OLYMPIA, Wash., July 9, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Heritage
Financial Corporation (Nasdaq: HFWA), parent company of Heritage
Bank, has named Jeff Deuel to
succeed Brian Vance as CEO of
Heritage Bank. Deuel has held the titles of president and chief
operating officer of Heritage Bank since 2012. Additionally, Deuel
has assumed the role of president of Heritage Financial
Corporation.
Vance, who has served as CEO of Heritage Bank since 2003 and CEO
of Heritage Financial Corporation since 2006, will remain CEO of
Heritage Financial Corporation until July
2019, at which time he will be become executive chair of the
company's board of directors. With a commercial banking career
spanning 46 years, Vance will work closely with Deuel during the
transition, which is the culmination of a thoughtful, deliberate
planning process to ensure a smooth executive changeover.
"Brian and his team led the bank through a period of exceptional
growth," said Heritage Financial Corporation board chairman
Brian Charneski. "After eight years
at Heritage, Jeff and the leadership team are well positioned to
continue serving our clients across the Pacific Northwest and to
continue driving growth and shareholder value." The Olympia-based bank now operates 65 branch
offices between Bellingham,
Washington, and Portland,
Oregon.
In addition to Deuel, Heritage Bank has promoted Bryan McDonald to chief operating officer; he
will work closely with Deuel on strategic initiatives and customer
objectives. McDonald previously served as executive vice president
and chief lending officer for Heritage Bank. He joined Heritage
Bank through the company's merger with Whidbey Island Bank, where
he was president, and now has a combined company tenure of 12
years. McDonald has more than two decades of management experience
in sales, credit, operations, commercial banking and residential
real estate.
"Taking a methodical and thoughtful approach to this transition
was important to us. We wanted to ensure that our customers, our
shareholders and our dedicated, hardworking employees would not
experience any notable day-to-day change in the direction of the
bank," said Vance. "Jeff and Bryan's knowledge of the communities
we serve across the Pacific Northwest, their professional
reputations in the industry, and their extended leadership
experience within the Heritage Bank family will ensure a seamless
transition."
"I look forward to a continued partnership with Brian and the
entire leadership team. We are committed to serving the financial
needs of all our customers throughout Heritage's footprint, while
helping our customers build their own heritage and fueling positive
economic growth in the region," said Deuel.
Along with his new role as chief executive, Deuel just completed
a term as chairman of the Washington Bankers Association. He has
held a variety of leadership positions during a career spanning
more than 35 years and encompassing the areas of lending, credit
administration, portfolio management, retail and corporate
strategies.
About Heritage Financial
Heritage Financial
Corporation is an Olympia-based
bank holding company with Heritage Bank, a full-service commercial
bank, as its sole wholly owned banking subsidiary. Heritage Bank
has a branch network of 65 banking offices in Washington and Oregon. Heritage Bank also does business under
the Central Valley Bank name in the Yakima and Kittitas counties of Washington and under the Whidbey Island Bank
name on Whidbey Island. Heritage's stock is traded on the NASDAQ
Global Select Market under the symbol HFWA. More information
about Heritage Financial Corporation can be found at www.hf-wa.com.
Information regarding Heritage Bank can be found at
www.heritagebanknw.com.
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SOURCE Heritage Financial Corporation