Spokane, WA — Associated Industries today announced that President and Chief Executive Officer Jim DeWalt will retire after more than two decades of distinguished service to the organization and the employers it serves. The Board of Directors has named Chief Operating Officer Nicole Tedrow as his successor, effective May 9, 2026.
DeWalt joined Associated Industries in 2004 and over the course of his tenure transformed the organization from a small regional association into a multi-state leader. Under his leadership, Associated Industries expanded its Association Health Plan, strengthened employer choice, and built the HR and legal programs that businesses across the Pacific Northwest depend on today. His steady, principled leadership leaves an organization stronger, broader, and better positioned than he found it.
The board's choice of Tedrow as successor reflects both continuity and confidence. Having joined Associated Industries in 1999, she has spent more than 25 years at the center of the organization's work — leading the employment law team, counseling members on some of their most complex workplace challenges, and most recently overseeing day-to-day operations as Chief Operating Officer. A licensed attorney in Washington and Idaho, she holds a J.D. from Gonzaga University School of Law and a B.A. from Washington State University. Her deep commitment to the Northwest business community, combined with her understanding of the organization and its purpose, makes her the natural choice to carry this work forward.
Her investment in the communities Associated Industries serves runs equally deep. Tedrow has served on the Board of Directors for Mid-City Concerns, as Board President of City View Country Club, as a Board Member and member of the Board Governance Committee for Project Beauty Share, and as a Board Member of Breakfast Forum, a monthly convening of regional business leaders.
As President and CEO, Tedrow will set the organization's strategic direction, deepen its reach across member communities, and ensure employers continue to have direct access to the employment law counsel, HR support, and benefits resources — including the Association Health Plan — that have defined Associated Industries for more than a century.
DeWalt's retirement is effective May 8, 2026.