Fairfax, VA – On April 16, 2021, Highlight Technologies Inc. announced they have completed the sale of its stock to a newly-formed Employee-Owned Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), continuing the vision of its founder and CEO, Rebecca Andino, in supporting an entrepreneurial workplace culture for talented and hard-working individuals. Ms. Andino, who remains the CEO, made the announcement during a recent company town hall meeting.
Highlight’s ESOP will benefit not only managers and executives; but will also provide significant long-term benefits to its nearly 1,000 employees through employer-only contributions.
The profits attributable to the ESOP are not taxable, allowing earnings to be used for strategic investments and contributions to the employee trust.
“I am excited that each of the employees of Highlight is now an employee-owner. We have a dedicated team that has worked hard to build a well-managed, high-performing business that delivers innovative solutions and services to our government customers. I’m thrilled that our team members will directly share in the value they are creating in the business,” said Highlight CEO Rebecca Andino.
“Being an employee-owned company helps us differentiate as an employer of choice for top talent. There aren’t many other government contracting firms that automatically give employees ownership in the company, and fewer of them are on rapid growth trajectories like Highlight,” said Highlight COO Adam McNair. “Our customers will receive the support of a team of employee-owners who each have a personal stake in customer satisfaction, innovation, and long term mission success,” he added.
The company was advised by FON Advisors (www.fonadvisors.com) and Bean Kinney & Korman, PC (www.beankinney.com), and financed by JPMorgan Chase (www.jpmorganchase.com). Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Seven out of the largest 100 government contractors (as ranked by Washington Technology) are ESOP-owned, and Highlight is one of only two ESOP-owned firms in Washington Technology’s 2020 Fast 50 list.
According to the National Center for Employee Ownership (NCEO), in 2021 there are roughly 6,600 ESOPs covering more than 14 million participants. Of the 100 largest U.S. employee-owned companies listed by NCEO in 2020, 12 are government contractors.
About Highlight
Highlight is an award-winning, ISO® 9001, ISO 20000. ISO 27001, ISO 44001, ISO 56002‑certified, CMMI-DEV Level 3‑, and CMMI-SVC Level 3‑appraised, woman-owned federal government contractor that provides critical services to more than 20 U.S. federal government customers. Using our HI-WAY™™ best-practices framework, we design and deliver solutions that integrate current systems and procedures, address the concerns of all stakeholders, and seamlessly advance the missions of our customers. With over 10 years of federal contracting experience, we apply our proven transformation and evolution process to deliver quality services that balance agility, continuity, security, and compliance. To learn more, visit www.highlighttech.com.
