Crunching numbers isn’t for everyone, but for Isaac Patterson, it’s what he does.
Now he’s doing it for the city of Shawano as its new finance director. Patterson is replacing Brian Della, who was hired in December 2024 but has moved on to be a financial analyst for the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority.
Patterson has been involved in government accounting for 10 years, eight of those in Wisconsin. Much of that has been working to audit cities and other municipalities, so that knowledge will help the city to maintain its finances and avoid mistakes that could get them dinged on annual audit reports.
“I kind of got a feel for cities, towns, school districts, libraries,” Patterson said. “I always enjoyed auditing the cities, and I definitely enjoyed auditing the medium size — more so than larger.”
Now, in his latest job, he’ll be helping to shape the city’s finances in the future. He said he’s happy to do it in Shawano, noting the close-knit attitude of many of its residents.
“What blew me away about Shawano was that I was super impressed at how unified the community is here in a lot of different aspects,” Patterson said. “The whole town still has the goal of keeping the small-town neighborly feel but also moving forward and making a lot of progress. That can be seen in the parks and being an amazing place for families, and it can be seen in the roads and being a great place for infrastructure.”
Having tax increment districts is a good move for the city, in Patterson’s view, because it’s bringing new businesses into the area and helping to revitalize growth.
“Everything’s invested in making the city grow, and that’s what impressed me,” he said.
Patterson got his bachelor’s degree at Purdue University and also got his accreditation for certified public accounting in Fort Wayne, Indiana, his wife’s hometown. He said it was the desire to raise a family along the water with trees and more that brought them to Wisconsin.
Much of Patterson’s time in Wisconsin was spent as an auditor in Sheboygan Falls, although his work prior to coming to Shawano had him serving as the business manager for the Kohler School District.
“It was a role like this, only a lot smaller and a lot less structured,” Patterson said. “This is definitely a bigger city and a bigger budget and a bigger team.”
Patterson hopes to integrate well with the existing employees and to keep his knowledge on auditing handy to make sure the city’s finances don’t end up violating standard practices.
“I know what the end result’s going to be and what they’re looking for and what’s changing on financial statements,” Patterson said. “That’s very helpful.”
Coming in now gives Patterson time to meet with department heads and get to know them before budget planning begins in June; the next five months will focus on determining what the city needs versus what it can afford through state funding and the local tax levy.
“It’s been really encouraging to see those unified goals,” Patterson said.
