Clarissa´s Story

I am originally from a small farming town in rural Virginia, I went to college in Northern VA then soon after lived in NYC, NJ, and then CT. While in CT I worked in the corporate office from 2016 until 2020 when we transitioned to full time remote. This finally allowed me the opportunity to move back to my hometown and be surrounded by my family.

I am a single mom to an energetic and adventurous 8-year-old boy who loves for us to do science experiments together, go fishing, or play board games (we are both super competitive). My son has a Anole lizard named Squirt, that his tio (uncle) won for him at the local county fair, and a beta fish.

I love to go on hikes in the surrounding Blue Ridge Mountains, read, go horseback riding, travel and explore new places.

The culture of Quadient has been evolving since I first joined, but one of the fundamental pieces that has remained was a sense of family or community within the different teams of the organization. The unspoken norms of the organization are thet we are all here to work hard and support each other.

Over my 7-year journey at Quadient, starting as the US HR Administrative Assistant, I transformed my career trajectory with the company's support. Through cross-training, project involvement, and the Benefits Team opportunity, I honed my skills.

Leveraging Quadient's tuition reimbursement, I earned a Human Resource Management Masters Certificate from the University of Phoenix in 2017 and a master’s in Industrial & Organizational Psychology from George Mason University in 2020. With support, I achieved SHRM certification in 2022 and pursued ongoing education through SHRM membership.

Moving into the Diversity & Inclusion Specialist role, my VP backed my education, enabling enrollment in Georgetown University’s Institute for Transformational Leadership Executive Certificate in Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion. Quadient's development opportunities empowered me to align my career with my values.

I owe this transformation to the unwavering support of my direct leader, who believed in me, providing the resources to turn my career goals into reality.

I enjoy being able to work with colleagues globally and throughout our organization to improve our employee’s experience within Quadient and impact our external communities. Part of the role with Diversity & Inclusion is looking at that the different levels of system within the organization and how actions by leadership and managers can have a positive impact on marginalized groups. I appreciate the impact I have on changing the misconceptions of what DEI work is and with that work improve the ability at Quadient to have divergent voices and faces represented in our organization.

Community resonates with me the most. The work the NORAM HR team do every day is with the lens of how we can positively impact and improve the employee’s journey here at Quadient. We collaborate and with other teams in service of our internal customers, the employees who power the company.