Schreiber Foods, Green Bay, was awarded the 2024 New North Workplace Excellence Award.
Selected from nominated companies through a multi-phase evaluation process, representatives from the firm were presented the award at the New North Summit, held June 6 at Lambeau Field in Green Bay.
Award submissions are evaluated on two primary criteria: People Practices and Business Practices. The Workplace Excellence Award is a collaboration between New North Inc. and Keystone Partners.
“Schreiber’s commitment to a diverse and inclusive workforce is one that all companies should seek to emulate,” says Barb LaMue, president and CEO of New North Inc. “It also has been a primary factor in their unprecedented success in recent years. Exceptional people and business practices are central to the New North Workplace Excellence Award, and Schreiber is outstanding in both areas. We truly are fortunate to have their leadership in our region’s business community.”
Schreiber Foods is a food and beverage producer that delivers leading consumer brands in cream cheese, natural cheese, process cheese, beverages and yogurt. Founded in 1945, it has more than 10,000 employees across five continents, and its annual sales are more than $7 billion.
During and after the COVID-19 pandemic, Schreiber was forced to address how it found and kept talent, along with the work environment. It evaluated the entire employee experience, from recruitment to training to providing a sense of belonging.
Between 2020-24, Schreiber experienced growth at a level it never before had experienced. It credits lowered turnover in plant locations, revamped benefit practices, more flexible scheduling, an increased emphasis on training and development, and a work environment where employees can thrive as critical factors in its enhanced success over the past five years.
The company’s global diversity, equity and inclusion efforts were critical to the creation of a welcoming and safe culture where employees can grow, develop and have a sense of belonging. Schreiber internally publishes Global Dashboards for its partners – across all levels – to better understand the makeup of the organization. The dashboards break down the organization by gender and, when legal, other identifiers such as ethnic minority and national origin, providing the knowledge needed to increase diversity and focus their retention efforts.
Schreiber also offers professional development programs at all employee levels, focusing on the creation of touch points that leaders can use to develop their teams.
Every partner is challenged to bring forth direct and intentional ideas to help diversify the workplace and ensure that Schreiber’s culture is inclusive to all employees. The company’s strategic plan, updated annually, outlines specific steps designed to enhance workforce diversification.
Schreiber additionally has seven partner-led Business Resource Groups globally to better support its employees and to broaden awareness of other cultures, perspectives and points of view. The company has increased ethnic minority and female representation among U.S. salaried and home office hourly employees, while also decreasing ethnic minority and female turnover.
In 2022, its CEO instituted a requirement that U.S. salaried and home office open positions have a diverse candidate slate before interviewing candidates, allowing Schreiber to cast a wider net for all positions while aligning with the overall organizational goal to intentionally diversify the company.
Schreiber’s talent acquisition team also has sought diverse partnerships with Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Related Sciences and a variety of other organizations to assist in increased representation throughout the company. This emphasis has resulted in an increase in ethnic minority new hires for U.S. salaried and home office hourly positions.
“Our partners are foundational to our company’s success,” says Jenene Calloway, senior vice president, talent development and chief diversity officer for Schreiber Foods. “We have made it a priority to understand what they care about and continue to invest in an environment where all our partners can thrive, grow and have a sense of belonging. Our diversity, equity and inclusion efforts are a lens through which we use to ensure we care for all 10,000 partners in ways that matter to them.”
Organizations located within the New North were qualified for the award. Companies did not need to be headquartered in New North for eligibility, but were required to have a division or location within the region.
Recent winners of the New North Workplace Excellence Award include Wisconsin Aluminum Foundry and CLA (2023); J. F. Ahern Co. (2022); Wipfli (2020-21); Integrity Insurance (2019); Schneider (2018); American Transmission Company, Expera Specialty Solutions and Werner Electric (2017); Foth (2016); Oshkosh Corp. (2015); and U.S. Venture, Inc. (2014).
