Six different companies with a significant auto industry presence were named among the 2016 Best Workplaces for Diversity, according to global research and consulting firm Great Place to Work and Fortune.
The half-dozen companies included in the rankings based on employees' assessments of workplace fairness, opportunities for training, and access to senior leadership among other factors were:
—Navy Federal Credit Union
—USAA
—Capital One
—Edmunds.com
—Grow Financial Federal Credit Union
—JM Family Enterprises
“At Edmunds, we strive to create an innovative, rewarding and inclusive work environment that gives everyone the opportunity to grow and advance in their careers, and it’s truly exciting to be recognized for all our efforts," said Edmunds.com chief executive officer Avi Steinlauf, whose company ranked No. 20 out of 50 companies on the list.
“With employees from all over the globe, we’ve been able to cultivate an office culture that brings different backgrounds and perspectives into the workplace to foster new ideas and push the boundaries of innovation,” Steinlauf continued.
To see the full list of the 2016 Best Workplaces for Diversity, click here.
“We congratulate this year's winners for showing that diverse workplaces are good for all employees,” said Michael Bush, chief executive officer of Great Place to Work.
“Bottom line? Our research shows that the most inclusive workplaces enjoy significantly higher revenue growth than less-inclusive workplaces — evidence that these organizations are cultivating the full human potential of all their people,” Bush went on to say.
Edmunds has also been recognized as one of the Best Workplaces for Asian Americans, ranking No. 6 out of 10 companies.
These two honors come on the heels of a series of accolades that recognize Edmunds' unique work culture and office environment. This past October, the company was ranked as one of America's Best Small and Medium Workplaces by Fortune and Great Place to Work. Earlier in the year, Edmunds was named among the 2016 Best Places to Work in IT by IDG's Computerworld and Steinlauf was named a Glassdoor Highest Rated CEO.
This year also marked the seventh consecutive year that Edmunds has been recognized by the Los Angeles Business Journal as a Best Place to Work in Los Angeles.
Cox Automotive presented its Community Impact Award to Karlea Marin of J.P. Morgan Chase during the National Remarketing Conference/National Auto Auction Association Convention at the Red Rock Casino and Resort in Las Vegas.
Presented by Manheim senior vice president of inventory services Grace Huang, this award recognizes a remarketing industry leader for his/her outstanding contributions to the community and the innovative ways he/she collaborates with community partners to help further their missions.
“Karlea’s year-round dedication to helping others exemplifies the spirit of the Cox Automotive Community Impact Award,” Huang said. “We congratulate Karlea for embodying the principles of community service and volunteerism that are so important to the Cox Automotive team.”
Marin, a remarketing industry veteran, has spent more than 25 years as an auction specialist and a remarketing manager. In her role, she coordinates and manages all aspects of vehicle remarketing, including reconditioning, inspecting and pricing of certain makes of vehicles.
Manheim highlighted Marin has a passion for volunteerism, dedicating her time to organizations like Greater Central Florida Area’s Basket Brigade, where she helps provides tailor-made Thanksgiving baskets to needy families; and Arnold Palmer’s Hospital for Children, where she provides ease of stay items to children who are receiving chemotherapy treatment.
Through the J.P. Morgan Chase “Chase Gives Back” initiative, Marin gives basic household necessities to families and children who are served by Family Counseling and Shelter Services of Monroe in Michigan, a non-profit organization that provides programs and services to survivors of domestic violence. She also provides holiday gifts to those who may not otherwise receive a gift through the Head Start Tammany Parish in Louisiana.
She also supports the American Cancer Society, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Salvation Army of Orlando, and serves as Committee Lead on the Festival Finance Board at Good Shepherd Catholic Church.
“This recognition is a tremendous honor and a testament to Cox Automotive’s commitment to community involvement,” Marin said.
For her leadership and commitment to making a difference through community service, Marin will receive $10,000 to donate to the charities of her choice. She has chosen to split the donation among the Histio Cure Foundation; Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children; and Family Counseling and Shelter Services of Monroe County.
On Wednesday, SUVS.com published its list of this year’s top SUVs after examining offerings in each segment.
"With SUVs starting to take a majority stake hold in US vehicle purchases, we felt that it would be important to highlight the best options available to consumers," said Sergio Zlobin, principal at Fueled Up, the parent company of SUVS.com. "Our team analyzed data from millions of shoppers coming through SUVS.com this year, and coupled it with a detailed market comparison of the SUVs available for sale to determine which vehicles should receive the first place title in each category."
The news and reviews company’s annual SUV Awards recognize SUVs in 12 categories such as Best Value and Safest SUV.
Winners in each segment are selected for their performance, interior space, value, safety and technological and stylistic features, according to SUV.com.
The following are the recipients of SUVS.com’s 2016 SUV Awards.
1. Best Compact Economical SUV: 2016 Honda CR-V
2. Best Compact Luxury SUV: 2016 Jaguar F-Pace
3. Best Midsize Economical SUV: 2016 Nissan Murano
4. Best Midsize Luxury SUV: 2016 Tesla Model X
5. Best Large Economical SUV: 2016 Chevrolet Tahoe
6. Best Large Luxury SUV: 2016 Mercedes GL-Class
7. Safest SUV: 2016 Acura MD-X
8. Best Value SUV: 2016 Mazda CX-5
9. Best Performance SUV: 2016 Porsche Cayenne Turbo S
10. Best Off-Road SUV: 2016 Jeep Wrangler
11. Most Dependable SUV: 2016 Toyota 4Runner
12. Best Family SUV: 2016 Volvo XC90
A full detailed description of each award winner and runners-up in each category can be viewed at SUVS.com/awards.
Cox Automotive brand NextGear Capital presented its fourth annual Auction Partners Awards during the National Remarketing Conference/National Auto Auction Association Convention at the Red Rock Casino and Resort in Las Vegas.
The awards spotlight independently owned auction leaders in the industry and recognize their years of dedicated service to growing and supporting the overall industry and their communities.
NextGear Capital senior vice president of operations Randy Dohse welcomed award winners, their guests and others from throughout the auction industry for an evening reception.
“These auctions serve as examples for others in the industry to follow,” Dohse said. “As partners in their business, NextGear Capital has seen firsthand their commitment not only to superior customer service but their dedication to best practices and community.”
Three auction partners were honored with the Operational Excellence award, which is given to auctions that demonstrate excellent efficiency, top sales retention, overall operational performance and the most effective response to the needs of NextGear Capital.
NextGear Capital also presented a Remarketing Excellence award to the auction that demonstrated the highest percentage of sales recovered based on percentage of valuation of each vehicle and the best sales follow-up (efficient timing on getting proceeds of sales to NextGear Capital).
The 2016 Auction Partner Award winners included:
• Operational Excellence: West Michigan Auto Auction in Wayland, Mich.
• Operational Excellence: San Antonio Auto Auction in San Antonio
• Operational Excellence: Houston’s 1st Choice Auto Auction in Houston
• Remarketing Excellence: Carolina Auto Auction in Williamston, S.C.
Seven auto auctions from across the U.S. received awards during the National Remarketing Conference/National Auto Auction Association Convention from Chase Auto Finance as the consignor announced its 2015-2016 Chase Cup for Auction Excellence winners.
Officials recapped that the 18th annual Chase Cup award recognizes auctions across the country for their exceptional performance in retention, operational efficiency, expense control, accuracy, sales and service delivery. The consignor reviewed the performance of 30 of the nation’s best auctions with which Chase does business. The review examined data measuring how well the auctions handled preparation, sales, invoice processing, transport requests, title processing and other capabilities.
“Each year, the Chase Cup aims to honor high-performing auto auctions across the country that display operational excellence, outstanding customer service, and strong financial performance,” said Sandra Broderick, head of operations for Chase Auto Finance. “These auctions are the best of the best.”
Manheim Phoenix was named the winner of the Best National Auction Performance. Chase highlighted that Manheim Phoenix distinguished itself among other top competitors throughout the evaluation period with a balanced performance showcasing strengths in vehicle reconditioning, number of buyers, condition report accuracy, and monetary results.
Manheim Phoenix was also honored for Best Regional Performance, Western.
ADESA Kansas City was the Douglas F. Wininger Memorial Award for Best National Performance Service Delivery, an award that recognizes outstanding service in measurable areas such as transportation management, sales, invoicing and other operational measures. ADESA Kansas City also earned Best Regional Performance, Central.
Chase also recognized other auctions’ top performance:
• Best National Jaguar Sales: Manheim Atlanta
• Best National Land Rover Sales: Manheim Pennsylvania
• Best National Mazda Sales: Manheim Seattle
• Best National Subaru Sales: Manheim Seattle
• Best Regional Performance, Midwestern: Manheim Minneapolis
• Best Regional Performance, Northeastern: Manheim Pennsylvania
• Best Regional Performance, Southeastern: Manheim Orlando
The National Auto Auction Association held its annual Presidential Gala on Thursday night during the NAAA Convention/National Remarketing Conference at Used Car Week, where more awards were announced.
The association inducted Patty Stanley of Carolina Auto Auction and Indiana Auction into the NAAA Hall of Fame, recognized the Eastern Chapter for its second straight PAC Cup and announced its 2016 Auto Auction of the Year, while also recognizing its regional chapter winners.
Earning honors as 2016 NAAA Auto Auction of the Year was West Michigan Auto Auction.
Regional winners were as follows:
— Eastern Chapter Auto Auction of the Year Award: ADESA Winnipeg
— Midwest Chapter Auto Auction of the Year Award: West Michigan Auto Auction
— Southern Chapter Auto Auction of the Year Award: Louisiana’s 1st Choice Auto Auction
— Western Chapter Auto Auction of the Year Award: Kansas City Independent Auto Auction
Earlier in the week, Warren Young Fellows designations went to James Walker, Rich Levene and Mike Rohdy.
The National Auto Auction Association has announced the winners of its Pioneer Award and Bernie Hart Memorial Auctioneer of the Year Award.
The awards were revealed at the Auction Insurance Agency Luncheon on Wednesday at the NAAA Convention/National Remarketing Conference during Used Car Week.
The 2016 recipient of the Bernie Hart Memorial Auctioneer of the Year Award is Jack Armstrong, whose experience includes working with a variety of ADESA, Manheim and independent auctions.
Those include ADESA Birmingham, ADESA Shreveport, Manheim New Orleans, Manheim Mississippi, Tupelo Auto Auction, Dealers Auto Auction of the South, Insurance Auto Auction, Louisiana’s First Choice Auto Auction and Oak View Auto Auction. He was a part-time driver for Rea Brothers Mid-South Auto Auction in college.
Meanwhile, the 2016 Pioneer Award goes to Bob Rauschenberg, who is the executive vice president, of sales, marketing and special services at ADESA.
Last week, Kelly Blue Book announced the winners of its 2017 Best Buy Awards, which honor the top new model-year vehicles on sale through evaluation of vehicle’s transaction prices, 5-Year Cost to Own data, and retail sales information.
Of the more than 300 new-car models available for 2017, the new Honda Civic is recognized as KBB.com’s top vehicle and the first vehicle to be named overall best two years in a row.
“After carefully analyzing a wealth of data and conducting extensive vehicle testing and evaluation from the hundreds of models available for the 2017 model-year, we chose this elite group of 12 Kelley Blue Book Best Buy Award winners because they proved to be the top in their class this year,” said Jack Nerad, executive editorial director and executive market analyst for KBB.com. “Kelley Blue Book editors went to the unprecedented choice of honoring the Honda Civic as the Overall Best Buy for the second year in a row because of the Civic’s unsurpassed all-around value. It turns in very high marks in objective measures like resale value and cost to own, yet it also is a supremely satisfying car to drive and live with every day. We believe the 2017 Civic is an exceptional value and remains the Overall Best Buy for the second year running.”
The following are the winners of KBB.com’s Overall Best Buy Awards.
2017 Kelley Blue Book Best Buy Award Winners
Overall Winner: 2017 Honda Civic
Small Car: 2017 Honda Civic
Mid-Size Car: 2017 Honda Accord
Full-Size Car: 2017 Chevrolet Impala
Luxury Car: 2017 Audi A4
Sports/Performance Car: 2017 Porsche 718 Boxster
Electric/Hybrid: 2017 Toyota Prius Prime
Small SUV/Crossover: 2017 Kia Sportage
Mid-Size SUV/Crossover: 2017 Honda Pilot
Full-Size SUV/Crossover: 2017 Chevrolet Tahoe
Luxury SUV/Crossover: 2017 Mercedes-Benz GLC
Truck: 2017 Ford F-150
Minivan: 2017 Chrysler Pacifica
Unveiled Tuesday at Used Car Week’s CPO Forum were the fourth annual Vincentric Best Certified Pre-Owned Value in America awards.
A recap of the winners:
- Taking top honors in the truck brand category was Chevrolet, recognized for its Silverado lineup.
- Ford earned recognition in the van category for its T-Series vans.
- Lincoln took the luxury SUV/crossover award.
- Lexus earned the luxury car brand award.
- Nissan won for the passenger car brand.
- Toyota was tops in the SUV/crossover category.
The awards also spotlighted individual models. Nissan and Ford had the most winners with each taking home five awards.
“The Vincentric Best CPO Value in America awards offer insight to those trying to understand which certified pre-owned vehicles provide the best value in today’s market,” Vincentric president David Wurster said in a news release. “Low total cost of ownership is fundamental in making smart vehicle purchase decisions.
“These awards have been created to enlighten potential buyers as to which CPO vehicles will provide the best value in the long run.”
Best CPO Value in America awards are based off a statistical analysis that determines which vehicles have lower-than-expected ownership costs (given market segment and price).
More than 15,000 vehicle configurations were analyzed based on eight factors: depreciation, fees and taxes, financing, fuel, insurance, maintenance, opportunity cost and repairs.
Costs were determined after incorporating the CPO brand warranty.
On Monday, ALG announced that Land Rover and Subaru placed as the top brands overall in its 2017 Residual Value Awards, an annual honor for brands and individual models with the highest retained value.
Land Rover was recognized for the third consecutive year as the premium brand with the best overall residual values, while Subaru was acknowledged for the same metric out of all the mainstream brands.
“Residual values are a key indicator of the overall market success and health of a vehicle and brand. Whether a consumer is looking to purchase or lease a vehicle, the largest cost consideration is how much a vehicle will retain its value over time,” said Jim Nguyen, president of ALG. “And with vehicle leasing on the rise, resale values have never been more important to both consumers and automakers.”
ALG’s Residual Value Awards honor individual vehicles in 26 different segments that retain the highest percentage of their respective MSRPs after a three-year period.
Award recipients were chosen from all 2017 model year vehicles, both premium and mainstream.
Automakers will be presented with their awards this week at the Los Angeles Auto Show.
Following are the recipients of ALG’s 17th annual Residual Value Awards.
RVA Overall Brand
Premium — Land Rover
Mainstream — Subaru RVA Segment Model
Alt-Fuel
Toyota Prius V
Compact
Subaru Impreza
Compact Utility
Subaru Forester
Fullsize
Dodge Charger
Fullsize Commercial
Mercedes Sprinter
Fullsize Pickup
Toyota Tundra
Fullsize Utility
Chevrolet Tahoe
Midsize
Subaru Legacy
Midsize Commercial
Metris
Midsize Pickup
Toyota Tacoma
Midsize Utility 2nd Row Seating
Subaru Outback
Midsize Utility 3rd Row Seating
Honda Pilot
Minivan
Toyota Sienna
Off-Road Utility
Toyota 4Runner
Premium Compact
Mercedes CLA Class
Premium Compact Utility
Land Rover Discovery Sport
Premium Executive
Lexus LS
Premium Fullsize
Audi A7
Premium Fullsize Utility
Land Rover Range Rover
Premium Midsize
Jaguar XE
Premium Midsize Utility 2nd Row Seating
Land Rover Range Rover Sport
Premium Midsize Utility 3rd Row Seating
Audi Q7
Premium Sportscar
Nissan GT-R
Sportscar
Subaru WRX
Subcompact
Honda FIT
Subcompact Utility
Subaru Crosstrek
