Director magEmployee ownership features on the front cover of the influential Director magazine this month, thanks to an interview with John Lewis Partnership (JLP) chairman, Sir Charlie Mayfield.

JLP is the UK’s largest employee-owned business, employing 90,000 staff, known as partners, across its 42 stores.

In the article, he says the model is key to JLP’s success. Not only does profit-sharing motivate the partners, but it ensures better staff retention than can otherwise be seen in the retail sector.

Employee ownership also allows the business to take a more sustainable, long-term approach, he says, going on to discuss why he’s advocating the model as a satisfying and successful succession strategy for business owners.

Sir Charlie was speaking before the inaugural InspireEO conference, which saw 350 delegates from businesses and public bodies travel to the West Midlands to hear first-hand how employee ownership helps large businesses like JLP as well as SMEs operating across different sectors.

You can read the full interview in the February edition of Director.