In what the company says is a first for a large industrial company, on Sept. 21, Ingersoll Rand Inc., a manufacturer of machinery and equipment for the automotive, construction, and energy markets, celebrated its $150 million equity grant to nearly 16,000 employees worldwide with a virtual ringing of the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange.
“This is a $150 million investment in our employees,” CEO Vicente Reynal said in a statement. . “It’s a meaningful way to build an ownership culture where all employees can benefit from creating value as they all contribute to our success. Our employees have carried us through the beginning of a successful integration between Gardner Denver and the Ingersoll Rand Industrial segment, built a solid foundation and now position us to pivot to growth and achieve great things in the future. United by a common purpose and set of values, we believe our 16,000 employees around the world are unstoppable.”
From an hourly assembly worker on the production line in Quincy, Illinois to a sales representative based in Shanghai, China, all eligible employees received a grant equal in value on the grant date to 20% of that employee’s annual base cash compensation.
The grant follows a similar approach Gardner Denver took a few years ago when it gave employees ‘skin in the game’ in the company through an equity grant. When Gardner Denver returned to the public markets in May 2017, CEO Reynal, along with Chairman Pete Stavros, KKR’s Co-Head of Americas Private Equity and current Ingersoll Rand Board Chairman, announced a grant of more than $100 million in deferred stock units to all Gardner Denver employees worldwide. Employees who held on to that equity grant have seen 80% appreciation.
Over the last decade, Stavros and his team at KKR have pioneered this model of employee ownership in manufacturing companies by granting equity to employees in the industrials companies KKR acquires in the Americas, including Gardner Denver.
“Across our investments in the industrials sector, we have seen firsthand the positive results that occur when you make everyone an owner and afford them the opportunity to participate in the value they help to create,” said Stavros. “It’s an obvious but often overlooked point: employees are the single most important driver in building stronger companies.”
Reynal continued, “If everybody thinks and acts like an owner, we all share in the benefits of any future value creation as the company continues its growth strategy and improves its profitability. Overall, we view this grant as a core strategy for increased employee engagement, an ownership mindset and sustainable long-term shareholder value enhancement.”
