CloudStack company ShapeBlue ‘guarantees future as an independent company’ with move to employee ownership
The EOA congratulates ShapeBlue, the CloudStack company, after it announced it has become a 100% employee-owned business.
The move means 100% of the shareholding of the company is now held by an employee ownership trust (EOT) for the benefit of its staff, while the existing leadership team will remain in place with no planned changes to the company’s strategy.
The company, with offices in London, Bangalore, Cape Town and Sao Paulo, is the largest independent integrator of CloudStack technologies globally. The move to employee ownership was chosen as a mechanism to protect the company’s long-term mission and its involvement in the Apache CloudStack open-source project, as well as distributing the value of the company amongst its team.
Giles Sirett, founder and CEO of ShapeBlue, said: “I am very proud to be able to say that ShapeBlue is now 100% employee owned. This guarantees our future as an independent company and allows us to continue to deliver for our customers through our deep involvement in Apache CloudStack.
“This change of ownership model does not affect our growth and technical strategies, service offerings and day-to-day operations – becoming employee owned does not affect our mission or ambitions as a company.
“Our leadership team remains unchanged, and I am very much looking forward to leading the company through this next phase of its development. It does, however, change our overall purpose – we are no longer a company that’s ultimate purpose is to make gains for a small group of shareholders.
“The ultimate power and value in this business has shifted from its shareholders into the hands of the people who generate that value: its employees.”
Joining growing network of EOTs
Employee ownership is one of the fastest-growing corporate ownership models. In the UK alone, there are now more than 1,000 employee-owned businesses, with the sector more than doubling in the past three years.
The fast pace of growth amongst businesses has taken off with the use of the employee ownership trust (EOT), introduced by the UK government in 2014 to encourage long-term employee ownership, and one in every 20 private company sales is now to an EOT, with ShapeBlue joining a network of EOTs in the UK that include Richer Sounds and Go Ape.
James de le Vingne, Chief Executive of the Employee Ownership Association (EOA), said: “We congratulate ShapeBlue on its transition to employee ownership; securing the ethos, values and culture of the business.
“Businesses that give employees a stake and a say build trust and shared responsibility, uniting leaders and employees behind a common purpose, and leaving businesses in a better position to flex and adapt.”
About ShapeBlue
ShapeBlue is the largest independent integrator of CloudStack technologies globally and specialists in the design and implementation of IaaS cloud infrastructures for both private and public cloud implementations. The company combines hundreds of person-years of experience in designing and building complex network, storage and computer infrastructures with globally leading skills in Apache CloudStack. Their services include consulting, integration, training and infrastructure support.
Read a blog from CEO Giles on the decision to become EO here >>
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