Lake Ridge Bank’s Jordan Casto Receives National Award

June 6, 2023 (MADISON, Wis.) – Jordan Casto, a Lake Ridge Bank Vice President-Business Banking, was recently recognized by Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) as one of their 40 Under 40: Emerging Community Bank Leaders of 2023. 

ICBA’s 40 Under 40 award recognizes community-minded, innovative leaders under 40 years old from across the country who represent the future of the community banking industry. Candidates are judged on character, leadership, community involvement, and innovation. 

Casto’s very first job at 15 years old was dressing up as the mascot for the bank where his older brother worked at the time. That experience of representing the bank at parades and other events made him realize that community banks truly care about community engagement and making life better for families. It was the beginning of his belief in what banking can really mean as a career that supports neighbors and neighborhoods. 

Two recent initiatives helped Casto stand out among his peers nationally this year: 

• He researched and created protocols for handling projects that involve tax credits, enabling Lake Ridge Bank to help finance projects that serve a broader population within the community. 
   
• He created a “Get Started” guide to help prospective business owners better understand the complexities of running a business. The document outlines some of the basics for getting started more easily, including things like a typical timeline for certain aspects of business setup, how to register a new business with the State of Wisconsin, resources for bookkeeping and HR services, options for financing, and a handful of other ways to help them bridge that gap of knowledge more quickly and easily. 

Casto is an active member of Wisconsin Bankers Association and the Middleton Chamber of Commerce, where he helps plan the annual Sip, Sample & Socialize event. For the past six years, Casto has also served on the Emerging Leadership Board (ELB) at the UW Carbone Cancer Center. As a cancer survivor himself, he knows firsthand how important and impactful the work of the UW Carbone Cancer Center can be. Casto also enjoys volunteering as a coach with the Middleton Youth Hockey Association.

To learn more about all of the honorees, read the article in ICBA’s “Independent Banker” magazine. For more information about how Lake Ridge Bank can help you establish, expand, or elevate your business, contact a member of the Business Banking Team. 

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For additional information, please contact Mark Schellpfeffer at mschellpfeffer@lakeridge.bank.  

Summit Credit Union Awarded Top Workplaces in Madison, Milwaukee and the USA

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 6, 2023

Media Contact:
Jason Waller
(608) 243-5000
publicrelations@summitcreditunion.com  

Summit Credit Union Awarded Top Workplaces in Madison, Milwaukee and the USA
Three employee-nominated designations for company during first 6 months of 2023

MADISON, Wis. — Summit Credit Union, a member-owned financial cooperative, has been named Top Workplaces in Madison, Milwaukee and the USA. These honors are judged using company-wide surveys.

“We have a strong purpose that drives our culture and engagement,” said Summit CEO & President Kim Sponem. “We hire people who work hard and care about people. Those employees work to improve our members’ lives through financial education and advice based on their needs. That’s something we are all very passionate about.”

Summit Credit Union was named one of the Top Workplaces in the USA in January. In March, Summit was named in the Top Workplaces in Greater Madison. And in May the credit union was awarded Top Workplaces in the Milwaukee area.

Nominated organizations were judged using company-wide surveys measuring employee engagement. Survey categories include communication and cooperation, development opportunities, leadership and more.

Highlighted benefits of working at Summit Credit Union include staff tuition assistance, student loan repayment assistance and helping employees pay their children’s college tuition by offering them $1,000 per semester in aid for four years. 

Offerings also include a paid Diversity Day each year that allows employees to spend a day learning about culture or race, plus birthdays off. There’s also a wellness program that includes a 24/7 wellness center, a yoga studio, a sand volleyball court and bikes at its headquarters. 

Summit is committed to creating a working environment that offers professional development opportunities while promoting diversity, equity and inclusion. 

About Summit Credit Union   

Established in 1935, Summit Credit Union is a member-owned financial cooperative. Summit holds $6.4 billion in assets and has more than 240,000 members and 945 employees across 55 locations throughout south-central and southeastern Wisconsin. Since 2002, Kim Sponem has been CEO & President of Summit Credit Union, formerly known as CUNA Credit Union/Great Wisconsin Credit Union. Recognized for its excellence in employee engagement, Summit was named a Top Workplace in the USA in 2021, 2022 and 2023 by Top Workplaces USA and a Top Workplace in the Madison area for 2021, 2022 and 2023 by the Wisconsin State Journal.   

For more information, visit www.summitcreditunion.com or call 608-243-5000 or 800-236-5560.    

For additional media information, visit https://www.summitcreditunion.com/about-summit/press-room or follow Summit on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.    

Vierbicher named one of Best Firms To Work For

REEDSBURG, WI – Vierbicher has been named an official Best Firms to Work For according to the Zweig Group!

Vierbicher ranked at #25 in the 50-99 Employees category and came in at #28 in the Civil Engineering category. Firms are evaluated comprehensively on firm culture, workplace practices, employee benefits, employee retention rates, professional development, and more – from both management and staff perspective. Awards are given in multiple categories based on firm size and discipline.

Zweig Group’s Best Firms To Work For Awards honors outstanding workplaces at architecture, engineering, environmental, planning, construction, and related professional services (AEC) firms. Companies are recognized for their investment in the employee experience and creating an environment where their people feel valued, can make a difference, and can clearly see where their contribution fits into the overall mission and success of the firm.

“We believe this recognition reflects our commitment to the growth and success of our team,” says Rod Zubella, Vierbicher CEO. “Honest and positive feedback from employees affirms that our core values are effectively helping us work better towards creating a culture that inspires people to deliver exceptional results.”

Vierbicher, with offices in Madison, Reedsburg, Milwaukee, Prairie Du Chien, and Green Bay, delivers creative, yet proven and responsible solutions by applying the collaborative vision and expertise of our engineering, planning, and community development team.

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Wisconsin Technology Council: Holy cow! New Glarus Brewing co-founder Deb Carey to accept ‘Seize the Day’ award June 1 in Milwaukee

Deb Carey, co-founder and president of New Glarus Brewing Co., will receive the Ken Hendricks Memorial “Seize the Day” award June 1 during a luncheon at the Wisconsin Entrepreneurs’ Conference.

The conference at the Italian Community Center returns to the Cream City to celebrate the region’s rise as a startup and scale-up hub within the Midwest. Registration is open at witrepsconference.com or linked here.

Launching in 1992 with her brew-master husband, Deb Carey became the first woman to found and operate a brewery in the United States. The first barrels rolled out in November 1993 — the fastest microbrewery start-up ever. Daniel and Deb have combined their business management and brewing professionalism with a philosophy based on individuality, cooperation and use of 100% natural ingredients to produce world class, hand-crafted beers such as “Spotted Cow.”

Wisconsin native Carey attended Carroll College in Helena, Mont., majoring in marketing and graphics. An entrepreneur at heart, she started her first business at 16, followed by a succession of training and hands-on experiences. Today, New Glarus Brewing ranks among the top dozen craft breweries and top two-dozen U.S. breweries of any description.

Judged on the quality of its beers, New Glarus Brewing was named a “top 10 brewer in the world” by RateBeer.com.

The award, which celebrates entrepreneurial leaders who have been crucial to Wisconsin’s economic growth, is named in honor of the late Ken Hendricks, a Beloit businessman and 2006 “Seize the Day” award winner who died in an accident in late 2007.

The Tech Council produces the May 31-June 1 Entrepreneurs’ Conference and administers the award, which has gone to entrepreneurs who have shown persistence in building their companies.

Past winners include Don Weber of Logistics Health Inc. (2004); Bob Cervenka of Phillips Plastics (2005); Ken Hendricks of ABC Supply (2006); Jan Eddy of Wingra Technologies (2007); Michael Cudahy of Marquette Medical Systems (2008); Toni Sikes of The Guild and Guild.com (2009); Bill Linton of Promega (2010); Bob Hillis of Direct Supply (2011); Kay Koplovitz of USA Network (2012); Fred Foster of Electronic Theatre Controls (2013); Craig and Lea Culver of Culver Franchising System Inc. (2014); Jim Berbee of Berbee Information Networks Corp. (2015); Mark Gehring of HealthMyne (2016); Zach Halmstad of Jamf (2017); Dude and Kerry Frank of Comply365 (2018); Sue Marks of Cielo (2019); Kevin Conroy of Exact Sciences (2020); Don Zietlow of Kwik Trip (2021) and Cory Nettles of Generation Growth Capital (2022).

“Crossroads of innovation” is the theme of the 21^st annual conference, where entrepreneurs from around the state will showcase their ideas, services and technologies. Seven panel tracks formed under three unique stages of “launch,” “grow” and “succeed” will appeal to entrepreneurs in all stages. Detailed panel information will be posted soon at witrepsconference.com.

Produced by the Tech Council, the Entrepreneurs’ Conference is among the largest and affordable events for entrepreneurs and early stage investors in the Upper Midwest. Other highlights will include:

• Diligent Dozen: Top 12 finalists from the Governor’s Business Plan Contest square off on the afternoon of May 31 
• Charles Ross, Milwaukee native and chief executive officer of International Business Innovation Accelerator, to keynote morning of June 1
• Governor’s Business Plan Contest “Diligent Dozen” awards announcements June 1 
• Innovation Showcase featuring exhibits from Wisconsin companies
• Plenty of chances to network with seasoned entrepreneurs and investors over food and refreshments, including a May 31 reception at the Italian Community Center

Sponsors thus far are: Aberdean Consulting, Affiliated Engineers, Alliant Energy, Amazon, American Family Insurance, Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals, AT&T, Baird Capital, Baker Tilly, BDO, Business Fitness, Center for Technology Commercialization, City of Fitchburg, CLA (CliftonLarsonAllen), DeWitt, Findorff, First Business Bank, Foley & Lardner, Godfrey & Kahn, HealthX Ventures, Husch Blackwell, Insperity, J.P. Morgan, Lost Boys Interactive, Madison College, Madison Development Corp., Madison Gas & Electric, Makin’ HEY! Communications, Marquette University, Microsoft, N29 Capital Partners, Neider & Boucher, Perkins Coie, Quarles & Brady, Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren, Ruder Ware, Sadoff E-Recycling & Data Destruction, Technology Entrepreneurship Office at UW-Madison, Technology Innovation Center – Milwaukee, UMOS One Workforce – TechStars, University Research Park, UWM Research Foundation, UW-Madison Innovate Network, UW-Madison Office of Business Engagement, UW-Madison Office of University Relations, Venture Investors, Versiti, WE Energies, WIPFLi, Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, Wisconsin Economic Development Corp., Wisconsin Dept. of Financial Institutions, Wisconsin Technical College System and WiSys.

To become a sponsor, contact Angela Schlobohm at angela@wisconsintechnologycouncil.com. For more information, visit witrepsconference.com or call 608-442-7557.

WPS Health Solutions earns BBB Torch Award for Ethics from Better Business Bureau of Wisconsin

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:   
DeAnne Boegli
Vice President of Communications
608-512-5754
deanne.boegli@wpsic.com

WPS Health Solutions earns BBB Torch Award for Ethics from Better Business Bureau of Wisconsin

MADISON, Wis.—April 20, 2023— Better Business Bureau (BBB) of Wisconsin announced its recipients of the BBB Torch Awards for Ethics, and WPS Health Solutions is among the winners. The recipients of this prestigious award were selected by an independent panel and recognized at the 2023 BBB Ethics Awards Luncheon hosted in Milwaukee.

“This award is significant because it validates and exemplifies what we experience each day at WPS—the highest standard of ethics and trust among employees, customers, and our communities,” said Vicki Cobb, Vice President of Internal Audit and Compliance. “I am so proud of each person at WPS for building a culture of trust with dedicated service for our customers.”

Entries for this award are evaluated by an independent, voluntary panel of judges comprised of business and community leaders. They are reviewed and judged on four key areas:

• Character
• Culture
• Customers
• Community

“The BBB Ethics Awards application is a grueling process, requiring the organization to analyze and communicate all aspects of their internal and external procedures to the judges,” said Julie Albrecht, Executive Director of the BBB of Wisconsin Foundation. “These organizations should be immensely proud of their commitment to ethics in their day-to-day operations.”

ABOUT BBB: For more than 100 years, the Better Business Bureau has been helping people find businesses, brands and charities they can trust. In 2021, people turned to BBB more than 200 million times for BBB Business Profiles on 6.3 million businesses and Charity Reports on 25,000 charities, all available for free at BBB.org. There are local, independent BBBs across the United States, Canada and Mexico, including BBB Serving Wisconsin which was founded in 1939 and serves the state of Wisconsin.

About WPS Health Solutions 

Wisconsin Physicians Service Insurance Corporation (WPS Health Solutions), founded in 1946, is a nationally regarded benefits administrator for a variety of U.S. government programs and a leading not-for-profit health insurer in Wisconsin. WPS Health Solutions serves active-duty and retired military personnel, seniors, individuals, and families in Wisconsin, across the U.S., and around the world. WPS Health Solutions, headquartered in Madison, Wis., has more than 2,700 employees. Within the enterprise, there are three divisions: WPS Government Health Administrators, WPS Military and Veterans Health, and WPS Health Insurance/WPS Health Plan/EPIC Specialty Benefits. For more information, please visit wpshealthsolutions.com.