Reisch Exits Quebecor World

MONTREAL—Marc L. Reisch, president and CEO of Quebecor World North America, has made a quick departure from his post, leaving the company he helped transition and integrate during the largest-ever merger in the history of the commercial printing industry.

Reisch's departure, which had been rumored for several weeks, was made official in a brief company press release issued September 17. The release cited Reisch's desire to pursue other opportunities as the reason for leaving.

His position will not be filled, according to Tony Ross, communications director for the world's largest printer. However, the company did announce that John Paloian and David Boles, respective heads of the Magazine/Catalog and Retail and Sunday Magazines divisions, were named co-chief operating officers. They will report directly to Charles G. Cavell, president and CEO.

"Marc has made a great contribution to Quebecor World and we wish him well in his future endeavors," Cavell said in the statement. "Quebecor World's North American business is managed along core product lines. Each product group is headed by a strong management team that is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the business. The presidents and their respective teams will continue to provide the leadership and customer service that makes our company the world's leading print media services company."

According to the release, Reisch feels it is time for him to tackle other challenges. "I am pleased with what we have accomplished in making Quebecor World the number one global printer," he said. "After completing the successful merger of Quebecor Printing and World Color Press, I believe now is the right time for me to move on to other challenges. I am also proud of the fact that I am leaving behind the most capable and dynamic management team in the industry."

Sudden Departure

Ross said that while Reisch's resignation was considered effective immediately, he offered to stay aboard during an undetermined transition period. But Reisch's secretary at Quebecor World's U.S. headquarters in Greenwich, CT, said that the company had decided not to use him in the transition and that he had left the company, but would be checking his voice mail. Reisch did not return a message left there.

Reisch, formerly president of World Color Press, became a central figure when World Color and Quebecor announced its historic merger in late 1999. The company made headlines with the announcement of layoffs and plant closings as it struggled to eliminate duplication, but quickly landed on its feet.

"From a big-picture standpoint, this was clearly the largest, most complicated transaction in the history of the printing industry," Reisch said in an April 2001 interview with Printing Impressions. "The good news: we accomplished it more quickly than anybody had anticipated. All the equipment that we took out of service and had to redeploy has come up well. Customer retention was virtually 100 percent, so the integration went as smoothly as we could have hoped."

Under the new operating structure, Paloian will continue to manage the Magazine/Catalog group and will assume responsibility for the Commercial/Direct and Logistics groups. Boles will continue to lead the Retail and Sunday Magazine group, and will oversee Quebecor World's premedia operations, Que-Net Media, the Directory group and the Book group.

"Both John and David have provided leadership in implementing the merger of Quebecor Printing and World Color Press, as well as our recent restructuring initiatives, giving them an intimate knowledge of our industry-leading North American platform," Cavell says. "With these tasks now essentially complete, John and David are the ideal team to take this platform to the next level. I look forward to working closely with them to create new value for our shareholders, customers and employees."