When Stacie Harshbarger Gass joined Printable (asi/299458) in 1999, the company was already familiar territory. She’d been working for a screen printer at the time, and Printable was her client. Soon after, the owners invited her to come aboard – a decision that would shape a nearly three-decade career.

“It’s just a very comfortable place to work,” says Harshbarger Gass, now operations manager, though she jokes that her real title is “creator, weirdo and chaos wrangler.” “There’s not a lot of office politics. I’m free to speak my mind with the owners.”

Printable (asi/299458) employees go on many outings together.

The story is representative of Printable’s culture: Employees aren’t just encouraged to contribute ideas – they’re empowered to act on them.

Liz McCaffrey, senior sales assistant, has watched that philosophy play out over nearly two decades. Hired after applying for a sales role, she ultimately landed in a position better aligned with her strengths. Today, as the last point of contact before projects go to production, she focuses heavily on relationship building.

“What we’re very good at as a team is structuring roles around the people – a person’s capabilities – versus forcing them into something predefined,” McCaffrey adds. “That makes everyone happier, and we’re a much smoother-running organization.”

Anthony Herrera, senior graphic designer, has experienced that same support during his 15-year tenure. Recommended for the role after being laid off during the 2008 downturn, Herrera quickly noticed a difference in leadership philosophy. He says that Mitch Silver, vice president of marketing, “is very concerned about his workers” and would “much rather employees succeed than the company itself.”

That people-first mindset extends beyond the office walls. “They take care of families – local economies of a family dynamic work well,” Herrera adds. “The culture is built around empathy.”

With a small team, every hire carries weight, a reality that shapes Printable’s approach to recruiting and onboarding. Candidates meet the entire staff over lunch before a final decision is made.

“When you add one person, they are 10% of your workforce,” Harshbarger Gass says. “They have a huge impact on how people like their jobs and how profitable the company can be.”

New hires spend their first week shadowing colleagues and meeting departments to understand how the business connects. “We don’t like people to just come in and push a button because that’s what they were told to do,” she says. “We want them to understand why they’re pushing the button and be able to decide if it’s even the right thing to do.”

Herrera believes listening is the cornerstone of that environment. Creating a positive culture, he says, starts with “being open and accepting different ideas, mindsets and points of view.” Yet the strongest retention tool may simply be the day-to-day atmosphere. Many employees socialize outside of work, and uniqueness is celebrated – like a sales assistant known for raising fainting goats.

The Printable team ventures out into Chicago together.

After 27 years, Harshbarger Gass says it’s easy to take the camaraderie for granted. “Sometimes I forget how good I have it because it’s just so comfortable,” she says.

For Herrera, the culture continues to fuel his professional growth. Despite his long tenure, he notes that he still feels he has “a long way to go” in his career, which shows a workplace that he says prioritizes development alongside stability.