For the Tomahawk Leader

TOMAHAWK – Tomahawk Community Bank (TCB) announced on Tuesday, March 8 that Mark Zulliger was appointed to the position of CEO.

Zulliger. Photo courtesy of TCB.

TCB said Zulliger will oversee all operations and strategic planning for the future of the bank.

“Zulliger brings more than 30 years of banking experience to his role,” TCB stated in a release. “Mark started his career in banking as a part-time teller in college, and he propelled to his first leadership role in 1998 and CEO role in 2005.”

Zulliger most recently served as the CEO and President of Merrill Federal Savings and Loan and worked on the 2016 merger that brought the Tomahawk and Merrill banks together, TCB noted.

“It was always the intent of our merger to bring two great organizations together and ultimately create a succession plan to bring together the leadership, securing a long and successful future for our joint financial institution,” Zulliger said. “The past five years have allowed us to work in unison to develop a shared culture and bring our teams together to best serve our customers of today and tomorrow. My shift into this role was a very purposeful part of that plan to excel this organization that shares over 170 years of combined community history. I am excited to see us into the next 170 years.”

TCB said former CEO Kathy Rankin, who has held the role in Tomahawk for the past 12 years and jointly since the two community banks merged, will continue her leadership, taking on the role of president and remaining on the board.

“I have enjoyed an extremely rewarding career at Tomahawk Community Bank for 40-plus years,” Rankin stated. “The joy experienced serving the community is unparalleled. The friendships formed with community members and co-workers are priceless. Succession management becomes a great focus as an executive reaches various milestones in their career. Over five years ago, as we analyzed the future of the bank, it was apparent that a growth strategy of a merger with Merrill Federal Savings and Loan would certainly be in the best interest of both organizations.”

Rankin said the timing was right for the move, adding that Zulliger “was a great fit as a successor executive to lead the combined organization forward.”

“We worked closely together for the first five years post-merger to join these two strong, community-focused organizations together, along with their varying cultures, while assessing our employee strengths to prepare for some upcoming retirements of key executives,” Rankin said. “With that success behind us, it was fitting to turn over the reins to lead the organization forward.”

Zulliger said the strength of past leadership is evident.

“This is far from a goodbye or a departure for Kathy,” he stated. “She will continue to act as an engaged member of not only our day-to-day operations, but as a community champion as well. Moving forward, it is my hope that Kathy can spend even more time representing us at events and in area organizations, where she has always been known to have a huge impact. That legacy will only continue to grow.”

Board Chairman Ron Garrison said growth and strength have been in the forefront as the bank takes its next steps.

“Kathy and Mark are both exceptional leaders, who care deeply for their community, customers and staff,” Garrison stated. “We have always known the combined strengths of both organizations would carry us far into the next century. This transition will allow us to continue the dedicated service to our customers and our communities that they expect, along with maintaining our customer-owned mutual bank status.”