Steven R. Smith has been named the new president of AccuWeather, the State College-based global weather forecasting and media company announced on Friday.
A 20-year AccuWeather veteran, Smith was most recently president of its digital media division.
“There is no one better suited for this role than Steven Smith,’ AccuWeather founder, CEO and chairman Joel Myers said in a news release. ‘Over the past 12 years, Steven has been by my side leading the transformation of AccuWeather. He has been instrumental in our company’s growth, and his appointment as President reflects my confidence that his leadership will continue to drive AccuWeather forward for many years to come.”
In his new role as president, in which he reports to Myers, Smith will continue to oversee the company’s media portfolio of consumer web and app properties and the AccuWeather Network, while his responsibilities will expand to include oversight of companywide products, technology, research and development, corporate development and strategy.
Prior to his appointment as president, which was effective Friday, Smith’s responsibilities had already grown with several key executives beginning to report to the digital media division.
He is also on the board of directors for both AccuWeather and its joint venture with the Chinese Meteorological Agency, AccuWeather Huafeng Media Group.
“I am thrilled and grateful for this acknowledgement of my leadership and the course we have been charting for AccuWeather over the past few years,” Smith said. “I look forward to continuing to work with and for Joel and with his strong and dynamic leadership team as well as the opportunity to have a greater impact on the business by accelerating our reach and continuing to drive innovation in ways only AccuWeather can.”
AccuWeather is planning for this year several major launches and improvements for its apps and website that are intended to improve user and advertiser experiences, according to the company.
‘These launches are the first in a series of many new innovations we are very excited to bring to market that will cement AccuWeather’s leadership as a global digital media brand and as the most respected source of weather forecasts and warnings for all locations in the world known for their proven ‘Superior Accuracy’ and for the immense value of what we deliver to our customers and users across all platforms,” Smith said.
A 1999 Penn State graduate with a degree in meteorology, Smith began working full-time at AccuWeather that same year as a staff meteorologist providing real-time weather consultation for commercial and media clients. He held several positions related to research and development, global weather data acquisition and management, and corporate iT before being promoted to chief information officer in 2007. He became chief digital officer in 2013 and was promoted to president of digital media in 2015.
Smith and his wife, Stacy Miskell, have four children and live in State College
Myers, who founded AccuWeather in 1962, previously held the title of company president, along with chairman. When his brother and former AccuWeather CEO Barry Myers left the company following his nomination by President Donald Trump to head the National Oceanic and Atmospherica Administration, Joel Myers stepped into the role of CEO, opening up the position of president that Smith will now take on.
Barry Myers was first nominated by Trump in October 2017, but his nomination did not come to the full Senate for a vote before the congressional session ended. He stepped down as AccuWeather CEO in January, shortly before he was renominated by Trump. A floor vote still has not been scheduled for his nomination.
