CEO Steve Gund says The Gund Company has never laid off an employee since its predecessor began operating in 1951 and describes employee input as part of its management approach.
The company traces its roots to a predecessor business Ed Gund established in 1951, according to its history. The Gund Company makes engineered materials and components for electrical power systems, Steve Gund said in a talk published March 11, 2026.
Gund credited his father with setting the no-layoff principle, recalling him saying, “we'll have a layoff over my dead body.” The statement is Gund’s account of the family’s employment history.
In the same talk, Gund described an employee stock-ownership plan through which employees collectively received a 30% stake. He also discussed open-book management and involving workers in continuous improvement. More than 250 company leaders had completed a three-day listening course, he said.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the company’s annual growth averaged 18% over the decade it examined and that sales were nearing $400 million. It also said hundreds of executives had visited to learn about the company’s management approach.
The Journal described a workplace that keeps staffing restrained during slower periods, displays employee concerns on red cards and has managers and workers plan career development together. It reported that employees who do not adapt to the company’s performance culture are managed out. Gund also recalled that the family business once had a culture of 50- to 60-hour workweeks.
Together, those accounts describe both employee ownership and development opportunities, as well as lean staffing and demanding performance expectations. The Journal reported that Gund bought back its existing employee stock-ownership plan in 2026 and was preparing a broader arrangement for staff across its international operations. Its report did not give a launch date.
