Johnthecoopdude

Real Name: John McNamara
A co-operative practitioner since 1998--I worked for '''Union Cab of Madison Co-operative''' until 2014--the last couple of years as a General Manager, but have served eight years on its board of directors.

I have a Ph.D. in Business Administration from St. Mary's University'where I also earned a Masters in cooperative managementin 2010. My dissertation, "Aligning Values and Practice: A Comparative Analysis of Worker Managed Co-ops Using the Co-op Index Tool" uses a comparative case study to examine how traditional hierarchy, collective management, and sociocracy help co-ops operationalise the Co-operative Identity. I served as president of the U. S. Federation of Worker Cooperatives and have a blog on the co-operative movement: The Workers' Paradise.

I have been trying to raise the awareness of the co-operative business model and the educational opportunities within that movement. I am currently in Olympia, WA where I work as a co-operative developer for the Northwest Cooperative Development Center and occasionally teach co-op management at The Evergreen State College

If you would like to help on these articles or learn more about co-operatives, feel free to send an e-mail johnm@nwcdc.coop.