Warrendale, Pennsylvania - Printing Industries of America has recognized Michael Peluso, president, Shawmut Communications Group, as the 2016 recipient of the Managing for Improvement Award. This award is bestowed each year on a manager in the printing industry who demonstrates the ability to create real and lasting improvement for his or her company.

Peluso’s nomination credited him with leading a transformation in the service offerings, culture, and performance of Shawmut through adherence to a forward thinking, continuous improvement mentality. The Danvers, Massachusetts company develops custom print solutions and integrated marketing campaigns for clients across New England.

After sixteen years on the sales and management team, Peluso was appointed president of Shawmut in early 2014 during a period of severe business challenges. In response to a negative OSHA inspection and a historic slowdown in work volume, his first decision was to engage almost every member of the operations and customer service staff in a dedicated program on Lean manufacturing. The cross functional educational format allowed almost every employee to participate and to see firsthand the challenges the company faced. Every business process was open for analysis and investigation. A targeted look at the customer experience and industry benchmarking on efficient practices resulted in a set of activities that created a standing Lean team, a 5S and safety focus, a team-based problem solving methodology, and a way to evaluate and triage customer issues in a swift and efficient manner.

“His efforts resulted in unprecedented growth in sales and profits at the 65-year-old firm,” said Peluso’s nominator. “As someone who has worked with hundreds of different companies in many different industries, I am in a unique position to comment on the changes that have taken place and that continue to take place under Peluso’s leadership.”

Peluso will receive his award at the 2016 Continuous Improvement Conference, April 10–13 in Milwaukee, WI. More information about the conference is available at ci.printing.org.