LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. -

Black Book announced Tuesday that senior vice president and editorial director Ricky Beggs will retire on April 1 after a 34-year career.

“It has been an honor to work alongside Ricky who truly has become an industry legend,” said Black Book president Tom Cross. “His legacy of leadership and his dedication to excellence have left an enduring mark on our company, ensuring our position as the industry’s most reliable and accurate source of vehicle valuation and insight.”

Beggs started with Black Book in 1981, joining the company as used-car editor before being named managing editor in 1990.

“I will be forever grateful to Black Book for giving me the opportunity to be a part of a team that has represented the interests of the automotive community with respect and integrity all these years,” Beggs said. “I’m certainly proud of our accomplishments, and I leave knowing Black Book is well positioned for its next phase of growth and development.”

Heading up editorial and analytic operations for Black Book will be Anil Goyal, vice president of automotive valuation and analytics.

“We’re delighted to have Anil take over responsibility for both our editorial and analytic operations,” said Cross.  “Anil brings a completely new set of skills to Black Book and deep background in strategy and analytics having held a number of senior positions in the banking industry in risk management, marketing, and operations.” 

Named managing editor and reporting to Goyal will be Kevin Giddens, who will lead the day-to-day editorial operations.

“Black Book has a great foundation in our people, data and technology. I am excited about combining advanced analytics with our editorial team’s deep automotive knowledge to provide enhanced insights to our customers,” said Goyal.

More: Beggs talks to Auto Remarketing in his first interview following Tuesday's announcement.