Jeff Napper
In 1977, Jeff Napper began his credit union career at the Westminster, Calif.-based LBS Financial Credit Union as a part-time teller. By 2002, Napper was appointed president/CEO. After 21 years in the leadership position, Napper announced he will step down and begin his retirement on Aug. 17.
In a statement Friday from the $2 billion credit union, Napper's replacement will be EVP/Chief Lending Officer Sean Hardeman, who has been with LBS Financial for the past 12 years.
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In 1977, the credit union had one branch and $50 million in assets. Since Napper took over as president/CEO in 2002, the credit union's assets and deposits have more than doubled from $674 million to more than $2 billion, and it has eight branches and more than 143,000 members.
"LBS Financial Credit Union, the board, management and employees have had the fortunate benefit of Jeff Napper's leadership these past 21 years," LBS Financial Board Chair and Long Beach Unified School District Superintendent Dr. Jill Baker said. "He cares deeply about the credit union, its members and its employees. His consistent and strong leadership has made a tremendous impact on the organization, and he will be missed. We wish him all the best in his well-deserved retirement."
During his 46 years in the credit union industry, Napper has held a number of positions including his time on the national CO-OP Financial Services board of directors for nine years, and vice chair and chair for two years each. He also served on the CO-OP Financial Services Audit Committee from 1997–2010, according to the credit union. Napper also served on the Fiscal Affairs Committee for the California Credit Union League, as well as on CUNA's Credit Union Powers Subcommittee.
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Michael Ogden
Editor-in-Chief at CU Times. To connect, email at [email protected]. As Editor-in-Chief of CU Times since 2016, Michael Ogden has led the editorial team in all aspects of content strategy and execution, including the creation of the publication’s exclusive and proprietary research database of the credit union industry’s economic landscape. Under Michael’s leadership, CU Times has successfully shifted to an all-digital editorial product with new focuses on the payments, fraud, lending and regulatory beats. Most recently, he introduced a data-focused editorial product for subscribers that breaks down credit union issues into hard data, allowing for a deeper and more factual narrative for readers. In 2024, he launched the "Shared Accounts With CU Times" podcast, which offers a fresh, inside-the-newsroom perspective through interviews with leaders from the credit union industry and the regulatory world. He dives into pressing credit union issues, while revealing the personalities working behind-the-scenes to push the credit union world forward. His background includes years as a radio and TV anchor/reporter and a public relations and digital/social media manager, where he covered the food and music industries, as well as cooperatives and credit unions. Over the years, he has launched numerous exclusive video and podcast series, including a successful series of interactive backstage interviews with musicians at music festivals, showcasing his social media and live streaming production skills.
