Today’s Letter of the Day is “E”!

Today is International Worker’s Day, and at Estructure, we are leaning into the most important E of all – our Employees. After years of deliberate planning and investment, we are proud to announce that Estructure is now Employee-Owned!

Maryann started Estructure as a sole proprietor in 2000. As the practice evolved and the staff grew and matured, the core tenet of “team” became foundational to every project and every decision that was made. When options for ownership and leadership transition were explored, there was only one model that felt true to the company values and aligned with Maryann’s gratitude to the Estructure team. That was to transition the firm from Maryann into the hands of every employee.

Estructure officially began the ownership transition process in 2020 by establishing and funding an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP). As of May 1, Maryann has transferred a majority of her stake in Estructure to its employees. Maryann remains a major stakeholder in Estructure, fully invested in its future and an integral part of Estructure’s continued success.

A simultaneous leadership transition has been in swing for even longer, with deliberate investment in all our engineers’ capabilities to manage projects, foster client relationships, and act as representatives of Estructure. As of May 1, Maryann Phipps is now Chair of the Estructure Board of Directors and a Senior Principal at Estructure. She is not retiring, but hopes to make more time for life outside the office. Three Estructure Principals will assume leadership roles: Tom Wismar will become President, Darrick Hom will become Chief Operations Officer, and Sarah Durphy will become Chief Technical Officer. Tom has been shadowing Maryann for a year and we are thrilled to have him in this role.

Most will not notice much of a difference in how we operate since our core values and staff are not changing. But we are evolving to ensure that Estructure continues to exist to support one another and our clients with the same level of care we always have. It will be the same Estructure, only better.