22 | FORWARD JANESVILLE Champions Behind Our Community’s Business Growth TANNER VOSS Vice President – Commercial Banking, BMO Forward Janesville Board of Directors BMO, and formerly M&I, has a storied history of being involved with Forward Janesville, and Tanner Voss recognized the importance of continuing that relationship when he joined the Board in 2024. It did not take him long to dive in and get involved as we embarked on conducting our Business Retention and Expansion survey. “BMO has always been incredibly committed to the communities that we operate and do business in,” Voss said, “and our relationship with Forward Janesville is a shining example of that.” Describe your role in heading up Forward Janesville’s Business Retention & Expansion survey? What made you lean in and get more involved in that project specifically? Under Past Board Chair Derek Greene, we identified three priority items that we were going to focus on as a Board, and I elected to raise my hand to Chair the Business Retention & Expansion initiative. It was our goal to go out and interview 50 local business leaders to find out what they felt were Janesville’s biggest strengths and also its greatest opportunities to improve. As a Commercial Relationship Manager for BMO, this initiative aligned closely with my normal job responsibilities, and I felt it was a great opportunity for me to provide some meaningful “lift” for a priority area for the community. What are one or two of the biggest pieces of advice you would give to businesses looking to grow in Rock County today? I think the biggest piece of advice I would offer would be to ignore the outside noise. For far too long, I believe there was a perception that Janesville/Rock County wasn’t open for business. I genuinely believe that is not the case and that we have leaders within City government that want to both keep our businesses here and help them grow, and to continue to attract others to come here. The other piece of advice I would offer is to lean into the resources we have here within the community, such as Blackhawk Tech, to help augment or enhance your workforce. When you’re not working or volunteering, where would we find you? I also am the Treasurer of the Board for Junior Achievement of South Central Wisconsin and on the Board of Directors for the Stateline Boys & Girls Club, so any time outside of work or volunteering is most often spent with my beautiful wife, Kate, and our three children: Lowyn (10), Landry (7), and Scottlynn (4). If I can sneak out for a quick round of golf or boating with the family, it’s an added plus. SAMANTHA FREITAG Business Development & Logistics Manager, True North Title Forward Janesville Ambassadors Our volunteer Ambassadors are the engines that help us elevate our events, and Samantha Freitag is helping to lead the way. If you’ve attended one of our events in the last couple years, there’s a good chance you’ve met her there or that she has been busy behind the scenes making the magic happen. Samantha showcases those skills elsewhere, too, like helping True North Title launch regular events that educate local businesses and community members. And she helps lead one of the top fundraisers each year for VetsRoll.org. Our Forward Janesville volunteers strengthen our organization — and our community — through their time, expertise and leadership. Meet three dedicated members who share how they’re helping shape Janesville’s future: from supporting business retention and expansion, to championing new and growing enterprises, to engaging in policy conversations that guide long-term development. Their perspectives offer a glimpse into what drives their service, how their employers invest locally, and what inspires them beyond the workday. Meet Tanner Voss, Samantha Freitag, and John Gackstetter.
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