Nedal Zatari came to San Diego last year for the Middle East Entrepreneur Training in the U.S. (MEET U.S.) program as a motivated, successful young business leader. He began working for a Jordanian energy conservation and management company called EMS as a mechanical engineer in 1994, was promoted to Business Development Manager, and in 1999 became General Manager. Since then he's led the company in rapid growth and established a regional professional organization for energy-related products and services.
As experienced as he was, Nedal says that the three-week training provided a mix of knowledge that he was missing. "It gave me the required push and confidence to try new things," he says.
Among his accomplishments since returning to Jordan were hiring a consultant to develop software which will automate transactions and reduce cost; conducting a feasibility study for a new factory; collaborating with three fellow MEET U.S. alumni to consider EMS's expansion into new Middle Eastern regions; and implementing action plans in nearly every company department, leading the company to reach its 2005 budget, double the previous year's profit, increase market share and enhance its image.
Nedal raves about the practical business, leadership and networking skills he acquired, and he also raves about an innovative concept he picked up through the MEET U.S. program: employee ownership.
After hearing about the unique ability of employee-owned companies to drive growth and maintain a talented, dedicated staff, Nedal was determined to apply the idea at home.
He sought advice from the Beyster Institute staff he has met through the MEET U.S. program and read up on employee ownership. EMS's new employee stock option plan is now in its final stage of approval with the board of directors.
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| Nedal Zatari |
"As a consultancy company, its major assets are its people," says Nedal. "The idea of the stock option plan had a major impact on my team's satisfaction, and at the same time made us very excited about the company's future progress."
"I think ownership in EMS will give me and my team security required to build our future lives around the company's progress and success. Accordingly, my team and I came up with a three-year strategic plan that will increase the current value of the company five times and increase its profit 10 times, create 60 new jobs and establish EMS as an international company. The employee ownership plan is based on achieving those goals and objectives. I could not believe that those goals would be achieved within three years without employee ownership."
Nedal hopes the new employee ownership plan will have three effects: "It will attract different talents to join EMS; it will set an example for other local companies; and it will expand EMS in the region, increasing the company's value and introducing the concept of energy management and environmental protection."
We look forward to revisiting Nedal and EMS in the future to see how the employee ownership strategy is working for his company.