Marine Technology Inc (MTI), one of the leading high performance boat manufacturers in the world, has announced the sale of the company from its founding owners to its employees.
The unique transaction will see the employees of the company retain 100% ownership of MTI through the creation of an ESOP (Employee Stock Ownership Plan).
The company was founded by industry icon Randy Scism in 1998.
“We’re excited to become a 100% employee-owned business,” said Scism, president of MTI, in a press release.
“Our company has delivered revolutionary products and services at the forefront of this industry for 26 years. Our new ESOP will sustain our company culture and lasting partnerships with customers and distributors for many years to come. Furthermore, becoming an employee owned company ensures that MTI will continue to operate under the same leadership for many years to come.”
MTI is based in Wentzville, Missouri and employs over 200 people across two manufacturing facilities. MTI carries a strong reputation as a leader in high-performance catamarans and were one of the first to push towards outboard power in the high-performance segment. Mike Howe, a well-known YouTuber under the moniker Howe2Live, recently added to MTI 's mainstream influence with their attempt to set the world record for traveling from Miami to NYC. Their attempt was done aboard an MTI 440X catamaran with twin Mercury Racing 500R outboards.
The arrangement will see Marine Technology join 6,500 businesses with ESOPs in the United States. According to research compiled by the National Center for Employee Ownership (NCEO), ESOP-owned companies tend to outperform others in their industry, retain employees longer in difficult times and provide an overall higher level of retirement benefits than companies that do not have an ESOP.
“Sharing ownership with employees is a natural extension of how we do business, which has enabled us to become a strong, cutting-edge company. Our employees have helped get us to where we are today and take pride and ownership in their work. Our ESOP is the best investment we can make in each other and in the company going forward,” added Taylor Scism, vice president of MTI.
According to Speedboat Magazine, Randy Scism will maintain his role as president for a period of three years, after which the arrangement can be assessed on a year-to-year basis. His daughter and MTI vice president Taylor Scism will also stay on board and will take her father's place upon his retirement.
“This accomplished two important goals for our company’s future. First, we found a succession strategy that allowed MTI to maintain its current culture and operations. And second, it’s a great way to keep employees focused on long-term company goals while allowing them to build wealth,” said Randy.
“We have a strong leadership team in place that demonstrates a high level of skill and integrity upon which the company was founded,” said Michael Yahl, general manager of MTI. “Going the ESOP route allows us to keep growing the business without missing a beat. Our ESOP is the perfect embodiment of our company culture where we all work as a team.”
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