CarProof Corp. announced today it has hired a new manager of national strategic accounts.
Chosen for the position is Richard Pasta, who was most recently manager of national fleet sales, CPO and remarketing at Kia Motors Canada — a position he had held since 2008.
In Pasta’s new role at CarProof, the company shared he will be focused on enhancing the strategic relationships CarProof has in the auction and fleet segments of the business.
"We are very excited to build new and expand existing strategic relationships in key areas of the remarketing ecosystem. Richard's unique and comprehensive experience in all areas of the Canadian automotive industry make him a perfect fit for CarProof and this role," says Fabian Richenberger, head of financial services at CarProof.
Pasta, a graduate of the Automotive Business School of Canada, has automotive industry experience dating back to 1997, including positions in the vehicle rental, leasing and financing sectors.
"As a company committed to improve our industry through increased transparency, I have long admired what CarProof has accomplished and what the company stands for," said Pasta. "I am very much looking forward to leveraging what I've learned through my experience to help take CarProof's relationships and value proposition to the next level."
DealerRater announced this week it has a new vice president of business development that will be focusing on business in both Canada and the U.S.
Chosen for the position is Brian Epro. The company reported Epro will be responsible for helping to grow the company’s partnerships with the largest dealer groups across the U.S. and Canada.
“DealerRater helps millions of consumers connect with a dealership that can best meet their needs and that will deliver them a great customer experience,” said Gary Tucker, chief executive officer of DealerRater. “Brian’s industry and dealer experience will help us continue to grow and deliver tremendous value to our dealers and the industry overall.”
Epro will report directly to Tucker, and will also work in conjunction with Larry Cochran, DealerRater’s senior vice president of business development, to manage DealerRater’s relationships with OEMs.
Epro brings to the company over 20 years of experience in business development in the auto industry. Most recently, he worked with AutoLoop, which provides marketing solutions for dealerships, in the same VP capacity.
At AutoLoop, Epro played a role helping facilitate the standardization of Mercedes-Benz retail sales and fixed operations marketing onto the AutoLoop platform.
Prior to his time with the marketing firm, Epro was VP of product strategy for IMN, a digital marketing company, where he started their Automotive Services Group and led the company to partnerships with BMW, Volvo, Lexus, GM, Ford, Hyundai and Kia.
Audi Canada announced today it has a new president.
Chosen for the position is Daniel Weissland, who will start in his new role on Aug. 1.
The company explained Weisslan will be succeeding Wolfgang Hoffman as president, who has completed his three-year foreign assignment.
Weissland is currently the sales director for Southern Europe and is based in Ingolstadt, Germany. He has been in this position since 2011.
Weissland first joined the automaker in 1999 and has held increasingly progressive roles within the company since joining.
These include the areas of sales, marketing, network development and product management.
Previous experience includes being part of the team that founded the National Sales Co. in Dubai.
Cox Automotive announced Tuesday a new hire, naming former Kia Canada executive Maria Soklis to the newly formed role of president of Cox Automotive Canada.
What does this mean for Cox Automotive’s growth and strategy in Canada going forward?
Joe George, senior vice president of Cox Automotive Strategy, and the exec that Soklis will be reporting to, told Auto Remarketing Canada the hire is just one step in a “long journey” of business growth in Canada.
“As we look at not only at our U.S. businesses, but also our global businesses, we want to look at partner countries in a way that is specific to their country, but also takes advantage of all of our assets and brands and products and people,” said George.
This strategy led to Soklis’ hire, as she offers a window into Canada’s dealer network, which George cited as the “most local manifestation you can have.”
Soklis' responsibilities will include servicing consumers, dealers, OEMs and commercial fleet customers, helping them evolve and be more successful.
Working with these types of clients is a field in which Soklis is well-versed. Her most recent role was as VP and chief operating officer at Kia Canada, and she has career experience with General Motors, as well.
“Maria has had a great career with two great companies, General Motors and Kia, and she is a dealer-focused executive that understands it’s about selling more cars for everybody. So she brings both a OEM perspective and a long track record of being effective with dealers, which for us is the important combination,” George said.
During Soklis’ tenure with the automaker, the company experienced significant growth, and she also established Kia Canada's corporate social responsibility platform and played a large role in Kia Canada's 'Drive Change' campaign.
Soklis’ primary focus as she takes on her new position will be growing Cox Automotive’s largest business in Canada — its Manheim auctions.
That said, Soklis will also be tasked with growing and expanding the company’s presence in Canada as a whole.
The new president will also be taking a look at “the overall opportunities related to Cox Automotive and helping continue to evolve our footprint and our strategy relative to our brands and products in Canada,” said George.
Cox Automotive is looking first to grow its services in and around inventory, which Manheim is a piece of, as well as NextGear Capital and the company’s HomeNet division.
George explained the strategy is to grow the different tools that allow auto industry participants to more efficiently and effectively optimize their used-car inventories.
And as used supply remains tight, this is top-of-mind for many Canadian dealers.
“I think Canada is an important market for us, so you are going to see us driving forward in Canada. The one thing we want to make sure is that we drive forward in a way that makes sense for the Canadian market, which is similar, but not exactly the same as the U.S. market,” said George. “So we want to go where the opportunities are for the particular Canadian market and grow with the market and help make it more efficient and effective.”
“And we think Maria is the right leader to help make that happen,” he concluded.
It was announced today that the former vice president and chief operating officer of Kia Canada, Maria Soklis, has been named to a newly formed role at Cox Automotive.
Soklis has been hired as the new president of Cox Automotive Canada. In the newly created position, she will lead the development and execution of the company’s business strategy and operations in Canada.
Six Cox Automotive businesses operate in Canada including Manheim, vAuto, NextGear Capitol, HomeNet, VinSolutions and XTime.
Soklis will report to Joe George, senior vice president of Cox Automotive Strategy.
"Maria is a very talented executive who brings a pioneering spirit and deep industry knowledge to our team," George said. "We're thrilled to have her join us, and welcome her vision as we deepen and expand our Canadian presence."
Soklis was most recently VP and COO of Kia Canada, and during her tenure with the automaker, the company experienced significant growth, “and she cultivated a strong professional relationship with the dealer network based on transparency and integrity,” Cox Automotive management pointed out.
She also established Kia Canada's corporate social responsibility platform and played a large role in Kia Canada's 'Drive Change' campaign.
"Joining Cox Automotive is an exhilarating new challenge for me, and I'm looking forward to helping the company achieve a strong leadership position in the Canadian market," Soklis said.
Soklis will be based at the Cox Automotive Canada headquarters in Mississauga, Ontario.
TransUnion Canada announced this week that it has named Paul Devereaux as the vice president of financial services.
Devereaux, who brings more than 25 years of experience in business development and sales to the position, will be responsible for leading the financial services team throughout TransUnion’s expansion in the Canadian market.
“Paul brings extensive experience in business development strategy and has a proven track record of building highly effective sales teams,” said Todd Skinner, TransUnion Canada’s president. “We are excited to welcome Paul to TransUnion Canada as we continue to deliver high quality solutions for our customers throughout the nation.”
Prior to taking on the VP role, Devereaux led the Canadian sales for SecureKey Technologies. He also spent time as the executive vice president of business development and senior vice president of credit and card products for Choice Capital, as well as vice president of sales and consulting for FICO. Devereaux previously worked for TransUnion Canada in another capacity as the director of financial services.
He will replace Dan Smith, who held the position since 2012.
“Dan played an instrumental role during the last three years to help our company grow our revenues in the financial marketplace,” Skinner said. “We are fortunate to have had Dan on the team, and we are excited about the experience and energy Paul brings back to the company in this important role.”
CarProof Corp. — the lead sponsor of next week’s Auto Remarketing Canada Conference — announced it has added a new exec to its leadership team.
Karim Hemani will be filling the role of vice president, consumer vertical.
The company said that in this new role, Hamani will be focused “aggressively” on expanding CarProof’s value proposition and awareness with consumers.
“I’m excited to be part of the CarProof family,” said Hemani. “The company is well positioned, with the right data, talent and culture, to deliver on a universal movement towards consumer transparency and empowerment.”
Hemani will have offices in both Toronto and London, Ontario.
Taking a look at the new execs background, Hemani has held roles across a range of consumer-focused verticals over the past 13 years, including telecommunications, retail, media and financial services.
He has held senior roles in companies including Sears, where he headed up online operations for Sears.ca; Toronto Star Newspaper, one of Canada’s largest daily newspapers; and, most recently, easyhome Ltd, as vice president of eCommerce and Omnichannel.
“We have a great opportunity to take CarProof’s consumer business to the next level and I’m thrilled that Karim is joining us to help us to capitalize on it,” said Ed Woiteshek, president and chief executive officer at CarProof. “Karim’s background in building best-in-class consumer experiences and his knowledge of digital marketing and brand strategy will help to bring CarProof’s promise of trust and transparency to more consumers, and in new ways.
“Ultimately this will benefit not only consumers but also our valued dealer and OEM partners”
Woiteshhek was named to the role of president and CEO last November as former CEO and company founder, Paul Antony, stepped into the role of chairman.
ADESA announced today that it has named a new general manager at ADESA Ottawa. Most recently serving as the auction’s assistant GM, Jason McClenahan now takes on the position of GM, where he will be responsible for the auction’s market share growth and maintaining the auction’s culture for employees and customers.
“Jason has a proven track record of innovative performance and leadership,” said Trevor Henderson, ADESA Canada’s chief operating officer. “He’s dedicated to the success and growth of this auction, having developed relationships with the team and with customers during his time as this location’s assistant general manager.”
McClenahan possesses more than 15 years of auction industry experience, which he started as a part-time block clerk for ADESA while still in high school. He has held various roles since then, including vehicle check-in, fleet coordinator, operations manager and sales manager. He spent 12 of his years with ADESA Vancouver and the last three with ADESA Ottawa.
“I’m honored to lead this experienced team at ADESA Ottawa,” McClenahan said. “There’s a lot of history here, having been in business 25 years this June. It’s an exciting time and we plan to open our 10th auction block soon.”
A graduate of the Western College of Auctioneering, McClenahan takes the reigns from the auction’s former GM, Joanne Marzsin, who served in the position for 10 years. Marzsin will remain with the company in a new role as the director of financial compliance for ADESA’s North American operations.
“Joanne has been incredibly committed to our success during the years,” Henderson said. “We are pleased that we will continue to have her expertise in this new position.”
Infiniti Canada has named a new managing director, effective April 1.
Stephen Lester has been chosen for the role and will be reporting to Christian Meunier, president, Nissan Canada Inc. and Randy Parker, vice president, Infiniti Americas.
Lester was most recently national general manager of the brand and has more than 12 years of experience in the automotive industry.
This move comes after the brand recorded its best-ever year in 2014, with new-car sales growing over 10,000 units for the first time in Canada.
The company said naming a managing director reflects the brand's determination to build on recent success in the Canadian premium automotive market.
"Adding strong and experienced Canadian leaders to our management teams will be critical to our success as we continue to implement our growth plan for Infiniti in Canada," said Meunier. "Stephen has shown great leadership and strategic thinking since joining our team as national general manager and we are excited to have him lead the Infiniti brand into the future."
Prior to his role with Infiniti, Lester worked in management at BMW Group, focusing on regional development and brand marketing in Canada and Germany.
"Taking on this new role is very exciting as we look to expand our product portfolio of premium products and provide more Canadians with the inspired performance they deserve," said Lester. "Infiniti has assembled a great team, both here in Canada and globally, and I'm eager to continue strengthening the brand in this new role."
Nissan announced it is appointing a new vice president of field sales and operations in Canada.
Ted Lancaster, currently regional general manager for the Nissan Canada East Region and a 20-year veteran of the automotive industry, will be appointed to the position, effective Jan. 1.
Lancaster will be replacing Mike Colleran as he moves into his new role of regional VP, Nissan Northeast Region in the U.S.
Lancaster joined Nissan Canada in 2013 in his current role.
Prior to coming on board with the automaker, he was director of national development for the Dilawri Group, which just acquired its 50th dealership.
Lancaster has also held various sales and marketing leadership roles with both Mercedes-Benz and Mitsubishi.
Colleran will begin his new role on Jan. 1, as well, with a transition period supporting Nissan Canada and completing special projects until early summer.
Colleran joined Nissan in 2011 in his current role after holding several leadership roles at Saab Cars North America and General Motors.
"Mike has been an important part of the Nissan team success in Canada, we'd like to thank him for his commitment and tireless energy over the past three years, and wish him all the best in his new role," said Christian Meunier, president of Nissan Canada. "Ted was an immediate asset upon joining the Nissan team and we're very happy to promote from within to this very important role."
