After 42 Years in the Industry, SkyPoint FCU CEO James Norris to Retire

James Norris has led the $213 million SkyPoint Federal Credit Union in Germantown, Md., for the past 12 years and has dedicated himself to the credit union for 42 years in all. Last week, Norris announced his plans to retire after steering the credit union through years of economic challenges while growing the credit union’s bottom line.

In a statement, Norris said, “It’s been an honor to have had the opportunity to connect and work with so many fantastic people over the course of my career and together have an impact on our communities and members. While we’ve seen much evolution in the credit union industry over the last 42 years – specifically with technology – it’s the people I’ve worked with along the way that have really made the difference.”

Norris began his credit union career at 22 years old when he became manager/CEO of Mercy Hospital Employees Federal Credit Union in Baltimore and later went to work at the $5.2 billion State Employees Credit Union of Maryland in Linthicum as a branch manager. Eventually, those positions led Norris to become vice president of delivery systems at NIHFCU ($838 million, Rockville, Md.) and then CEO of AFL-CIO Credit Union in Washington, D.C. In 2011, he began his tenure at SkyPoint.

Beginning his CEO position at SkyPoint on the heels of the Great Recession, Norris was able to expand the credit union’s field of membership, earn a Community Development Financial Institution designation and lead the credit union through a rebranding strategy in 2018 when SkyPoint was still known as Montgomery County Employees Federal Credit Union.

Through the COVID-19 pandemic, Norris was able to more than double Skypoint’s assets and member loans more than tripled from $44 million to $154 million, according to the credit union.

Norris said, “Something I learned early on and have always practiced is to listen to my employees’ ideas. I’m humbled by all that my teams and I together have been able to accomplish and thank them for their contributions and impact. I wish them much continued success and look forward to new experiences as I enter the next stage of my life.”

Norris will officially step down on April 21.