The Worcester Polytechnic Institute announced this month that it will honor Dealertrack’s Mark O’Neil, class of 1980, with the university’s fourth-annual WPI Innovator of the Year Award.

Serving as Dealertrack’s chairman of the board, president and chief executive officer, O’Neil made a public address on Thursday at WPI’s Alden Memorial. The award recognizes graduates or friends of WPI who have demonstrated exemplary accomplishments as innovators and showcases individuals who have excelled in driving innovation in any field. The Innovator of the Year Award recognizes role models for students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends.

Mark P. Rice, WPI’s vice provost for innovation and entrepreneurship, recognized O’Neil for exemplifying these traits.

“Through his resolute commitment to technological advancement in a novel market, Mark O’Neil embodies our focus on accelerating the discovery, development and commercialization of breakthrough innovation, as well as economic development and job creation,” Rice said. “We are proud to honor and recognize his achievements with this award.”

O’Neil began his career with Intel Corporation and McKinsey & Co. before serving as president of Ertley MotorWorld, a Pennsylvania auto group. He also co-founded and led CarMax, Inc. as well as leading Greenlight.com as president and chief operating officer. O’Neil took over as Dealertrack’s president and CEO in Feb. 2001 and joined its board of directors in August of that same year.

“I’m honored to receive this distinction,” O’Neil said. “I think WPI is enormously committed to innovation and entrepreneurship, and I think the university has made huge strides in promoting and executing both of those concepts. This recognition will encourage and invigorate our efforts at Dealertrack, where our passion is to create innovation in automotive retailing. We are striving to take an enormously complex process and make it simple for the customer.”