Jagler: Environmental, financial sustainability can coexist, QuadPackaging executive says

Paul Nowak says his expertise is in packaging, but his passion is for sustainability.

So, I posed the following question: “When you say sustainability, are you talking about the financial sustainability of a business or the environmental sustainability of a business?”

His reply came without hesitation. “Yes! People. Planet. Profit. It’s triple bottom line thinking,” Nowak said. “They’re not mutually exclusive. Environmental tree huggers and ROI (return on investment) lovers can coexist. It is not an either/or proposition.”

Nowak is the senior director of sales strategy and business development at QuadPackaging, a Franklin-based division of Quad/Graphics Inc. in Sussex.

Nowak joined the Quad team when the firm acquired his former company, Proteus Packaging, in 2013.

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“As a brand packaging nerd, I often find myself talking to other business leaders about sustainability. Packaging has long been a focal point for sustainability efforts and it is a natural topic — whether it’s about compostable packages or reducing plastics in our oceans and lakes,” Nowak said. “The conversation often leads to a point where we all look at each other and ask ourselves where to begin, as trying to have an impact can seem overwhelming. I find that breaking it down into easily understood and manageable buckets is a simple tactic to make progress without feeling overwhelmed.”

So, for this week’s C-Level listicle, I asked Nowak to share his keys for creating a more sustainable workplace. Here they are:

1. Figure out what’s important. “Start by surveying your organization, clients, vendors and all other stakeholders on what they view as priorities in order of importance. These surveys will bring forth patterns that resonate with business goals. Every organization has stated goals and business objectives and too often these are seen as exclusive from sustainability goals, but they are not,” Nowak said.
2. Look at your brand. “It is amazing how many people I talk to who miss this step. Your brand has a personality and mission that can heavily guide you in deciding where to spend your limited resources and, ultimately, make the biggest difference in supporting your mission,” Nowak said.
3. Assess what you are currently working on. “Often, business teams don’t realize that many of their current initiatives could be easily tweaked to support and advance sustainability efforts. Evaluate all of your current projects, and you may find that your business is doing more than you even realized,” Nowak said.
4. Where is the data? “In order to make progress with sustainability initiatives, companies have to make a commitment to accurately track the data. This means getting stakeholders engaged in determining the right metrics to measure. For some companies, it might mean reducing water pollution or ensuring fair trade,” Nowak said.
5. Find the heroes. “As you implement sustainability measures in your business and start seeing positive results, people in your organization will become more enthusiastic, and some employees at all levels of the company will naturally gravitate toward more involvement because of a personal passion. Bring them into the fold. These people make the projects fun and have the best ideas on how to push forward,” Nowak said.
6. Set goals, even if you are afraid you won’t achieve them. “This is your company! Don’t be afraid to be the North Star and set key indicators of success. Hold the team accountable, but don’t be afraid to adjust a goal for good reason. Too many groups get stuck because of fear of failure. Doing some of a sustainability effort is often better than doing none. Go for it!” Nowak said.
7. Communication, buy-in and support. “Make sure leadership understands and supports these environmental initiatives. Find someone on your board or executive committee and leverage them to help take the initiative forward to your leadership team. These steps can make the complex a little less frightening and are not dependent on being a sustainability expert,” Nowak said.

Steve Jagler is the business editor of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. C-Level stands for high-ranking executives, typically those with “chief” in their titles. Send C-Level column ideas to him at steve.jagler@journalsentinel.com.

Paul Nowak

Title: Senior director of sales strategy and business development

Company name: QuadPackaging, a division of Quad/Graphics Inc.

Hometown: Milwaukee

Residence: Milwaukee

Education: Bachelor’s degree in business science, Cardinal Stritch University

Family: Husband, Mark Straight, and dogs, Audrey and Otis

Best advice ever received: “Don't squander your natural talents because you would rather have talents someone else has. This is the greatest hubris.” 

Favorite movie: Anything Marvel

Favorite musical artist: “Deep diving Aretha Franklin currently.”  

Favorite Wisconsin restaurant: Lulu cafe, Bay View

After hours: “I love rescue pit bulls. I have two rescues currently and wish I could have more.” 

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