive Committee, the Advisory Committee
on ESOP Administration and was Vice President of the Western Virginia Region of
the MidAtlantic Chapter of the ESOP Association as well as President of the MidAtlantic
Chapter.
Chris
Cooper, Program Coordinator
Chris
was originally hired by the Center as a student in 1996, worked
as an intern and part-time employee in 1998 and 1999, and has been a full-time
employee since 2000. He is the coordinator of the Center's
Business Owner Succession Planning Program, and is overseeing the program's forthcoming
expansion. He is also active in various Center
training programs, including three annual Employee Owner Retreats,
and the annual Ohio Employee Ownership Conference. Cooper
is also responsible for designing the OEOC's publications, flyers, newsletter,
and other printed materials, has been the webmaster
for this site as well as the Capital Ownership Group
(COG) site, and is also responsible for general computer
support at the Center. Prior to joining the Center, he
was a graduate of Kent State's Political Science program, and worked as a union
organizer at SEIU Local 47 in Cleveland, OH.
Jay
Simecek, Program Coordinator
Prior
to joining the OEOC staff, Jay enjoyed a varied career spanning 25 years in executive
positions, most of which he spent leading an ESOP company. His direct, practical
experience transitioning a family-owned company to an ESOP and managing a culture
change to one of participation, accountability, and ownership is invaluable. Jay's
dedication to employee ownership lead him to national involvement in The ESOP
Association as President of the Ohio Chapter, member of the Executive Committee
of the State and Regional Chapter Council, and member of the Association's Strategic
Planning Committee. He has authored articles, designed education materials, and
conducted training on employee owner leadership issues.
Jay
was born and raised in the greater Cleveland area. After attending John Carroll
University (business administration) and serving for four years in the US Air
Force (computer systems), Jay began his career in the Information Systems industry.
Jay's managerial experience has exposed him to a variety of business models, from
fast growth mid-size (Jo-Ann Fabrics), to large multinationals (Sherwin Williams
Corporation), to successful family-owned, and small start-up entrepreneurial.
His background includes success in manufacturing, distribution, and retail/wholesale.
Jay first encountered employee ownership as he recognized the opportunity to develop
a succession plan for the principal of a privately held, family owned firm. Then
as Vice-President and General Manager he orchestrated its buyout and transition
to an ESOP. More recently as President of a start-up in the safety/security industry,
Jay gained the experience of building a company from the ground up.
For
the Center, Jay provides basic technical direction for those anticipating ownership
change in their company and considering an ESOP for the first time. In addition,
Jay's strength is his hands-on experience with leading an organization into employee
ownership. He has personally explored many of the myriad of techniques/methods
for establishing an ownership culture (and even succeeded at some). As such, Jay's
focus is expanding Succession Planning programs, creating new ESOP's and training
existing employee owners. While success from a business perspective is of course
satisfying and necessary for sustainability … in Jay's words "the real
passion is sharing the challenges and rewards of a business with the people who
both work for and own a company."
Ohio
Employee Ownership Center/Kent State University, Copyright© 2002
For problems
with or questions regarding this site contact oeoc@kent.edu
