Business Address: 610 W. Main St., Waunakee, WI 53597
Email:alan.langeteig@crossplainsbank.com
Website:www.crossplainsbank.com
Birthplace: Madison
Spouse: Marie Langeteig
Board Membership: St. Clare Health Care Foundation/president; Workforce Development Board of South Central Wisconsin/audit committee chair and board chair elect
Organizations: Rotary
Education: B.S., business administration, UW-Platteville; Graduate School of Banking at UW-Madison
Alan, when did you join the bank, and what are your responsibilities and title today?
I started with State Bank of Cross Plains as VP/business relationship manager in April 2010 and was promoted to SVP/chief lending officer in July 2011. My primary role is overseeing commercial and mortgage lending functions at the bank and managing my own portfolio of commercial customers.
We can’t resist asking a banker the obvious question: What is your assessment of where the Wisconsin economy is headed?
Being an eternal optimist, I believe Wisconsin is on the way back up. I believe it will be a long, slow process that will hinge on both state and national issues. I don’t expect “recovery” per se. More likely it will be a situation where we look back in 2015 or 2016 and realize we’re out of the recession. However, we can’t wait for that realization and now have to keep moving every day ahead taking small steps at improving our businesses and improving our economy.
What do you read to help you keep current with all the new regulations and trends?
I read local magazines (including IB) and newspapers to stay informed about the communities where I do business. I read The Kiplinger Letter for a broad business and economic perspective in a nutshell, Community Bankers of Wisconsin newsletters, Wisconsin Bankers Association news clips and newsletters, RMA Journal, and American Banker Magazine.
Given all the changes in the banking industry, are you able to name a goal, given the shifting targets?
Banking is changing dramatically, with regulatory oversight playing a much larger role in how banks operate. It’s important to integrate and balance the ever-increasing rules and regulations of the industry with the need to provide quality, efficient service to our customers. That’s my goal.
What’s been a career highlight?
Every day of being a community banker can be a highlight – helping friends and neighbors accomplish their personal and professional dreams and celebrating successes with them. That can take a long time but it’s always worth it.
Alan, one of our goals with the Professional of the Week series is to get beyond the professional title to learn more about the person, because we believe people want to do business with people, not institutions. So along those lines, we’ll ask a few personal questions, beginning with: Did you always want to be a banker?
Growing up in a community banking family, I always wanted to be a local business professional, although not necessarily a community banker.
Did you start your career in banking? Cash your own first paycheck?
The first paycheck I remember as a banker was $200 (gross pay) for a two-week period at the Affiliated Bank of Jamestown (nka BMO Harris). I was a teller in a brand-new bank.
Did you immediately sock it away in a savings account?
I have no recollection of what I spent it on, but I’m pretty sure I would do it differently today.
Who would you credit with most influencing your career – a person or persons outside of State Bank?
My father, who was also a banker, most influenced my career. He demonstrated to me that community banking could be an honorable and rewarding profession. Jerry Smith, another Madison-area banker, was a mentor in my earlier years of banking, showing me how to put that into practice.
Never got bitten by the entrepreneurial bug?
I recognized early on that I was not the entrepreneurial type. I hung around with many people who were but noted I didn’t have the tolerance for risk I needed to succeed as one.
Outside of banking, which you obviously enjoy, what do you do to relax?
I love the outdoors, so that’s what I do to relax. I’m a runner, biker, water-skier, boater, and alpine skier. My wife supports me in all those activities and joins me in many of them, so that’s the source of my happiness. We will celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary in 2013. We live in the country and enjoy the peace and quiet. My work is also a source of happiness, which is a good thing since that’s where I spend a lot of time and effort.
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You mentioned alpine skiing, which we doubt you do in Madison. Have a favorite travel destination?
I like to travel and will try anything at least once. At this time Colorado is my favorite destination. My son lives there and we are able spend time hiking and skiing together. A long trip to Norway is my ideal trip not yet taken.
Peace and quiet – and reading? Have a favorite book or two on the shelf at home?
I enjoy reading historically inspired books that have meaning to me. My most recent read was Eric Larson’s The Beast in the Garden about pre-World War II Germany. I also liked Ghost Mountain Boys about World War II fighting in the Pacific. Two good locally penned books are The Hero Next Door and The Hero Next Door Returns by Kristin Gilpatrick. It’s a compilation of interviews with World War II veterans, including one with my father. Another one I enjoyed was The Worst Hard Times, which was about the Dust Bowl years. Growing up in Nebraska, my mother experienced that firsthand, so the story was very interesting to me.
Have a character in a book, movie, or play that you’d like to think you share some attributes with?
What community banker wouldn’t like to be George Bailey as played by Jimmy Stewart in It’s A Wonderful Life?
And IB always closes with this challenge: Can you give us three words you believe best describe you?
Honest, friendly, reliable.
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