The Connection Magazine AIM MUTUAL Spring 2019 | Page 27

who worked so hard to make MBBC what it
is today. Dan pitched the idea of creating
the Harpoon Employee Stock Ownership
Plan whereby the company would borrow
the money to purchase Rich’s shares and
give them to our employees. The board
and shareholders voted unanimously to
support this plan, and we proudly became
a 48 percent employee-owned company.
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN
FOR THE COMPANY?
Employee ownership pushes us to
continuously find ways to improve. As an
employee-owned company, we all have a
financial incentive to succeed. We value
our independence and culture, and we love
what we do. We work like owners.
We also take pride in our relationships.
In 2018, we collaborated with our friends
at Polar Seltzer in Worcester to produce
an incredible beer, UFO Blueberry
Lemonade. Later that year, our Harpoon
brand won Brewbound’s Collaboration of
the Year Award for the Harpoon Dunkin’
Coffee Porter. These collaborations made
an immense, positive impact on our whole
company.
HOW HAS WORKING WITH
A.I.M. MUTUAL BEEN OF BENEFIT
TO YOUR ORGANIZATION?
Since
becoming
our
workers’
compensation carrier, A.I.M. Mutual has
contributed to our safety success. We
conducted a workers’ compensation
safety training program led by Patricia
Coutu, with over 25 of our managers
in attendance. In addition to reviewing
workers’ compensation laws and our
workplace safety rules, this training
ensured that our managers receive the full
and correct benefit of the law and that our
company remained informed on the best
ways to keep on-the-job injuries and costs
at a minimum.
During this meeting, we received
valuable feedback which resulted in a
complete revamp of our First Report of
Injury and Post Accident Investigation.
This meeting also helped form new
relationships with local health providers
who specialize in work-related incidents.
CLEARLY, HARPOON CARES ABOUT
ITS WORKERS. WHAT DO YOU DO IN
THE AREA OF EMPLOYEE WELLNESS?
We take a holistic approach when
looking at wellness within our company.
There is a medical cost benefit to having
a healthy employee population, but for us,
it’s not solely about the numbers. We see
the biggest value of our unique wellness
program to be our focus on the pillars of
physical, financial, and social well-being.
From monthly challenges, “wellness
warrior” incentives, and financial training
to mindfulness and meditation classes,
our program helps strengthen our culture
by bringing fellow employee-owners
together.
Our A.I.M. Mutual wellness partner,
Martha Gagnon, has played a vital role
in helping to enhance Harpoon’s current
program. By advising us on A.I.M. Works
training for our team and suggesting
various event ideas for our program,
Martha has already helped us start off
2019 strongly.
Our employee-owners are also very
involved in our philanthropy efforts. In
2018 alone, our charitable arm, Harpoon
Helps, gave approximately $500,000 in
charitable donations to 324 non-profit
organizations and raised a whopping
$282,253 through our charitable events.
The ongoing hard work of our employee-
owners and our commitment to being good
neighbors certainly did not go unnoticed.
We were named Small Giant by Forbes
magazine, an achievement honoring
community involvement, commitment to
staff, and industry excellence.
HOW DO YOU PROMOTE A
STRONG SAFETY CULTURE?
We have a unique business with an array
of industries under the Harpoon name.
From finger lacerations and strained
backs to falls on slippery steps of bars and
restaurants during keg deliveries, each job
class has its own inherent risks.
Management support for safety
programs and initiatives will always be
the number one driver at MBBC. Safety
is discussed in our weekly department
meetings, two safety committees, and
mandatory, organization-wide safety
trainings. These discussions as well as
post-accident investigations place the
health and safety of each employee-
owner at the very top of our priority list.
WHAT JOB MODIFICATIONS DO YOU
MAKE TO ENCOURAGE AN INJURED
EMPLOYEE TO RETURN TO WORK?
Getting our employees back to work
after an injury is not only important for
reducing claim costs but it also helps both
employee morale and morale within the
department where the injured employee
works. As employee-owners, we are all
very aware of the impact of lost time on
productivity. As a result, we make every
effort to provide modified or restricted
duty to bring the injured employee back
to work promptly and safely, welcoming
them back with a beer of course!
ABOUT RICHARD ACKERMAN
RICHARD ACKERMAN has been with MBBC since 2014 and is AVP of Human
Resources, responsible for HR management in two brewery locations. He holds a
Bachelor of Arts in Organizational Communications from the University of Utah
and a Master of Science in Human Resources from Suffolk Universities Sawyer
School of Management. Outside of the brewery, Rich serves on the Craft Beer
HR Executive Committee, the Master Brewers Higher Education Committee,
and the Board of Licensing Commission in Winthrop, Massachusetts.
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