Consumer automotive shopping website CarGurus announced this week the hire of a new president.
Sam Zales, formerly the chief executive officer of ClickSquared, now takes on the role of president of international and dealer operations at CarGurus. Zales also held former leadership positions at Zoom Information and BuyerZone in Boston.
“I am thrilled to welcome Sam Zales to the CarGurus team,” Langley Steinert, CarGurus’ founder and chief executive officer, said. “Sam brings extensive management experience in the high-technology market, with an impressive track record of leading fast-growth global companies. His leadership will be instrumental in strengthening our market position here in the U.S. and accelerating our growth worldwide.”
Zales, holding true to his new position, has his aim set on expanding the influence of CarGurus as widely as possible.
“CarGurus has established itself as a true game changer among consumers and car dealers alike, and I am excited to be a part of this next chapter of growth and expansion,” Zales said. “As we continue to demonstrate exponential growth for CarGurus here in the United States, we have an extraordinary opportunity to bring CarGurus’ unique offering to new markets. I look forward to working with this innovative team to see that vision through.”
Manheim announced Wednesday a series of new general managers across three states and Quebec, Canada, appointing six new GMs at seven auction locations.
The promotions to general manager include: Alex Fraser (Manheim Portland), Ryan Mason (Manheim Fort Lauderdale), Jeff Modjeski (Manheim Dallas), Christina St-Germain (Manheim Montreal), Toni Williams (Manheim Daytona Beach and Jacksonville) and Robert Zakaib (Manheim Palm Beach).
The GMs have all assumed their new roles, the company reported.
“A key part developing talent and creating a great customer experience is to have the right leaders in place,” said Mike McKinney, regional vice president of East Region Operations. “We are excited to promote these experienced and talented individuals who have delivered strong business results and will continue to help us and our customers further prosper.”
Barry Roop, RVP of West Region Operations also expressed his enthusiasm for the promotions: “Our goal at Manheim is to continue to recognize top talent and ensure they are positioned to drive solid performance while expanding our customer base. Our company and customers will benefit from their leadership, extensive industry knowledge and insights.”
Highlighting the new GM’s background, Fraser of Manheim Portland has been with the company for 13 years. He comes to Portland from Manheim Statesville, where he served as assistant general manager since 2012. In his previous roles, Fraser was a member of the teams that helped build and develop OVE.com and Simulcast Everywhere.
Mason, a 14-year veteran of Manheim comes to Fort Lauderdale from Manheim Darlington, where he served as general manager since 2011.
Mason joined Manheim in 1998 as a management trainee at Manheim Lakeland. During his career with the company, Mason served as assistant general manager, factory manager, vehicle inspection manager and vehicle registration supervisor at Manheim Atlanta.
Modjeski, touting 16 years with the company, comes to Dallas from Manheim Fort Lauderdale and Manheim Palm Beach. He became general manager at both those locations in January 2011.
Modjeski has held a variety of roles at Manheim, including general manager at Manheim New Orleans, assistant general manager at Manheim Central Florida, auction manager at Manheim Australia and controller at Manheim Cincinnati. He joined Manheim as assistant controller at Manheim Orlando in 1998.
St-Germain didn’t have to move for her new role and was promoted from assistant general manager to general manager at Manheim Montreal. St-Germain joined Manheim in 2013.
An eight-year veteran of Manheim, Williams became assistant general manager at Manheim Jacksonville earlier this year. She joined Manheim in 2006 as assistant team manager at the company’s customer service center in Maitland, Fla.
GM at Manheim Daytona Beach and Jacksonville, Williams, became marketing manager at Manheim Central Florida in 2008. During her Manheim career, Williams also served as director of field marketing strategy through the corporate office in Atlanta, and was promotions and marketing manager for four locations in Florida: Manheim Orlando, Central Florida, Daytona Beach and Jacksonville.
Lastly, Zakaib, the new GM at Manheim Palm Beach, became assistant general manager for recon and operations at Manheim Orlando in December 2007. Zakaib worked for Manheim Lauderdale/Miami for 13 years before joining Manheim’s collision center as a manager in Orlando, Fla., in 2004.
Digital Air Strike has tapped a well of technology and auto industry veterans in order to expand its leadership team.
Among the new hires are Thom Brodeur, chief operating officer; Henry Svendblad, senior vice president of technology; Kristen Butzow, vice president of product management and Ed Braunbeck, vice president of client success.
Their collective experience includes the fields of technology, digital marketing, product management and Software-as-a-Service.
"Thanks to the thousands of clients nationwide supporting our growth, we are fortunate to now expand our senior leadership team," said Alexi Venneri, co-founder and chief executive officer of Digital Air Strike. "Thom, Henry, Kristen and Ed's combined experience will help Digital Air Strike continue to foster a culture of innovation and advance our technology development in the social media, digital marketing and automotive industries.
"Their exceptional work at some of the nation's leading companies makes each of them a wonderful addition to our team."
Brodeur, the new chief operating officer, joined Digital Air Strike in April of this year. He brings with him over 20 years of experience in the technology and digital marketing industries, having served in senior operations, product, marketing, business and corporate development positions at companies such as GoDaddy and Marketwired.
In his role at Digital Air Stirke, he oversees the company's continued transformation from a Software-and-Service Hybrid (SaSH) to a SaaS company. The technology, product management, operations, innovation and sales organizations also report to Brodeur.
"Digital Air Strike is at a familiar-and-exciting inflection point," said Brodeur. "I've had the privilege of helping other dynamic entrepreneurs and leadership teams build world-class companies. Market domination is where we're headed and I'm looking forward to helping us get there."
Senior vice president of technology Svendblad has held positions as a chief technology officer, vice president of technology, and group director of infrastructure services in previous roles. In his new position, he is responsible for the company's technology infrastructure, IT, product development and technical support teams.
Before joining the team at Digital Air Strike, Svendblad developed and implemented infrastructure and technology solutions in companies including Safeway, Millennium Partners and McKesson, among others.
Vice president of product management Butzow has been in the technology industry for over 20 years. Before joining the team at Digital Air Strike, Butzow was vice president of product management and marketing at Blackboard and also served in executive roles for major brands including Fujitsu and Pearson. She is now responsible for leading the product management team at Digital Air Strike.
Braunbeck, the new vice president of client success, has held leadership roles in sales, business development and general management with companies like AVV, Autobytel and Dominion Dealer Solutions. In his role at Digital Air Strike, he is responsible for the company's client success team, which works with dealership clients to ensure their success with Digital Air Strike solutions.
Preferred Warranties Inc. announced that it has named a new president.
Brian Cosgrove, formerly PWI’s vice president of marketing and sales since January, brings 30 years of experience into the new position of president.
“I am honored to be part of PWI and to have the opportunity to lead us as we expand our footprint and continue to leverage our strengths throughout the U.S. to serve the independent dealer,” Cosgrove said.
Cosgrove’s experiences prior to joining PWI this year include serving as general manager and vice president of sales for Corporate Environments, and prior to that, he worked for ADP in several management roles, including regional manager in the auto dealer services division and vice president of sales, major markets in its insurance services division.
Jim Money, the chief financial officer of Automotive Finance Corp., another branch of KAR Auction Services, believes Cosgrove’s prior experiences will lend well to his new responsibilities as PWI’s president.
“Brian has a multitude of experience in building sales teams from the ground up and has already made a number of positive impacts in his most recent role as PWI’s VP of sales and marketing,” Money said. “He has the right leadership qualities and business acumen to help drive future growth at PWI.”
Capital Automotive Reconditioning Services (CARS) recently announced that two National Auto Auction Association Hall of Fame members have joined its board of directors.
Auction icons Tom Cunningham and Tony Moorby join the board with lifetimes of achievements in the auction industry.
“We are extremely proud to know that these two gentlemen have accepted board positions to CARS Recon Inc.,” said Ron Hope, president and chief executive officer of CARS. “Both individuals have long histories of moving the auction industry forward on a number of fronts. We are eager to join with them, as they provide direction for CARS Recon Inc. and we look forward to expanding into other areas of remarketing and the automobile industry as a whole.”
Cunningham retired in 2002 from the position of director of remarketing strategy at Ford Motor Company. Prior to joining Ford, Cunningham was an officer in the U.S. Air Force, where he served as an instructor pilot and flew many combat missions during the Vietnam War.
He also served on staff at the U.S. Air Force Academy and at the Pentagon. The CARS board position joins other activities for Cunningham, including the boards he sits on with several small non-profit organizations and foundations, including the Youth Crisis Center of Jacksonville.
Moorby, originally from England, came to the U.S. in 1982 and formed Anglo American Auto Auctions, with Mike Richardson and Nick Snow, a sister company to British Car Auctions.
Moorby served several leadership positions with the company, which eventually became ADT Automotive, including president and chief executive officer from 1997 to 2000. After the company’s sale, Moorby served as the executive vice president of ADESA Corp., responsible for corporate development. He developed his own series of businesses prior to semi-retirement in 2014. Moorby is currently a member of the board of trustees of the National Independent Automotive Dealers Association, a position he’s held since 2006.
Dealertrack Technologies announced last week that company execs Rick Gibbs and Raj Sundaram have been named co-presidents, effective immediately.
Chief executive officer Mark O’Neil will continue to lead the company, and Gibbs and Sundaram will now work to provide increased focus on building and delivering dealer-driven technology solutions across the online to in-store platform, the company said.
In his new role, Sundaram will oversee Dealertrack’s sales, marketing and brand initiatives. The DMS (dealer management system), Inventory, CRM (customer relationship management), and F&I product teams will continue to report to him, as well.
And Gibbs will now lead Dealertrack’s product development initiatives including engineering, product strategy and management. He will also oversee the new product and platform solutions teams focused on integrating Dealertrack solutions. Dealertrack’s Digital Marketing product family, Dealer.com, will continue to report to Gibbs, as well.
“As we have evolved our platform to provide dealers with all of the technologies and services they need to manage their operation from online to in-store, we also have had to evolve our organization to maintain optimal performance,” O’Neil said. “The appointment of Raj and Rick as co-presidents is a key part of our strategy to centralize all product development into one team, as well as unify our go-to-market execution teams. Their proven leadership, vision, and expertise will help strengthen our competitiveness as we continue to provide our clients with the capabilities to transform automotive retailing.”
Sundaram joined Dealertrack back in 2005 and has served in many senior leadership roles since then. During his tenure at the company, he has worked as executive vice president and group president, dealer solutions; senior VP, Solutions and Services Group; and SVP, dealer solutions.
Gibbs was named Dealertrack’s EVP and group president for digital marketing solutions in March.
He co-founded Dealer.com in 1998, which was acquired by Dealertrack Technologies this past spring. At Dealer.com, Gibbs served as chief executive officer and president since December 2013.
Mitch Golub spent nearly two decades as a leader of Cars.com. Now the vehicle listing website has revealed two top executive changes in less than three weeks.
Gannett Co. announced on Friday that Alex Vetter, executive vice president and chief operating officer for Cars.com, has been named president and chief executive officer.
Officials indicated former Cars.com CEO Dan Jauernig has decided to return to his home city of Toronto to be closer to his family and has joined a leading financial services firm.
“Alex has deep knowledge of the business, having helped create and strategically build Cars.com as a top destination for online car shoppers,” Gannett president and CEO Gracia Martore said. “He is a highly respected leader, with tremendous experience in growing new products and successfully steering expansion into new categories of business. He helped grow Cars.com from a start-up to the leading online automotive marketplace it is today.”
The chain of events started back on Oct. 23 when Golub announced his retirement, triggering Jauernig to take on the president role. The company indicated Golub will stay with the company through March 1 to ensure a smooth leadership transition.
But now that transition includes Vetter not moving up from a senior vice president role to COO, but now as president and CEO.
Cars.com highlighted that Vetter has been a key leader, helping the site grow to more than 1,300 employees, serving every local market in the United States.
Vetter has operated in nearly every capacity at Cars.com, serving as senior vice president of Cars.com since 2006 until recently taking on the new and expanded role of executive vice president and chief operating officer.
From 2001 to 2005, he was vice president of sales; director of product development and operations from 1999 to 2001; manager of affiliate operations from 1998 to 1999; and from 1997 to 1998, he was manager of business development for Classified Ventures.
Prior to those posts, he worked in business development for the Tribune Co.
Vetter is also an active technology investor and sits on the boards of several digital technology companies, including RepairPal, the definitive source for trusted information on auto repair and service.
In 2013, Vetter helped establish the Houndstooth Charitable Fund, which provides resources for worthy causes and/or families in need. It was nationally recognized by the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in its inaugural year.
Auto Remarketing has learned that Brent Huisman of Santander Consumer USA has moved to a new role within the company.
Huisman is now executive vice president of asset remarketing. In this role, he will directly supervise asset remarketing, action reconditioning, internal and external sales as well as Chrysler Capital lease returns.
Huisman has been with the company since its acquisition of HSBC four years ago. His experience also includes time with GE Capital Auto Financial Services, Chase Auto Finance and KAR Auction Holdings.
With regards to his most recent post as former role as senior vice president of asset remarketing, that position will be filled at a later date.
Manheim has announced early this week the appointment of a new general manager for Manheim Detroit. Named to the position is Mandy Savage, formerly the assistant general manager at Manheim Palm Beach.
In her new role, she is now responsible for leading auction activities, improving customer service and driving business efficiencies while reporting to Randy Beil, Manheim’s market vice president for the North Central Market.
“In her previous role, Mandy has continued to deliver solid business performance, exceptional customer service and inspiring employee engagement,” Beil said. “Her high energy, innovative leadership style and strong relationship-building skills will further compliment the great work already being done at Manheim Detroit.”
While besting operational efficiency goals over the past two years and garnering double-digit customer experience scores in her previous position at Manheim Palm Beach, Savage also held two of the most successful One Hundred Grander Sales in the auction’s history, including the sale of a 2008 Bugatti Veyron for $1 million, the highest-selling auction on record for Manheim.
Savage also, prior to being assistant general manager at the Palm Beach location, served as director of best practices for Manheim Digital and held roles as manager of online training and sales executive at OVE.com.
FordDirect announced this week the appointment of Jeff Forrester as the director of purchasing, a new position in the newly created purchasing department at the company.
In the new role, Forrester’s responsibilities will include overseeing vendor management and contracts, working with internal teams to achieve cost reductions, quality maintenance, policy compliance and risk mitigation while driving business objectives. Forrester will report to Beth Hill, the company’s general counsel and chief compliance officer.
Stacey Coopes, FordDirect’s chief executive officer, said the company’s new department is in good hands with Forrester.
“As a practical, experienced executive who has successfully managed large, complex transactions, Jeff is well-positioned to lead and shape the new purchasing department,” Coopes said. “As FordDirect continues its growth, his expertise in purchasing and procurement will be instrumental to the company’s success and long-term sustainability.”
Forrester’s experience includes working for both automotive suppliers and OEMs, including Ford, also including being a senior buyer at General Motors prior to joining FordDirect.
