Span Alaska announces leadership transition

Span Alaska Transportation, the largest freight forwarder serving Alaska, announced today that its President, Tom Souply, will retire from that position and assume a strategic development role as Executive Vice President, Corporate Development, effective April 1, 2021.

Michael Johnson, currently Executive Vice President, will be promoted to President effective April 1, 2021. He will have responsibility for operations, sales, and administration companywide and will be based in Auburn, Wash.

"Tom's transition toward retirement at the end of this month is bittersweet for me," said Rusty Rolfe, President of Matson Logistics, the parent company of Span Alaska. "Tom has been and will continue to be a driving force behind Span's success, and while his leadership will be sorely missed, I understand his decision to move on to a well-earned new chapter in his life."

Souply began his career in transportation more than 35 years ago, starting at UPS. He then moved to Roadway, where he spent 25 years in various management roles. Souply joined Span Alaska in 2010 as Chief Operating Officer and was promoted to President in 2013. He was the first president recruited from outside the family-owned business. He managed the acquisition of Pacific Alaska Freightways in 2015 and Span Alaska's sale to Matson Logistics in 2016.

"His contributions to Span's success have touched every part of the organization," Rolfe added. "I am grateful he is staying on in this new role to provide his experience and logistics acumen in leading several strategic initiatives."

Michael Johnson joined Span Alaska in 2017 after more than 27 years in operational leadership positions with YRC Freight/Roadway and two years in sales leadership at Reddaway. Since joining Span Alaska, Johnson has made significant contributions in process improvement, employee development, strategic planning, and safety management.

Both Johnson and Souply were instrumental in the planning and building of Span Alaska's Anchorage Service Center, a state-of-the-art operations and administration facility that was the largest private construction project in Alaska at the time.

"I am delighted Michael will be leading Span Alaska going forward," Rolfe said. "He brings a wealth of experience and passion for continuous improvement that will help the company to expand its service to customers and support for communities throughout Alaska."