West Bend Provides a Silver Lining.

West Bend is a great place to work!

West Bend recently received special recognition as a great workplace from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, as well as Great Place to Work^® and Fortune Magazine.

West Bend ranked number two in the large company category on the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s list of Top Workplaces in Southeastern Wisconsin. This is the eighth consecutive year we’ve ranked in the top four! West Bend President and CEO Kevin Steiner also received a special leadership award.

The evaluation for the Top Workplaces program is based on feedback provided by employees. This year, employees from 228 companies were surveyed. After receiving responses from 49,235 employees, 150 companies made the cut, including 25 large employers, 50 midsize employers, and 75 small employers

Great Place to Work^® and Fortune Magazine named West Bend one of the Best Workplaces in Financial Services & Insurance.

Inclusion on this list is primarily based on anonymous survey feedback from employees about their experiences of trust and reaching their full human potential as a part of their organization, no matter who they are or what they do. The remainder of the ranking is based on an assessment of all employees’ daily experiences of innovation, the company’s values, and the effectiveness of their leaders to ensure they’re consistently experienced. Learn more about what makes West Bend a Best Workplace.

These awards validate West Bend as an employer of choice in our industry.

We thank our associates for continuing to make West Bend a great place to work! 

Stay focused, stay safe

April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month. The goals of this observance are simple: to recognize the dangers and eliminate preventable deaths from distracted driving. There’s an increased focus on ways to change the behaviors of drivers through legislation, enforcement, public awareness, and education.

This nationwide campaign has been observed annually since 2010, when the House of Representatives passed House Resolution 1186 by an overwhelming majority with a 410-2 vote. This bill was the result of the efforts of Shelley Forney, who became a fierce advocate against distracted driving after her nine-year-old daughter, Erica’s death. Erica was riding her bike home from school when she was hit by a neighbor who was looking down at her cell phone as she finished a call. This tragedy, like so many others, could have been prevented.

According to the National Safety Council (NSC), at least nine Americans die and 100 are injured in distracted driving crashes each day. Talking on the phone and texting have been areas of concern for years. Additionally, car manufacturers continue to make advancements in technology, like infotainment dashboards and systems that respond to voice commands. Unfortunately, these added conveniences also can lead to increased distractions. Just because it’s built into your car, doesn’t mean it’s safe. Learn more about this fact, along with other myths and facts, in this fact sheet from the NSC.

West Bend celebrates 125 years!

In 1893, a fire roared through West Bend, Wisconsin. This tragedy was one of the worst for our community and touched the lives of many people.

Incorporated on April 13, 1894, West Bend Mutual Fire Insurance Company was created because local business men wanted to protect their property from the dangers of fire and lightning at the lowest possible cost. They formed a mutual insurance company, one in which policyholders insure one another. Even then we began to show that something good can come from something bad.

Find out more.