“Quad’s focus on employee learning and career development has really existed since the very beginning — it’s part of Harry’s legacy,” says Rachel Leatherbury, Executive Director of Talent Management, referring to the company’s late founder Harry Quadracci, who was obsessed with finding “a better way” to engage employees. “It’s a commitment that’s built on the belief that what’s good for Quad employees will also be good for our clients and the company overall.”
Leading Within Quad (LWQ) is a manifestation of the company’s desire to support employees’ career development. The program includes a series of instructor-led courses, with three tiers — a fourth is in development — for all levels of leadership.
Structured for self-enrollment and offered multiple times a year, Leading People, the first level of LWQ, is designed for current and emerging people leaders, offering both in-person and virtual options. Quad instructors lead participants through a series of courses covering topics ranging from emotional intelligence to trust-building communication skills. In 2024, over 600 employees participated in Leading People.
The second and third levels of LWQ address, respectively, Advanced Leadership and Executive Development. Taking place every other year, these programs are developed and conducted in partnership with the University of Wisconsin’s Center for Professional Education (CPED) and led by CPED instructors who are all experts in their field.
Advanced Leadership is focused on helping director-level leaders understand how their “leadership style and approach to change directly affects the outcomes for their group,” Leatherbury says. And LWQ’s Executive Development program, newly redesigned in 2024, is focused on further developing emerging executives, diving into concepts including competitive strategy, matrix management, negotiation and financial acumen. As Leatherbury explains it, “We use this program to develop a truly cross-functional understanding of the way business works, incorporating external expertise from UW CPED with insights from Quad’s executive leadership team. As an additional benefit, these two programs bring leaders together, in person, to facilitate developing a network of cross-business relationships that strengthen culture and reinforce the collaboration necessary for us to win as one.”
The forthcoming Leadership Foundations track, currently in pilot, will focus on recently promoted leaders to “help them through the shift in mindset from operating as an individual to leading a team,” Leatherbury notes.
Providing intentional support for employees at all levels
In addition to supporting up-and-coming leaders, Quad offers self-guided learning for employees at all levels through Grow at Quad. Launched in early 2024, this online learning and development resource features tools and resources to help employees take ownership of their development, engage in available courses, tap into performance management and navigate their careers. From Grow at Quad, employees can tap into My Learning — Quad’s learning management system — to gain access to courses across a range of topics designed to build soft skills, business acumen, leadership skills and technical expertise. They also can build out their Talent Profile, where they can showcase their unique qualifications, share accomplishments and upload certifications. “We think of the Talent Profile like an internal résumé, and it is actually used when employees wish to apply to an internal job posting,” Leatherbury notes.
On Quad’s manufacturing side, the company’s central city Milwaukee recruiting, transportation and training hub, known as Quad MKE, facilitates a pre-apprenticeship program in partnership with the Milwaukee-based Innovative Educational Solutions Institute to help employees upskill. The year-and-a-half program provides employees with up to eight hours per week of classroom training, with offerings focused on lean manufacturing, maintenance, upkeep and more. “Our goal is to facilitate their transition into actual apprenticeship careers,” says Quad MKE Site Director Brandon Ramey.
Last year, Quad MKE welcomed its first-ever manufacturing coach to provide dedicated support to employees “from the second they walk in the door through their entire journey here,” Ramey says. Serving as both a mentor and liaison between employees on the manufacturing floor and leadership, the manufacturing coach acts as a resource for employees on their career development journey, helping them build their skill sets and résumé.
The idea behind the introduction of the manufacturing coach — as with all of Quad’s career development efforts — is to be more intentional in supporting employees, providing “a shoulder for them to lean on through their journey here at Quad,” Ramey says.
Beyond manufacturing roles, Quad MKE also helps prepare individuals for administrative and creative agency careers within Quad, especially as the company continues to expand its marketing solutions portfolio.
