This month, Carmel Monthly is pleased to feature Allied Solutions Center for the Performing Arts
President/CEO Jeff McDermott and Allied Solutions CEO Pete Hilger on the cover. This past September, the two organizations announced that they entered a seven-year sponsorship agreement that will rename the nonprofit arts organization and the three-venue campus it operates at Carmel City Center. The agreement was announced during an event at the Palladium. Financial details were not disclosed.
For the newly dubbed Allied Solutions Center for the Performing Arts, the partnership reinforces financial stability and provides a greater pool of resources to sustain and expand programming. Opened in 2011, Allied Solutions Center is best known for the annual Center Presents concert season, which features national and international artists in a range of genres as well as a broad menu of educational and experiential opportunities for people of all ages.
We spoke with both executive leaders, who shared insights on what this partnership means for their organizations, how it will enhance the arts community and how it will enrich the experience for the center’s patrons.
A Brief Background on Carmel-Based Allied Solutions
Since 1978, Allied Solutions has partnered with over 6,000 financial institutions to grow their bottom line, protect their business and consumers, and evolve to stay ahead of the competition. Allied Solutions, which has sponsored the Center Presents season since 2015, has strong community partnerships and continues to make investments in the communities where its employees live and work.
Allied Solutions is one of the largest providers of insurance, lending, risk management and data-driven solutions for financial institutions in North America. Allied Solutions uses technology-based solutions customized to meet the needs of over 6,000 banks, credit unions, finance companies, mortgage servicers and auto dealers, along with a portfolio of innovative products and services from a wide variety of providers. Headquartered in Carmel, Indiana, Allied Solutions maintains several offices strategically located across the country. Allied Solutions is a wholly owned and independently operated subsidiary of Securian Financial Group. Visit www.
alliedsolutions.net to learn more.
Partnering to Enrich the Community and Elevate the Arts
“Two seasons post-Covid, we re-engaged in the process of finding the right naming partner,” McDermott shared. “I always said we were not looking for the highest bidder, but we were looking for the best partner. I got a call from Pete [Hilger], and we got together literally over a beer to talk about what might be. I came back [from that meeting] so energized because I didn’t think we just found a good partner… I thought we just found a perfect partner. There was no way you could draw up a partner any better than Allied Solutions for this opportunity.”
McDermott explained that both entities shared similar core values that include integrity, innovation, inclusion, collaboration and excellence. He added, “This is the difference between a for-profit naming sponsor partnership and a not-for-profit that is benefiting from a for-profit organization to expand its programming and impact on the community.”
Hilger recalled former Mayor Jim Brainard inviting him to tour a dirt mound among a bunch of dilapidated warehouse buildings and an unsightly water tower, sharing Brainard’s vision for what would eventually become Allied’s headquarters in the heart of Carmel.
“I am really impressed with the way the city of Carmel transformed itself,” Hilger stated. “I believe in the arts and the whole concept of how the city has been built… it is a great community to raise a family and locate your corporate offices. We feel that we have a responsibility as a for-profit corporation to support the city’s initiatives and the businesses that are here. We have made a commitment to continue to find ways to enhance that support.”
Recognizing the community as the backbone of where an organization can excel and grow, Hilger added, “One of the things that Carmel has brought to Allied Solutions is stability and retention of our people. This community is a great tool in hiring and attracting new talent… the arts play a huge part in that. The arts touch people of all kinds, and [they create] wonderful experiences. The Palladium has a national presence and beyond… and it seems strange that this once-small town in the Midwest and central Indiana is now on the map as being a world-class arts center.”
Hilger continued, “Allied Solutions doesn’t just support the community for the sake of spreading our brand. We support the community to spread the culture of family, the strength of diversification, the growth of small businesses, and all of these play a huge role in what the city has to offer, [whose] hub is the arts. That’s a tribute to everything that our leadership in this community and the people of this community have committed to that make[s] it so wonderful.”
When asked what he hopes the public understands about Allied Solutions’ commitment as the naming sponsor and as a key employer in the community, Hilger responded, “We care about our people and our community. We want more companies to participate… which is why we didn’t require any kind of exclusivity with the center. We want more companies to participate, and we want to lead by example. We would also like for people who are looking to grow professionally that we are hiring. We want to grow even more in this community, and we want it to become a stronger part of it and watch [Carmel] as it continues to have a bigger and more impactful presence within the state of Indiana.”