McAninch Corp., a Des Moines-based excavating and earthmoving contractor, has announced it has changed to employee ownership after 56 years as a family-owned company.

McAninch CEO Doug McAninch said in a news release that the move to an employee stock ownership plan is meant to preserve the company’s culture and brand, while providing new performance incentives for workers.

“Employee ownership allowed us to achieve those goals, while ensuring an ownership transition that rewards our employees and preserves McAninch as a company for generations to come. We are still a family business, but the family just got bigger,” he said in the prepared statement.

The decision to become employee-owned was shared with McAninch employees at an event Oct. 13, and the transition to the new stock ownership program was effective Sept. 15.

McAninch specializes in large-scale mass grading and underground utility projects for public and private sector projects running from residential and commercial developments to highways, industrial parks and flood-control levees, according to the company’s website.

McAninch Corp.’s portfolio includes site work on the 88,000-square-foot Lauridsen Skatepark on the Principal Riverwalk. Doug McAninch also contributed at least $100,000 to the project.

Employee stock ownership plans are becoming an increasingly popular method for companies to bridge the gap between employees and corporate success, according to a Sept. 30 report from Yahoo! Finance.

“After over 55 years in business, this is a real milestone for us,” Ed Origer, McAninch president and chief operating officer, said in a prepared statement. “This move offers valuable benefits to our employees and to our clients. Employees can continue to work and retire with dignity. Employee ownership also motivates employees around our shared success by encouraging them to think and act like an owner. This builds engagement, supports longevity, and makes our culture of teamwork even stronger.”