Reed Ryan became the 12th president of the Asphalt Institute on January 1, 2025. He also serves as the president of the Asphalt Institute Foundation.
Reed has extensive experience in the asphalt industry. He worked diligently to start and grow the Utah Asphalt Pavement Association (UAPA). The association became a critical voice for the asphalt industry in Utah under his leadership. In 2023, he served as chair of the State Asphalt Pavement Associations, Inc. Most recently, he took on the executive director role at the Asphalt Pavement Alliance (APA).
His career began in Washington, D.C., where he worked as a legislative aide to Senator Orrin Hatch and later as a public affairs specialist for the Office of Public and International Affairs for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He earned his bachelor’s degree in political science from Brigham Young University and Juris Doctor from George Washington University.
Reed finds his greatest joy in family life, raising three sons and a daughter with Syndi, his wife of 23 years.
What do you feel is important about trade association membership today?
I think trade associations are as important as ever. For me, it all goes back to history. Being a history buff myself, I enjoy learning about the trade guilds back in time, why they formed and the reasons they are still here. And then more so even in an age where we feel as connected as we are we still feel this desire, as a species, to get together and unify our voices and to talk to each other, to speak to the welfare of our souls. I think associations provide that form of connection. The opportunity to talk to someone across the table or in person is very hard to replicate even in this digital world.
What was your first encounter with the Asphalt Institute when you started in the industry?
Asphalt Institute Senior Regional Engineer Dave Johnson was probably my first point of contact back in 2012 when I was with the Utah Asphalt Pavement Association. Dave instantly jumped in to help us with our planning committee for our conference. We started with 100 hundred people coming to that conference in 2012, when I left it in 2023 there were 1,100 people showing up. Dave was really helpful, particularly connecting us to folks on a national level who could come in and provide a high level of quality education. When I started moving up through the SAPA (State Asphalt Pavement Associations) chain of leadership I got to know former Asphalt Institute President Pete Grass and a few of the AI chairs over the last few years as well as they as they engaged with the APA Advisory Council.
Will increased environmental responsibility and the adoption of sustainable practices affect the asphalt industry?
Focusing on sustainability won’t cause us to do things that we aren’t doing already. What I love about this industry is we are constantly asking ourselves “What is the right thing to do?” And to me, I don’t see much of a divergent line between sustainability and the right thing to do. I think our industry is moving in that direction. I think we’re being honest brokers within ourselves and want to do the right thing. I don’t see people who wake up and deliberately say, oh, you know what, I’m going to make the wrong choice today, right? Those folks are the exception versus the rule and our industry is full of just amazing people who wake up each day and say, “What’s the right thing to do?”
How have your first months been with the Asphalt Institute?
There’s no doubt in my mind that this group knows exactly who they are. But I think we could go and tell our story a bit more to those who don’t know us and that’s the gamut from the smallest city and county to the largest contractors in the country. They need to understand that within the collective work of this association resides a high level of expertise and institutional knowledge that can’t be found anywhere else.
Is it true you have some experience with asphalt roofing?
One of my first jobs was ripping shingles off roofs as a 14-year-old kid to be able to earn trips to cool places out in the West. It was a great experience. It was a good way to start learning how to work and then see the reward of work as well.
I know you are an avid reader. What books have influenced you as a leader?
“Battle Cry of Freedom” is a huge one. “The Demon of Unrest: A Saga of Hubris, Heartbreak, and Heroism at the Dawn of the Civil War” is a much more recent one. I realize those are both centered around the Civil War, but to me that is such a fascinating time in our nation’s history that I feel is very applicable today. Even with something as awful and atrocious as the Civil War, the idea is that we can still see each other as humans. Books that have influenced me involve personal stories of people that made incredibly hard decisions despite overwhelming odds or challenges.
I hear you have a love of punk rock music. Can you tell me more about that connection?
The reason why I love punk rock music goes back to the time as an angsty kid. We all had it right? As a kid, you think “Oh my gosh, my parents tell me to do this. But then I watch them do that.” And “The teacher says do this and I will watch the teacher do that.” Back then you always felt like there was this feeling that something’s not right. And I think punk music for me was a connection to something. Most people probably don’t think of punk music that way. They may think of anarchists, The Sex Pistols and the Dead Kennedys, and you know, pink mohawks and spike chains. But for me, it was an opportunity to say, “This can be better. We can do this differently.” We can do things differently and I think punk rock points that out more than any other genre of music. I just instantly connected to it as a youth. I wanted to make a difference. I just connected with punk in my heart and soul, and I’ve always just kind of lived my life to say “Hey, this could be different.”
How are you enjoying Kentucky so far?
I remember when I came out here for other meetings and just falling in love with the area and even just this morning, to be honest, driving in and something as simple as that low-lying fog that was in some of the rolling hills and valleys. It’s absolutely beautiful and something you just don’t see anywhere else.
How do you see trade associations evolving in the future?
We must remember that what was great yesterday becomes the norm for today. And we’re never asked to do less from our membership. We’re asked to do all the things that we do really, really well, and then we’re asked to do two or three or 410 more things on top of that, year after year. So, I think for associations to be able to balance that out we must be able to look both forward, which is always important for membership, but also look in the rearview mirror to understand what works well for the association and be able to let go of those things that do not. We need to adapt to the needs of our membership while setting the expectation levels for them to understand that we’re still doing all those things really, really well and communicate the next few things that we can also do really well for them.
What is a lesson you have learned already in this transition?
That people matter. It’s not a lesson that I hadn’t learned already, but it has been dramatically reinforced in these first few weeks. The position is unique that I’m coming into and that you have both the balancing of membership plus the balancing of the employees. I really look forward to getting to work with all the employees and being a good resource for them.
If you Google yourself years from now, what do you want it to say about your time at Asphalt Institute?
That I was a good person. If I can walk away from my life and my professional career and people say that I was a good man and I was a good person, then that’s success enough for me.
Favorite film: “The Untouchables”
Favorite song: “The ‘59 Sound” The Gaslight Anthem
Favorite food: sushi
Favorite NFL team: Denver Broncos
Favorite NBA team: Utah Jazz
Favorite NHL team: Washington Capitals
Favorite college team: BYU Cougars football
