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Dan Kennedy remembers the paper-intensive days of remarketing, when he would bring home invoices on cars GM Remarketing was selling, rail bills and truck bills in order to match up VIN numbers by hand and make sure all payments were square.

“I had them spread all over the living room floor and kitchen table,” Kennedy said. “All of that is done through electronic communications today. We don’t see much paper; so from that side of it, that’s really, really good.”

Kennedy, the manager of GM Remarketing, was discussing with Auto Remarketing how technological innovation has been one of the biggest changes during his three decades in the business. And it’s been felt on both sides of the lane.

“Back then, if a dealer wanted to buy a vehicle, somebody had to be standing in the sale lane to make it happen. And today, the dealers have a lot of technology available for them to buy vehicles.  Via the Internet upstream  they can compete with the dealer that’s standing in the sale lane and remotely bid on the same vehicles.”

Kennedy, the manager of GM Remarketing, was recently chosen as Auto Remarketing’s first-ever National Remarketing Executive of the Year, presented by ServNet. Kennedy was presented the award at the National Remarketing Conference this week as part of Used Car Week.

Kennedy has been with General Motors since 1978, spending the past 27 years with the automaker’s remarketing organization. He became manager of GM Remarketing in 2010, where he leads the company’s U.S. remarketing activities.

His work has also included time as finance manager for GM Fleet operations, and time serving as special project manager for GM’s fleet distribution staff.

“As the inaugural recipient, Dan Kennedy, of General Motors Remarketing, represents an outstanding choice as his dedication and expertise have not only played a role in establishing GM’s position in the marketplace, but also have shaped the evolution and growth of the remarketing industry itself,” said Patty Stanley, president of ServNet Auctions.
 
We appreciate his contributions, applaud his accomplishments and congratulate him as this year’s recipient.”

 “Dan Kennedy is a true professional and exemplifies what it means to be a leader in the remarketing business,” said Auto Remarketing publisher and Used Car Week chair Bill Zadeits. “We were thrilled to see him nominated and selected for this award, and we’re honored that our first-ever National Remarketing Executive of the Year award is going to such an outstanding leader.”

What Remains the Same

In his discussion with Auto Remarketing, Kennedy also touched on what he has found to be a constant in the auction business over the years.

That, he said, is the need to take care of the customer, to find out what dealers want, and provide it.

Things like, “quality product, high quality service and a customer experience (that’s) an outstanding one for them,” are key, Kennedy explained.

He said it is also crucial to “be that dependable source of high quality used vehicles for our dealers.”

But it’s not just dealers that he keeps in mind. In his position, Kennedy works with many key cogs of the business, be they auctions, the dealers or the automaker itself. So how, then, does he juggle meeting all the needs of the parties with which he interacts?

“I actually think we all have the same goal. And that goal is to make sure that we have strong residual values. Strong residual values allow for a strong presence in the used-vehicle marketplace and drive demand for the quality used vehicles we are offering,” Kennedy said. “Strong residuals allow competitive programs for our customers, both fleet and retail. It makes us competitive and allows us to sell new cars.

“So, dealers should desire strong residuals. GM wants strong residual values, and frankly, the auctions should want this too, because if we sell more new cars, it will ultimately lead to more used cars coming back into the marketplace,” he continued. “It’s a good thing for all of us. It’s really pretty simple if we all stay focused on what the end goal is — and that is, strong, consistent residual values.”

When talking about some of the most successful remarketing endeavors by General Motors during his time with the company, what Kennedy said was perhaps most significant was a pair of changes the company made over the last few years.

“Maybe the most recognized by our dealers is our shift toward making sure that we are making high-quality used vehicles available for them in the sale lane. That’s doing the repairs and reconditioning before offering them for sale at the physical auctions,” he said. “And at the same time, there has been a shift up in the option contenting level on the rental vehicles. In the past, it was trying to get the vehicles as lightly equipped and keep the cost as low as you can to put them into rental fleet. But it really wasn’t what the dealers or the retail customers were looking for.

“So over time, we’ve been able to make these vehicles look more like retail units,” Kennedy continued. “And by doing that, it helps our dealers; it helps us; and ultimately, it helps the rental customer because they’re getting better-equipped vehicles and it makes for happier customers on their side, too.”

Bouncing Back

There has also been a big change in the overall climate of the car business for both the new- and used-car markets.  Kennedy reflected on how the remarketing side of the industry has come back from what was a historically challenging environment in 2008 and 2009.

“Much of the volatility is out of the market,” he said. “We’ve seen continued growth of both new and used vehicle sale volumes.  Organizations that during the financial crisis had gotten out of leasing are back and are now selling their leases into the marketplace.

When asked if the remarketing business is in a better place than it was years ago, he said: “Absolutely.  The industry continues to grow and improve every day.  There are improvements in technology, training and facilities.  While this has been happening our customers have gotten better.  New technology for them to manage their inventory and locate vehicles.  

“If you look back at where technology was even five years ago, to where it is today, it’s significantly different … not just the IT side of it, but technology in affecting repairs on vehicles. For example, what they could do with paintless dent repairs today is a lot different than what they could do five years ago.

“You’ve got to stay on top of those types of changes if you want to be in a position to be able to service your customers and give your customers what it is that they’re looking for.”

Important Topics for 2014

Looking forward, Kennedy shared what he believes will be three important topics for the remarketing business next year. The first, he said, will be the standardized condition reports, leading into standardized grading of vehicles.

“The other two are probably combined, and it’s the issues of multi-posting and multi-bidding, and where the industry is going to go with those issues. I think if we step back and see what the customers are looking for — and in this case, the consignors — we’re looking to try and get our vehicles in front of as many eyes as possible,” Kennedy said. “So how do we do that? Is the industry going to take the lead?

“You’ve got the multi-posting already available today. So, really, the next effect is, ‘how do you get it into a multi-bidding arena?’” he added. “2014 is probably going to be centered around the condition report and the multi-bidding capabilities.”

Joe Overby can be reached at joverby@autoremarketing.com. Continue the conversation with Auto Remarketing on both LinkedIn and Twitter.