Parent Company of Wisconsin Bank & Trust Recognized as a Forbes Best Bank in America for 2020

Madison, WI, February 27, 2020 — Wisconsin Bank & Trust through its parent company, Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (NASDAQ: HTLF), has been named a “Forbes Best Bank 2020.”

In its annual review of the largest publicly traded banks and thrifts, Forbes ranked Heartland 40th among a nationwide group of 100 leading banking organizations with assets ranging from $9 billion to over $2 trillion.

“We are proud to be named among the Best Banks in America for 2020,” said Curtis Chrystal, President and CEO at Wisconsin Bank & Trust. “As a community bank, what sets us apart is our strong commitment to our customers, combined with access to ‘big-bank’ products and services as part of Heartland.”

“The Forbes ranking underscores the benefits of our unique structure—the strength and capabilities of a big bank, combined with the personal touch and local decision-making of a community bank,” Chrystal said. Wisconsin Bank & Trust offers full-service branches where experts can meet all financial needs throughout the community.

To compile the rankings, Forbes used data collected by SNL Financial through the third quarter of 2019 on the country’s largest publicly traded banks and thrifts. The data covered ten metrics of financial health: return on average equity; net interest margin; nonperforming loans (NPLs) as a percentage of loans; nonperforming assets as percentage of assets; reserves as a percentage of NPLs; two capital ratios (Tier 1 and risk-based); and leverage ratio. Forbes generated its ranking based on an average of the individual ranks of each metric.

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 14 banking centers and one loan processing 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.

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Brett Meyer Joins M3 as Business Development Executive

Brett Meyer recently joined M3 Insurance as a Business Development Executive. Brett educates the business community about M3 services including insurance and risk management, employee benefits, and retirement planning. He further assists customers and prospects during the sales process, presenting solutions and matching them with the appropriate service team to address their unique business insurance needs.

Brett is a licensed agent in the state of Wisconsin for life and health as well as property and casualty insurance and brings eight years of sales experience with him to M3.

About M3

M3 is a top 50 insurance broker and risk management firm in America. We’re leaders in the products we represent and the industries we serve. M3’s people are an extension of your team, providing world-class resources to help you manage risk, purchase insurance, and provide employee benefits. And our focus on community builds better places to live and work.

Political Strategist Symone Sanders to Speak at Memorial Union

Contact Information:
Shauna Breneman, Wisconsin Union
Phone: (608) 262-8862
Email: sbreneman@wisc.edu

POLITICAL STRATEGIST SYMONE SANDERS TO SPEAK AT MEMORIAL UNION
Symone Sanders to come to Madison, Wis., as part of student-led lecture series

MADISON – Political strategist Symone D. Sanders will present a talk called “Black History, American History” April 6 in Shannon Hall at Memorial Union.

Sanders’s lecture is part of the student-led Wisconsin Union Directorate (WUD) Distinguished Lecture Series (DLS) Committee’s spring lecture series.

In her lecture, Sanders will speak about steps to becoming more involved with social issues and how people’s differences can contribute to effective social movements. Following her lecture, audience members will be invited to ask Sanders questions about her experiences and speaking topic.

“Politics is, I think, one of the best ways to help people,” Sanders has said. “Politics touches every single avenue of life.”

Sanders serves as a communications consultant and CNN political commentator and held the role of spring 2018 resident fellow at Harvard’s Institute of Politics at the Kennedy School. Sanders currently serves as the senior advisor for the presidential campaign of former Vice President Joe Biden. She previously held the role of national press secretary for the presidential campaign for Senator Bernie Sanders.

“Symone Sanders has been recognized as an expert in political and social issues analysis,” said WUD DLS Associate Director of Marketing and Outreach Evanka Annyapu.

A general admission, free ticket is required for this event. Tickets will be available to University of Wisconsin-Madison students March 25 and to other patrons March 30. Tickets can be obtained online or at the Memorial Union Box Office.

Additional WUD DLS lecture opportunities include science writer Rebecca Skloot on March 4, science educator Bill Nye on April 21, civic engagement activist Tiana Epps-Johnson on April 23, and a presidential candidates forum March 30 and 31.

The WUD DLS Committee brings engaging and influential people to the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus to encourage thought-provoking conversations. WUD includes 10 committees and six Wisconsin Hoofers clubs that program thousands of events each year.

More information about upcoming DLS events is available at union.wisc.edu/get-involved/wud/dls.

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About the Wisconsin Union Directorate Distinguished Lecture Series Committee

The Wisconsin Union Directorate Distinguished Lecture Series Committee contributes to the educational experience of University of Wisconsin–Madison students, Wisconsin Union members and community members by bringing engaging and influential people to campus. Founded in 1987, the series aims to expose the campus community to a diverse and vibrant array of people, backgrounds, and ideas. Learn more: union.wisc.edu/dls.

[Note to the editor: Click here to download a photo of Symone Sanders. Photo by Heather Hazzan.]

To read this release online, visit union.wisc.edu/about/news/symone-sanders.

The Alexander Company Welcomes Gravity Photo Co. to the Novation Campus

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Steve Daubs, Owner
Gravity Photo Co.
Office: 608-620-8304
Cell: 608-630-0117 (call/text)
steve@gravityphoto.com

NEW PHOTO EXPERIENCE STUDIO OPENS ON MADISON’S SOUTH SIDE
Gravity Photo Co. brings a new look and name, and a highly personal approach to photography

MADISON, WI – February 24, 2020 – A new kind of photographic experience comes to Madison with the opening of Gravity Photo Co. Owners Steve and Olga Daubs embrace everyone’s need for connection, helping people pay attention to the important relationships in their lives and celebrating them through amazing photographic experiences.

The new studio at 2500 Rimrock Road in the Novation Campus will be holding a grand opening party on March 5, from 5-8 p.m. The studio will be providing drinks, light hors d’oeuvres, a grand prize drawing, and special offers for those who attend.

Gravity Photo is a different kind of photographic experience. The Daubs take a highly personal approach, including pre-session interviews with family and friends to find out what’s truly behind the individual, the couple or the family, and use those insights to create unique sessions that focus on the experiences and emotions of their clients. Creating photographs that truly matter to clients also means creating custom artwork for clients’ walls so that they can see what’s wonderful about the people in their lives every day.

“You wouldn’t believe what a difference a personal approach makes in creating meaningful wall art,” says Steve. “We created Gravity to embrace everyone’s need to connect, and to help you be more mindful of the important relationships in your life.”

Steve and Olga began their photographic journey eight years ago with a focus on weddings, and they’ve developed an approach that brings the candid emotions from their wedding photography into everyday photo sessions. Gravity Photo offers full-service photography of families, couples, pets, high school seniors, head shots and branding, weddings and more. The studio has won numerous local, national, and international awards for their wedding and portrait photography.

“This location at the Novation Campus was ideal for us given its accessibility and proximity to a wonderful coffee shop – Finca Coffee,” says Steve. “It’s five minutes from downtown, and about 10 minutes from the east and west sides – it’s important to us that everyone have access.” In addition to the easy access of Madison’s primary thoroughfares (Beltline Highway at Rimrock Road and Highway 14), Novation is accessible via Madison’s network of bike paths and the Madison Metro bus system.

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LINKS

https://gravityphoto.com/

@gravityphotoco

The QTI Group Announces Leadership Progression

The QTI Group (QTI) is excited to announce leadership progression. Jay Loewi who joined QTI in 1989 will progress from CEO to Chairman; Londa Dewey who joined QTI in 2007 will progress from President to CEO, and Tara Conger, who joined QTI in 2017, will progress from COO of QTI Human Resources to President.

Tara brings extensive experience and a deep understanding of the complexities of human resources and is well-positioned to build on The QTI Group’s 63-year history of growth and success!  As COO of QTI’s Professional Employer Organization (PEO) business, Tara led record growth through service and technology advances.  Tara’s diverse background includes over thirteen years of experience in strategic human resources roles, including Vice President of Human Resources at Palmer Johnson Power Systems, as well as experience in sales and marketing.

In addition to the President role, Tara will continue to lead QTI’s PEO service offering. Tara states, “I am excited, humbled, and honored to lead the organization forward.  We all have amazing roles and what we do makes a difference in the lives of the candidates we place, the organizations we help, and the communities we serve.”

With QTI’s new leadership, the strategy will evolve around thoughtfully preparing and positioning the company for continued growth and success. Londa Dewey states, “Together as leaders and as an organization, we have a shared purpose of helping organizations reach their full potential through people.  The new decade is a great opportunity to create new energy and ensure we are well-aligned to provide the absolute best employee, candidate and client experience.”

The QTI Group Chairman Jay Loewi states, “It is critical to prepare and evolve our capabilities to help our clients adapt, grow and succeed.  This requires a strong leadership team to look into the future and deliver value through our capable QTI colleagues.”

About The QTI Group

Founded in 1957 as a small staffing agency, The QTI Group has grown to be a full-service, privately owned human resources firm.  QTI’s key service areas include staffing, professional, technical and executive search, HR Consulting and PEO. With a people first focus and a commitment to helping businesses reach their full potential through people, The QTI Group is headquartered in Madison, WI and has nine locations in Wisconsin and a sales office in Minneapolis, Minnesota.