It was announced this afternoon that Mitch Golub, president of Cars.com, is retiring from the company after nearly two decades with the vehicle-listing website.

Dan Jauernig, chief executive officer of Cars.com, will also assume the role of president.

Jauernig is a veteran of Classified Ventures, LLC., the former ownership company of Cars.com. This past August, Auto Remarketing reported on Gannett Co.’s acquisition of Cars.com, a purchase that cost the publishing giant $1.8 billion in cash.  

The company reported Golub will stay with the company through March 1 to ensure a smooth leadership transition.

Alex Vetter, current senior vice president, will be taking on a new leadership role as executive vice president and chief operating officer.

Commenting on the news, Golub said, “Working at Cars.com for the past 18 years has been an incredible journey.

“I’ve witnessed the maturation of not only our company but the automotive digital space as a whole. It has been the most rewarding experience of my career, but now is the right time for me to move on. As the leader of Cars.com, my job was to not only help build the business but to ensure the company would flourish long after I left. I am confident that with new owners, the terrific workforce we have and with Dan Jauernig and Alex Vetter at the helm, Cars.com will prosper for many, many years to come,” he continued.

Jauernig added, “I’ve worked with Mitch for over a decade, and I want to thank him for his leadership and the extensive contributions he’s made to Cars.com. He will be deeply missed and I wish him nothing but the best in his future endeavors. Looking forward, we are excited about what’s ahead for this industry and our business.”

The company shared Vetter has helped steer the company’s growth strategy from concept into a multi-faceted sales and distribution model that spans all aspects of Internet marketing, including local, mobile and social media.

Over the years he has operated in nearly every capacity at Cars.com, including product development, customer service, training, operations and currently oversees all revenue-generating activities.

Golub, a highly respected member of the automotive community, has been with Cars.com since its inception in 1997.

As the first employee and founding executive, he has played a pivotal role in the rapid growth of the company, management said.

From a startup with 21 employees, 50,000 vehicle listings and fewer than 1,000 dealer customers in its first year, Cars.com has grown to a more-than 1,300 employee company with more than 4 million vehicle listings serving 20,000 dealers across the country and every U.S. automaker.

During Golub’s tenure, he was responsible for the development of Cars.com’s strategic direction, and ensuring the company’s sales, finance, marketing, product development, media and business development areas were all closely aligned with the company's vision and positioned for sustainable growth.

Today’s news was originally reported by Cliff Banks of The Bank Report, as the announcement revealed earlier today to employees through Cars.com internal communication.