Veteran Treasury Management Officer Steven Clark Joins Wisconsin Bank & Trust as Vice President

Wisconsin Bank & Trust is pleased to welcome Steven Clark, a longtime treasury and cash management bank officer in the greater Milwaukee area, as Vice President, Treasury Management. In this role, Clark oversees Treasury Management statewide.

“Steve Clark is among the most experienced treasury management professionals in the state, with three decades of successful service to businesses throughout Wisconsin,” said Kevin Tenpas, President and CEO of Wisconsin Bank & Trust. “As we continue to grow both Treasury Management and the bank as a whole, Steve’s talents are a tremendous addition to our team.”

Prior to joining Wisconsin Bank & Trust, Clark most recently held Vice President and Sales Manager roles at two large regional banks. Previously, he held senior treasury and cash management roles for banks headquartered in the Milwaukee area. Across these roles, Clark has built a record of building and managing teams to provide a high level of service to customers while growing deposits and revenues for the lending institutions.

Clark has been in banking his whole career, which he launched as a manager of two Marshall & Ilsley Bank branches, including one in Brookfield, where Clark continues to make his home. Over the years he has been active in coaching his two sons in football, soccer and basketball. His passion, outside of work, includes spending time outdoors with his family camping, fishing, golfing and mountain biking whenever he has the chance.

Clark is based from one of Wisconsin Bank & Trust’s two banking centers in the Milwaukee metro area: 5380 N. Port Washington Road in Glendale. He can be reached at (414) 930-7015 or sclark@wisconsinbankandtrust.com.

About Wisconsin Bank & Trust

Wisconsin Bank & Trust (WBT), a subsidiary of Heartland Financial USA, Inc., (NASDAQ: HTLF), is a business-focused community bank with assets of more than $1 billion. With eighteen banking centers and one mortgage loan origination office, Wisconsin Bank & Trust serves customers in the Madison, Milwaukee, Green Bay, Sheboygan, Monroe and southwest areas of Wisconsin. WBT offers a wide range of personal and business banking, private client and mortgage lending services. For more information, visit www.wisconsinbankandtrust.com or call 608.203.1214. Wisconsin Bank & Trust is a member of the FDIC and an Equal Housing Lender.

About Heartland Financial USA, Inc.

Heartland Financial USA, Inc. is a diversified financial services company with assets exceeding $8 billion. The company provides banking, mortgage, private client, investment, insurance and consumer finance services to individuals and businesses. Heartland currently has 112 banking locations serving 87 communities in Iowa, Illinois, Wisconsin, New Mexico, Arizona, Montana, Colorado, Minnesota, Kansas, Missouri, Texas and California. Additional information about Heartland Financial USA, Inc. is available at www.htlf.com.

SVA and BBB team up for ShredFest 2017

SVA and the Better Business Bureau (BBB) are set to host ShredFest 2017 in Madison and Milwaukee. Complimentary shredding services will be available to the public on April 29, 2017 at Warner Park in Madison and on May 6, 2017 at the SVA offices in Brookfield.

Every three seconds someone is a victim of identity theft. Criminals can use your stolen personal and financial information to access your bank accounts, open new accounts, and apply for loans, credit cards and other goods and services. Prevention is key and one way to protect yourself is to shred documents that are no longer needed.

“In today’s environment where identity theft is continually on the rise, it is vitally important to dispose of confidential documents properly to protect one’s personal information,” states Carl Schultz, President & CEO of SVA. “We are excited to provide this complimentary shredding event to our clients and the community so they can feel safe and secure.”

For more information including times and locations, visit www.SVAaccountants.com/events.

About SVA

Since our inception in 1974, we have focused on developing long-standing business relationships.  As our clients’ businesses and personal interests have grown, we have increased our service offerings to meet their expanding needs.

Now over 40 years later, SVA and its affiliates are recognized leaders offering a wide range of professional services including audit and accounting, tax, business information technologies, wealth management, trust and estate administration services.

The cornerstone of SVA will always remain the same, providing service and value to help our clients achieve measurable results, while exceeding their expectations.  SVA is not only dedicated to the clients we serve, we are dedicated to the communities we serve, maintaining a long tradition of involvement and support.

SVA is headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin, employs over 300 staff, and has additional offices in Milwaukee and Appleton, Wisconsin and Rockford, Illinois.

www.sva.com

Brian Showers Named Senior Vice President at Wisconsin Bank & Trust

Wisconsin Bank & Trust is pleased to announce that Brian Showers has been promoted to Senior Vice President in addition to his role as Wisconsin Market Leader. Showers has statewide responsibility for Wisconsin Bank & Trust’s mortgage sales and operations, including the bank’s dedicated mortgage loan production office in Madison, where Showers is based.

“Brian embodies operational expertise and a commitment to excellence,” said Kevin Tenpas, Wisconsin Bank & Trust President and CEO. “His hard work translates into high-quality service and solutions for Wisconsin Bank & Trust customers statewide.”

About Wisconsin Bank & Trust

Wisconsin Bank & Trust (WBT), a subsidiary of Heartland Financial USA, Inc., (NASDAQ: HTLF), is a business-focused community bank with assets of more than $1 billion. With eighteen banking centers and one mortgage loan origination office, Wisconsin Bank & Trust serves customers in the Madison, Milwaukee, Green Bay, Sheboygan, Monroe and southwest areas of Wisconsin. WBT offers a wide range of personal and business banking, private client and mortgage lending services. For more information, visit www.wisconsinbankandtrust.com or call 608.203.1214. Wisconsin Bank & Trust is a member of the FDIC and an Equal Housing Lender.

About Heartland Financial USA, Inc.

Heartland Financial USA, Inc. is a diversified financial services company with assets exceeding $8 billion. The company provides banking, mortgage, private client, investment, insurance and consumer finance services to individuals and businesses. Heartland currently has 112 banking locations serving 87 communities in Iowa, Illinois, Wisconsin, New Mexico, Arizona, Montana, Colorado, Minnesota, Kansas, Missouri, Texas and California. Additional information about Heartland Financial USA, Inc. is available at www.htlf.com.

American Family Begins Largest Rooftop Solar Installation

(Madison, Wis.) (March 24, 2017) – American Family Insurance is installing nearly 4,500 solar panels on its National Headquarters (NHQ) building in Madison, the latest project in the company’s award-winning sustainability efforts.

This will be the largest single rooftop solar installation in the state of Wisconsin to-date. Madison commercial solar developer, SunPeak is American Family’s chosen partner for this project, which is expected to take approximately 60-90 days to complete.

Solar photovoltaic (PV) systems use the sun’s rays to generate electricity in a quiet, clean manner that is always renewable. The system being installed at American Family’s NHQ will use a “delta wing” (east/west orientation) solar panel configuration. This creates a chevron-like pattern that maximizes solar density on a flat roof, without the need for a southern-facing exposure.

This installation is estimated to produce approximately 1.26 million kilowatts annually, which is enough energy to power 122 average-sized homes, or 874,000 60-watt light bulbs for one day. The panels have a service life of 30 years and no moving parts to wear out or replace, requiring little maintenance. The system is projected to offset six to nine percent of the building’s electrical usage, saving approximately $191,000 in annual energy costs.

In addition, the solar installation is expected to offset approximately 1.7 million pounds of carbon dioxide (CO2) gas annually and 51 million pounds of CO2 over the course of its 30-year service life. This is equal to the yearly emissions of roughly 213 automobiles.

The solar panel installation is just the latest in a number of sustainability projects American Family Insurance has implemented in its dedication to environmental stewardship and social responsibility. Some of the others include:

~Organics recycling at NHQ, Eden Prairie, Minn. location and coming to the East Region building, also in Madison. This recycling effort is a significant step toward American Family’s zero waste initiative, the diversion of 90 percent or more waste away from landfills.

~Native prairie restorations at the NHQ location as part of the company’s sustainable land management program.

~High-efficiency lighting at all offices, including the integration of LED in select locations.

~Water savings of more than 4.5 million gallons per year through redesign of the NHQ kitchen refrigeration systems as well as integration of soft water into cooling systems (the equivalent of four-and-one-fourth Olympic-sized swimming pools).

~Retro-commissioning efforts at multiple buildings. Retro-commissioning is a full assessment and recalibration of the HVAC controls and settings.

~Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) registration at the Eden Prairie, Minn. and East Region building in Madison.

“American Family Insurance has made a commitment to sustainability by implementing projects and initiatives that protect our environment and contribute to the well-being of our communities,” said Dan Rosetta, American Family Insurance facilities operations director. “Conserving energy and utilizing renewable energy reaffirms our commitment to the environment while also reducing our operating costs, and that means we can better meet the needs of our customers.”

About American Family Insurance
Madison, Wis. – based American Family Insurance, celebrating its 90^th anniversary in 2017, is the nation’s 13th-largest property/casualty insurance group and ranks No. 332 on the Fortune 500 list. The company sells American Family-brand products, including auto, homeowners, life, business and farm/ranch insurance, through its exclusive agents in 19 states. American Family affiliates (The General, Homesite and AssureStart) also provide options for consumers who want to manage their insurance matters directly over the Internet or by phone. Web www.amfam.com; Facebook www.facebook.com/amfam; Twitter www.twitter.com/amfam; Google+ plus.google.com/+amfam/.

About SunPeak

SunPeak is a turnkey developer of commercial solar systems, handling feasibility studies, financial payback analysis, system engineering, installation, and ongoing maintenance. Projects typically range from 100 kW to 5 MW and offer significant cost savings relative to conventional utility rates. The company was founded in 2014 by Chad Sorenson and a team of leading global solar developers who have completed more than 350 MW of installations on three continents over the past decade, including projects in Canada, Germany and Japan.  More information at www.sunpeakpower.com or (608) 535-4554.

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The Alliance® Receives $50,000 Grant to Develop QualityPath® for Colonoscopies

MADISON, Wis. (March 22, 2017) – The Alliance® has received a matching grant of up to $50,000 to expand its QualityPath® program to create a pathway to high-value colonoscopies.

The matching grant was made by the Purchaser Value Network (PVN), an initiative of the Pacific Business Group on Health, San Francisco, Calif. PVN aims to accelerate the adoption of high-value health care delivery and payment models through policy advocacy, education and purchaser engagement.

The Alliance received one of eight PVN grants made nationwide with funding provided by the Laura and John Arnold Foundation. PVN announced the grants in press releases on Feb. 6 and March 21.  The grants provide funding of up to $50,000 for regional business coalitions implementing innovative practices in value-based purchasing and health care payment reform.

The Alliance plans to introduce QualityPath for colonoscopies in June 2018. Launched in 2015, the QualityPath program currently guides patients to high-quality providers for CTs and MRI scans and knee replacement, total hip replacement and coronary artery bypass graft surgeries.

QualityPath offers these benefits:

• For surgeries, using a bundled payment approach, which means that all participating doctors, clinics and hospitals receive a single, pre-determined payment. In a traditional approach, each component of the surgery is billed separately.
• Eliminating out-of-pocket costs or deductibles for patients on a traditional health plan when using QualityPath (savings vary for patients with a plan that has a health savings account).
• Identifying high-quality care based on national quality measures. For surgeries and for colonoscopies, quality measurements are based on the combination of a specific doctor working at a specific hospital.
• Providing a warranty for care provided as part of QualityPath.

Employers who are members of The Alliance can enroll in QualityPath, which is then offered to employees and family members enrolled in health plans that use The Alliance network. A list of participating doctors, hospitals and clinics is available on The Alliance website (www.the-alliance.org).

The Alliance is a not-for-profit cooperative that moves health care forward by controlling costs, improving quality and engaging individuals in their health. Members include more than 240 self-funded employers and multiemployer plans in Wisconsin, Illinois and Iowa.

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Alliance President and CEO Cheryl DeMars is available for interviews on request.

ABOUT THE PURCHASER VALUE NETWORK

The Purchaser Value Network, an initiative of the Pacific Business Group on Health, aims to accelerate the adoption of high value health care delivery and payment models through policy advocacy, education and purchaser engagement. The network seeks to inject purchaser perspectives and innovative best practices into federal and state policy decision making, educate employers about value-based purchasing and advocacy opportunities, and aligns three critical purchaser sectors – private employers, states, and the federal government – around evidence-based practices. For more information, visit www.pvnetwork.org.