WARWICK – On Tuesday local hospitality firm Newport Restaurant Group announced the launch of San Francisco-based Certified Employee-Owned, or Certified EO, a nationwide accreditation program for employee-owned companies, to which NRG is a founding member.
Paul O’Reilly, NRG president and CEO, called the new initiative a “major milestone” for NRG and “all employee-owned companies in prepared remarks.
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He went on to explain Certified EO will provide “a uniform and consistent method for identifying great employee-owned companies.”
Established September 5, with 29 founding members, all employee-owned businesses, the consortium has a presence in all 50 states and employs 47,000 individuals, according to NRG data.
Certified EO CEO Thomas Dudley called the collection an “impressive group of companies” in a statement, adding they are “united by a deep commitment to their employees and their communities.”
The parent company of 10 restaurants and a Warwick-based hotel property, NRG started the switch in 1995 when some original stockholders expressed interest in selling their ownership.
“Employee ownership not only strengthens our business, but it ties us directly to the Rhode Island community,” said O’Reilly in his statement. “Our employee-owners care deeply about the local community and that is reflected in the fundraising and charity efforts we do to help our local partners like the Aquidneck Land Trust, Child & Family Services Rhode Island and the March of Dimes.”
The consortium is currently 70 percent employee-owned and aims to be 100 percent employee-owned in the coming years.
Emily Gowdey-Backus is a staff writer for PBN. You can follow her on Twitter @FlashGowdey or contact her via email, gowdey-backus@pbn.com.
