Nelson Will Retire In August After Serving AAA Washington Members For 10 Years
BELLEVUE, Wash. — The AAA Washington Board of Trustees has named Heather Snavely to succeed Kirk Nelson as president and CEO of the Bellevue-based company after his retirement. Snavely will be the first woman to lead the organization that serves 1.2 million members in Washington State and North Idaho with emergency road service, leisure travel planning, and personal and small-business insurance.
“Heather is a dynamic, strategically-minded marketing leader with experience at a member-centric organization, making her a great fit for AAA Washington,” said Greg Bever, AAA Washington Board chair. “Her strong leadership and marketing expertise will further the development of our innovation strategy, improve extended offerings to our members and strengthen our digital platform transformation.”
Snavely comes to AAA Washington from PCC Community Markets in Seattle, where she has served as Vice President of Marketing. At PCC Community Markets, she focused on strategy to transform the grocery co-op’s brand identity, membership program and digital presence; resulting in a doubling of brand awareness and membership growth of 35%. Prior to PCC Community Markets, Snavely was the Sr. Director of Global Brand Marketing for Brooks Running Co. in Seattle, and Director of Global Consumer Communications at Microsoft for Xbox in Redmond.
“AAA Washington’s legacy of championing travel and road safety is awe-inspiring, and its leadership in service is unmatched,” said Snavely. “As a long-time AAA member, I am thrilled to join the team at a pivotal moment in time when innovation in green energy, transportation and service have the potential to positively influence the organization for generations to come. I look forward to working with our dedicated staff to serve our members today and in the future.”
Snavely also serves on the Board of Directors for KEXP, a nonprofit arts organization serving music lovers and artists through in-person, broadcast, and online programming. She has earned a Master’s in Business Communications from the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota, and her Bachelor of Arts in English with a minor in Japanese from the University of Minnesota.
Kirk Nelson served as president and CEO of AAA Washington since April 2011. His vision led AAA Washington through innovation initiatives such as the modernization of our retail locations and GIG Car Share Seattle; grew membership to more than 1.2 million; and focused the organization on a dynamic strategic plan, leaving the company with a strong financial foundation and a bright future. Prior to joining AAA Washington, Nelson had a lengthy career at Qwest Communications where he was Washington President. Nelson has also been active in the community, having served as chair of the Association of Washington Business, the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, the Seattle Sports Commission and the Community Development Roundtable. He currently serves on the boards of the Benaroya Research Institute, American Commerce Insurance Company and Forterra, Inc.
