TelComm CEO to retire

Approaching a quarter-century on the job, TelComm Credit Union’s top executive is set to call it a career.

President and CEO Don Ackerman told Springfield Business Journal he plans to retire by year’s end. Ackerman has been in the leadership role at the credit union since 1997.

“It’s a difficult decision as I’ve been here over 23 years,” Ackerman said. “It’s time to move on.”

The process to find a successor hasn’t started yet, but Ackerman said the credit union board ideally would select a candidate by November.

Ackerman will exit as TelComm has hit new heights this year in assets and membership. The credit union surpassed $203 million at the end of May, while membership exceeds 21,000 – both record highs.

When Ackerman started in 1997, he said the asset total was $29 million with nearly 10,000 members.

Today, the credit union has a combined six branches in Springfield, Nixa and Republic, up from the two branches it had upon Ackerman’s hiring. Originally formed in 1940 as Springfield Telephone Employees Credit Union, the company became TelComm in 2001.

“Our goal has been to try and grow in a healthy manner,” he said.

Part of the growth was tied to its 2018 merger with Springfield Catholic Credit Union. TelComm gained around $4 million in assets and roughly 1,200 members in the transaction, Ackerman said.

“As financial institutions evolve, sometimes mergers become a lot more prevalent,” he said.

Ackerman, originally from Dodge City, Kansas, has been in the credit union industry since 1975, according to SBJ archives.

The married father of three said he intends to remain in town upon retirement as two of his children live in the Springfield area and a third is in Bentonville, Arkansas.

“I’m looking forward to the years of retirement and getting to travel more and have less stress,” he said.