TYSONS, Va. -

The National Automobile Dealers Association said Monday it has been chosen as the exclusive provider of 20 Group services for the Minority Dealer Development 20 Groups at General Motors.

The GM MDD program strives to attract and retain minority dealers to the automaker’s dealer network, while also supporting GM’s existing minority dealers.

The MDD 20 Group meetings start this year.

“For many years, NADA has been a leading-provider of 20 Group meeting moderation services in the automotive industry,” said Carlos Latour, who is director of dealer diversity relations at GM, in a news release.

“The General Motors Dealer Diversity team is impressed with NADA’s innovative offerings which will help advance the performance and operation of our minority dealers. NADA has a strong team with experienced and dedicated consultants, as well as industry-leading web-based tools which will help dealers improve their performance,” Latour said. “Together with our minority dealers, we look forward to a long-lasting relationship with NADA.”

Mike Stanton, NADA’s president and chief executive officer, said: “NADA is committed to promoting diversity, equity and inclusion throughout the auto industry, and we believe one of the best ways we can accomplish that goal is through our class-leading Academy and suite of consulting services.

“By giving minority constituencies within the auto retail community more and more tools to thrive and succeed, we’ll be working our way toward a more diverse and inclusive dealer body for years and hopefully generations to come,” Stanton said. “We are incredibly excited to facilitate these 20 Group meetings and support minority GM dealers, and we hope to announce similar initiatives in the coming months.”

Robert Brogden is the owner/president of Robert Brogden Buck GMC in Olathe, Kan., and is a NADA board member. He added: ““The GM Minority 20 Groups are a vital step in enhancing diversity in the auto retail industry.

“I look forward to NADA facilitating these meetings and working alongside other minority GM dealers, not only to boost our own businesses, but also to highlight that minority dealers are key to the overall dealer body and automotive industry.”