SKIP SNYDER NAMED ACCA CHAIRMAN

March 1, 2004
Skip Snyder was elected chairman of the Air Conditioning Contractors of America (ACCA) for the 2004-2005 year, and assumed his leadership role at the

Skip Snyder was elected chairman of the Air Conditioning Contractors of America (ACCA) for the 2004-2005 year, and assumed his leadership role at the association’s annual conference on February 27, 2004. Skip Snyder is president of Snyder Company, Inc., a parent company overseeing commercial and industrial boiler installations and product distribution and wholesale. Snyder Company is based in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania. In accepting his position, Snyder outlined his agenda for his year in the association’s top elected position. “This year, I want my focus as chairman to be on enhancing ACCA’s ability to help contractors help each other and continue to improve the reputation and performance of the HVACR Industry through quality mentoring,” he said. Snyder pointed to ACCA’s MIX Group program, which he says is one of the greatest benefits. “Get a bunch of contractors together in a room, convince them to share -- not just their successes, but their failures -- and every single one of those contractors will walk out of that room a lot smarter than they were before,” he said. “It’s what you call a very effective mentoring process.” He also announced the upcoming launch of the new ACCA Mentor program. ”We’ll take contractors with less than five years of experience, and pair them with non-competing successful contractors of broad experience,” Snyder said. “We’ll give these contractors a chance to learn, one-on-one, from contractors who’ve been there, who know the ins-and-outs and who know how to succeed. It’s a chance for contracting business owners to give back personally to this industry – to share their wisdom and their strengths – and to make a difference in someone else’s life and business.” Additionally, Snyder, a former chairman of North American Training Excellence (NATE), encouraged contractors to get their technicians NATE certified. “Without a reputable, industry-wide, third-party certification program, how can we prove to our customers there is a difference between contractors? That not all contractors are created equal?” he asked. “Now we have that proof through the NATE certification program. It’s the only certification that counts, the only professional certification that will last, the only certification that is approved and embraced by the entire industry.” Snyder graduated from Temple University in 1970 with a bachelor’s degree in business, was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Infantry, and following his active duty commitment, spent 13 years in the Army Reserve. Snyder has served on the board of the Delaware Valley Chapter of ACCA since the 1980s and was chapter president from 1997 to 1999. He served as the Air Conditioning Excellence Chairman until it was merged into the North American Technician Excellence (NATE) certification program. He was appointed to the NATE board in 1997 and spent three years as Chairman of the Board of Trustees.