DFC becomes employee-owned

DFC becomes employee-owned

We are excited to announce that as of December 2024, Design Fire Consultants Ltd (DFC) has transitioned to being an employee-owned business through the establishment of an Employee Ownership Trust (EOT). This means that our team become beneficiaries of the trust, ensuring that DFC continues to operate for employees’ benefit now and in the future.

Since our beginnings in Leeds in 2010, DFC has become a leading independent consultancy in fire engineering, with offices in London, Manchester, Sheffield and Leeds, and a committed team of over 50 people across the country.

We believe that this new ownership model will secure the future of DFC while keeping our company values at the heart of what we do. By becoming employee-owned, we can enhance team engagement and collective success without compromising what makes DFC special.

“We are genuinely excited to have found a way to transition the ownership of DFC that allows us to retain our core values and passions without the need to sell to another company. This approach ensures we can remain actively involved in a company we deeply care about while protecting the integrity of what we’ve built over the years.

To us, this represents the best path towards a sustainable future, all while maintaining the day-to-day operations and employee experience we value so highly. Research shows that a combination of shared ownership and employee participation leads to a more engaged, innovative, productive, and sustainable business. We truly believe this is a ‘win-win’ for everyone involved!”

Adam Monaghan, Director, on behalf of Board of Directors.

The leadership of DFC remains unchanged following the transition to employee ownership. Neal Butterwoth, Jonny Joinson, Iain Macfarlane and Adam Monaghan remain on the Board of Directors and will continue to lead DFC’s growth plans over the coming years. The board will be accountable to the trustees of the EOT to ensure that DFC is being run with a view to quality, profitability, sustainability, and ensuring that employees continue to be at the heart of the organisation.

The creation of the EOT is something that has been developed to map out the succession plan of the business, and the DFC team has been kept informed along the way. One of our earliest team members, Iris Chang who joined DFC in 2016 gives some thoughts on the completed transaction:

“I feel fortunate to have been an employee that has been kept informed of the Shareholder’s succession planning. We were involved at key steps as to the options that were being considered, the pros and cons of each. I know that this decision had not been made lightly and the impact on the company and its employees were at the heart of the process.

 I am glad to hear that the Shareholders have decided to make this leap to adopt the EOT approach and I am looking forward to the next chapter for DFC.”

(Iris Chang, Associate)

 

 

 

  • Posted by Iain Macfarlane
  • On 13th December 2024

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