COSTA MESA, Calif. -

J.D. Power chief executive officer and president Finbarr O’Neill will retire in March, the company announced Wednesday.

In a news release, the company said O’Neill will stay on during the transition process when the new CEO takes the helm. Following that transition, he will be a senior adviser for J.D. Power.

O’Neill has been with J.D. Power for a decade, following posts as chief executive of Hyundai Motor America, Mitsubishi North America and Reynolds & Reynolds.

“We are deeply grateful to Fin for his leadership of J.D. Power. During his tenure, the firm has expanded globally and increased its sector expertise, while maintaining the firm’s core brand values of independence and integrity,” XIO Group CEO Joseph Pacini said in a news release.

The London-based XIO private equity firm purchased J.D. Power in September 2016. The company was previously owned by S&P Global (formerly McGraw Hill Financial), and O’Neill led the company through the transition. During his tenure, J.D. Power also purchased NADA Used Car Guide, which is now known as J.D. Power Valuation Services. 

“Over the last year alone, Fin has directed the firm to record profitability. The company has strategically entered the B2C market, while also enhancing its ‘big data’ capabilities for an increasingly digital world,” Pacini said.

J.D. Power is teaming up with executive search firm Egon Zehnder in its search for a new chief executive.

“In an increasingly mobile and connected world, J.D. Power is poised for even greater growth,” said O’Neill. “This is a good time for me to hand off to the next generation of leadership. None of the success that we have enjoyed would have been possible without the support and leadership of all the great people across J.D. Power.”