Robert Fulton, Founder of Web Industries, Dies

Robert Fulton, the founder of ESOP owned Web Industries, died on November 18 at the age of 86. We at the NCEO wanted to include this in our update because Bob and the company he created have been such seminal figures in employee ownership. Web set up its ESOP in 1991, when it was just one facility in suburban Boston. It converted plastic sheeting into specialized uses for things like gum wrappers and diaper tapes. Today, Web has 550 employees in seven cities and Germany and $160 million in revenue. It achieved that because Bob and those who followed him were deeply committed to a high-involvement, open-book management system that truly treated employees as owners. Ideas from employees have fueled Web's growth to become a sophisticated converter of all sorts of materials, including very high-technology applications. Over the years, dozens of companies have modeled what they are doing based on what Web is doing.

Bob was a deeply religious man who took his belief in serving others very seriously. Aside from Web, he created a ministry called Integra Ventures to develop business that will impact society and change communities. Bob always said that the essence of life and work was relationships. Our relationship with him is one we cherish.