On graduation day, a diverse group of Cascade Engineering employees — including resource professionals and manufacturing staff — each received their Certificate of Supervisory Management from Davenport University’s Institute for Professional Excellence. The achievement each person felt filled the room as they celebrated and shared their final takeaways.

IPEx brings its courses, certificate programs and corporate trainings to Cascade Engineering, providing an added convenience and comfort for its employees.

“We want to help our employees better themselves for their futures, whether that be inside or outside Cascade,” said Valorie Dewey, HR Manager of Talent Development. “We love knowing that our employees have gained knowledge from the education they received.”

This is how the relationship between DU and Cascade Engineering began more than two decades ago.

“Employees at IPEx, DU faculty members and the program facilitators were always willing to come out here and learn about Cascade,” Dewey said. “They would walk the plants and meet some of the employees ahead of time and then bring that sense of understanding into the classroom. IPEx is like my family. They always go above and beyond.”

IPEx’s Certificate of Supervisory Management is a 12-week, 6-session course focused on the core competencies necessary to increase productivity and performance.

Individuals who take this course learn how to build collaboration, promote trust and empower employees to achieve results.

“IPEx has spent more than 25 years perfecting the impact of management practices in an experiential manner,” IPEx Executive Director Daniel Rundhaug said. “Through our Certificate of Supervisory Management, companies like Cascade Engineering see a substantial increase in their management staffs’ abilities to achieve company goals through improved knowledge, skills and abilities. Our CSM program produces long-term behavioral results in the managers, and that trickles down to the employees.”

Lisa Reminga, a department manager at Cascade Engineering, completed the program in 2017.

“I learned more than I thought I would and really appreciated the employee-focused perspective,” Reminga said. “I am really trying to be more attentive to the person who reports to me and what her needs are­­—both personally and professionally.”

The course also can provide three academic credits toward an undergraduate degree at DU, which is helpful for employees considering a bachelor’s degree.

In addition to bringing programs on-site, IPEx offers multiple public offering sessions year-round. Other IPEx management course offerings include the Certificate of Integrated Operations Management, Emotional Intelligence, Difficult Conversations and Finance for the Non-Financial Manager.