DeAnna Martin, who has been the driving force behind numerous transformative initiatives at King County Metro, was selected to be the agency’s Chief of Staff.
Martin has been with King County for the past 10 years, starting at the Department of Transportation (DOT) in 2011, then joining Metro in 2017 as the Public and Employee Engagement Manager in the General Manager’s Office. She was integral in transitioning community engagement and government relations functions from DOT to Metro.
Martin developed enterprise-level employee communications and engagement that centers Metro’s values and people in the decision-making processes. For the last two years, she served as the Partnerships & Engagement Manager for the Strategic Communications and Engagement team.
“DeAnna’s skills in community organizing and engagement, facilitation, change management, communications, and government relations have benefited Metro — and our region — greatly,” said Metro General Manager Terry White. “I am confident that as our Chief of Staff, DeAnna will help bridge operations, planning, and community engagement to represent the voices of employees, riders, and stakeholders — deepening our understanding, and strengthening our strategy, to successfully advance our vision for mobility in King County.”
Among her many accomplishments, Martin led Metro’s COVID crisis communications, helped develop and implement the agency’s division-to-department (d2D) reorganization, and transformed how the agency’s senior leaders listen and engage with employees, bringing town halls to worksites and designing Metro’s annual and semi-annual meetings. She is committed to finding authentic, innovative ways to elevate the voices of communities that have been historically underserved in the agency’s decision-making.
In her most recent role, Martin led the team that is strengthening Metro’s relationships with local jurisdictions and county elected officials; facilitates the Equity Cabinet, Transit Advisory Commission, and Access Paratransit Advisory Committee; and has engaged with community to develop the very-low/no income fare program, the Renton-Kent-Auburn Mobility Plan (RKAAMP), the North Link service restructure, and numerous policy updates.