BC's Top Employers (2026) Magazine - Magazine - Page 20
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BC’S TOP EMPLOYERS (2026)
BCAA is committed to careers and community impact
D
avid Skogstad’s
relationship with the
British Columbia
Automobile
Association (BCAA)
began when his parents gave him
a membership as a teenager. “It
gave them peace of mind and
honestly it gave me peace of mind
as well,” he says.
And then, he adds, “when
I started working for the
organization, I learned that BCAA
was more than just roadside
assistance.” In addition to service,
savings and rewards for BCAA
members, the organization offers
home, auto, travel and small
business insurance in addition
to other products and services.
Plus, as the operator of one of
North America’s largest car share
services, Evo, and Evolve e-bike
and e-scooter share, BCAA is
helping to transform mobility in
British Columbia.
Eric Hopkins, president and CEO (left), and David Skogstad, senior manager of claims, at BCAA.
I have never seen
an organization that
celebrates learning and
curiosity as much as
BCAA.
— Eric Hopkins
President and CEO
Skogstad began working in
BCAA’s contact centre, where
he was encouraged to apply to
cover his supervisor’s job when
she went on maternity leave.
“It was a big step for me at that
time, and I received support
every step of the way,” he says.
This led to progressively more
senior roles then a move to the
insurance division, where he’s now
a senior manager in the claims
department.
“The company really supports
me,” Skogstad says, “and
ultimately there’s a strong
commitment internally to
promote people throughout
the organization. I’ve been a
beneficiary of that throughout my
career.”
“It was eye-opening to me that
there really is no such thing as a
typical career path at BCAA,” says
president and CEO Eric Hopkins.
“I’m a great example of that. I
joined BCAA to create and lead an
innovation department and very
quickly learned that there were
real synergies with our roadside
assistance teams and had a chance
to oversee them as well. I also had
the opportunity to work on our
insurance products before leading
the organization as a whole. I just
feel like working at BCAA is a
career path that you make for
yourself.”
Hopkins lauds BCAA’s
Essentials of Leadership
program, “where individual
associates and new leaders can be
identified and join a cohort,
where they stay together as a
group for several months and go
through full modules of learning
across all functions of the
organization, as well as expand
their skill set with things like
finance and HR knowledge and
leadership principles.”
“I have never seen an
organization that celebrates
learning and curiosity as much
as BCAA,” he says.
Another crucial part of the
organization’s purpose is its
commitment to B.C.
communities. In addition to road
safety education and awareness,
BCAA invests over $1 million
into B.C. communities each year
and delivers programs and
initiatives that address the
growing risk of wildfires.
Skogstad is part of these efforts
in his role on the claims team,
and he recalls time spent in West
Kelowna after the 2023 wildfires
