AAA Minneapolis Names Minnesota DOT’s Sorel as CEO

AAA Minneapolis has named Tom Sorel, commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT), as its new president and chief executive officer.

Sorel will join AAA Minneapolis effective Dec. 1, 2012. He will replace current President and CEO Steve Frank who plans to retire Jan. 31, 2013, and will serve in an advisory capacity to the club and to Sorel prior to that date.

Sorel has served as the commissioner of MnDOT since April 2008, assuming responsibility for the department during a time of crisis following the collapse of the Interstate 35W bridge in Minneapolis. Working for two different administrations, he has led an agency of 5,000 people committed to creating a safe, efficient and sustainable transportation system for the future.

Sorel began his career with AAA Minneapolis as a recent college graduate in 1974, rising through the ranks to become president and CEO in 1997, a role he has held ever since.

Prior to his current post, Sorel worked for 30 years in numerous positions around the country with the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). He served as the division administrator for the FHWA Minnesota Division Office, the major project team leader in Washington, D.C., the DOT Intermodal Liaison for the 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, and the director of planning and program development in FHWA’s Regional Office in Albany, N.Y.

Source: AAA Minneapolis