It’s been an exciting week for ComplyNet, a provider of end-to-end compliance and risk mitigation solutions.
Along with releasing the fruit of a relationship with 700 Credit, ComplyNet also named a new chief executive officer, choosing Jeff McCurry for the position.
Formerly of Solera, where he served as general manager of iDMS and vice president of product management at DealerSocket, ComplyNet said McCurry will help lead the company as it continues to enhance its service offerings via tech-enablement.
McCurry will also join ComplyNet’s board of directors alongside:
— Adam Crowell, president and general counsel of ComplyNet
— Greg Levi, managing member of ComplyNet
— Joe Bihner, managing partner of Vectura Partners
— Dick Emens of the Emens Wolper Jacobs & Jasin Law Firm
“Vectura Partners lead the CEO search, and Jeff was the first choice of the board from the beginning,” Bihner said in a news release. “Provided Jeff’s background, attention to efficiency management, and technology-driven skillset, we are confident he will help lead ComplyNet’s growth and innovation.”
Crowell elaborated about why the company chose McCurry.
“We have spent the last couple years developing ABLE, a cloud-based compliance management system, that is extremely comprehensive, intuitive, and user-friendly,” Crowell said, “and we will continue innovating and providing best-in-class solutions.
“Jeff will accelerate our product and solution enhancements, plus he has the practical dealership background and proven people skills to take us to a whole new level, and we are extremely blessed to have attracted such talent,” Crowell went on to say.
ComplyNet & 700 Credit collaboration
In other news that surfaced this week, 700 Credit, a provider of credit reports, compliance solutions and soft pull products, announced the launch of the new Learning Management System (LMS), a training platform that can help to ensure dealership’s personnel are well trained and have best practices in place for adhering to government compliance regulations.
“We’re delivering a robust web-based, self-paced LMS that will provide the required training dealerships need to remain compliant with every transaction and importantly, to help avoid costly fines or worse — lawsuits,” 700 Credit said in another news release.
This new platform is the result of an alliance with ComplyNet, which combines intuitive software with auditing services to assist dealerships in achieving regulatory compliance goals, mitigating risks and retaining talent.
“Dealers today are faced with several concerns around being in compliance with federal regulations, of a potential audit, or being fined around the accessing and handling of customer’s sensitive credit data,” 700 Credit managing director Ken Hill. “Dealers also need to be continuously updated on regulation changes happening in the industry. For example, the impact that the latest Dealer Safeguards ruling will have on business.
“As the largest provider of credit reports to dealers from all three bureaus — Experian, Equifax and TransUnion — 700 Credit has always prioritized a comprehensive and mechanized compliance solution for dealerships,” Hill continued. “Our new LMS platform takes another important step by providing dealership employees a more thorough education on these requirements with the toolsets to get them there.”
Crowell also described what this alliance has generated.
“We are proud to partner with 700 Credit to guide dealerships to a culture of compliance in an environment that is both collaborative and creative,” Crowell said.
“Our platform within 700 Credit’s dealer portal will enable dealerships to access a full-service compliance solution that complements their regulatory training and reporting objectives,” he went on to say.
About a month after elevating two of its current attorneys to be partners, Hudson Cook added to its portfolio legal expertise by welcoming a new partner and two new associates this week.
Brought in to reinforce the firm’s litigation and government investigations practice areas, Hudson Cook hired Julia Whitelock as a new partner and Gabriela Chambi and Kristen Yarows as new associates.
Hudson Cook highlighted through a news release that Whitelock joins the litigation and government enforcement practice groups, representing businesses facing individual and class action litigation and arbitration arising under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), and other federal and state consumer protection laws.
The firm said Whitelock has successfully enforced arbitration clauses, defeated class certification, and obtained favorable resolution of consumer claims on individual and class bases.
Whitelock was most recently a partner with a large national firm where she represented businesses across many industries in consumer, complex commercial and intellectual property litigation and arbitration.
Hudson Cook litigation partner Mark Rooney praised Whitelock’s experience, noting that she has argued consumer litigation class action cases in both state and federal appellate courts.
“Julia brings a wealth of consumer litigation defense experience to Hudson Cook,” Rooney said in the news release. “She routinely litigates in Virginia, Maryland, and DC and will help the firm meet our clients’ growing litigation needs in those jurisdictions and beyond.
“Her work with consumer data solutions providers, including background screeners and mortgage data analysts, and debt collectors adds new depth to our already robust capabilities in those areas,” Rooney continued.
Hudson Cook noted that Chambi primarily represents consumer finance companies and other clients in litigation and government investigations and enforcement actions.
Originally from Bolivia, the firm highlighted Chambi is a bilingual attorney fluent in English and Spanish. Her practice includes translating and analyzing documents in Spanish, and she is a member of the Hispanic National Bar Association.
Before entering private practice, Chambi clerked for the District Court of Maryland in Montgomery County.
Hudson Cook Yarows joined the firm’s Washington D.C., office from the Partner Enforcement and Consumer Protection Directorate at the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Federal Student Aid.
Yarows investigated institutions of higher education for violations of state and federal consumer protection laws. She primarily represents clients in government investigations and enforcement actions, according to Hudson Cook.
“We are thrilled to welcome Julia, Gabriela and Kristen to Hudson Cook, expanding our capabilities in the litigation and government investigations practice areas with these talented lawyers,” Hudson Cook managing partner Chuck Dodge said in the news release. “Whether defending our clients in government investigations or in private consumer litigation, our growing team is able to leverage our comprehensive understanding of both federal and state consumer financial services regulatory matters to find the ideal defense strategy.
"As we celebrate our 25th anniversary this year, we look forward to leveraging Julia’s, Gabriela’s and Kristen’s unique skills for the benefit of our clients and are proud to add them to our team,” Dodge went on to say.
The National Automotive Finance Association now has its second-ever executive director.
The NAF Association announced on Wednesday that Jennifer Martin will be its new executive director, succeeding Jack Tracey, who served in the position since the organization’s formation in 1996 until his passing last summer.
According to a news release, Martin arrives with more than 15 years of association management experience, holding the titles of chief of staff, senior vice president of strategic initiatives and member services director.
The NAF Association highlighted that Martin also brings a unique perspective as a former governmental affairs professional with a broad background of leading advocacy efforts for member-driven organizations.
“We were fortunate that there was great interest in the position, and we’re very excited that Jennifer accepted the board’s offer of the role,” NAF Association president Paul Gillespie said in the news release. "She has big shoes to fill as former executive director Jack Tracey, who passed away in June 2021, was not only a great leader but also a great person.
“We fully expect that Jennifer will be our next great leader,” added Gillespie, who oversees the AmeriCredit branch of GM Financial.
The NAF Association said Martin, who resides in Tallahassee, Fla., will transition from her current role as chief of staff for the League of Southeastern Credit Unions & Affiliates to her new role in March.
“I am thrilled to be joining the NAF Association team and appreciate the confidence the board has placed in my abilities to lead the organization,” Martin said. “We have an exceptional team at NAF Association that is focused on supporting its members with programs and education, and we will continue to advance the mission of leading the way in cultivating a culture of trust, collaboration, and transparency within the industry.
“I am looking forward to building on the many successes of NAF Association and unlocking growth potential for the future,” she went on to say.
McGlinchey Stafford recently announced the addition of three new members of the firm, all of whom were formerly of counsel at the firm.
The three new members include:
• Mikelle Bliss (commercial litigation, New York)
• Lynette Hotchkiss (consumer financial services compliance, Nashville, Tenn.)
• Michael Odom (real estate, Birmingham, Ala.)
According to a news release, Charles “Chase” Stoecker (labor and employment, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) has been named Of Counsel.
“I am proud to welcome these colleagues into the ranks of Membership and Counsel within the McGlinchey family,” said Michael Ferachi, managing member of the firm.
“Mikelle, Lynette, Michael, and Chase have been wonderful additions to our team, and I congratulate them on these new positions. I am also delighted that these attorneys reflect the diversity we see as the future of McGlinchey,” Ferachi continued in the news release.
Bliss joined the firm in 2019. She serves as managing attorney of the New York office and focuses her practice on defense of consumer protection and lender liability claims in state and federal courts.
Bliss has more than 20 years of experience counseling clients on mortgage servicing quality control and the constantly changing New York regulatory landscape. She has previous experience with a variety of legal matters, including construction litigation, fraud claims, property disputes, commercial foreclosures, corporate representation, and estate litigation.
“As a member, I am excited to continue partnering with my colleagues, for whom I have great respect, as we grow our firm in service of clients' needs,” Bliss said.
Hotchkiss joined McGlinchey in 2020 and has previous experience as general counsel and other in-house roles at banks, and as a senior regulator within the federal government. Hotchkiss advises financial institutions on legal and regulatory matters related to consumer financial protection, corporate governance, risk management, and other bank safety and soundness issues.
“I look forward to continuing to serve banking and consumer finance clients in the role as Member in the Consumer Financial Services Compliance practice group,” Hotchkiss said. “It is an honor to hold this role among many esteemed attorneys.”
Odom joined the firm’s Birmingham office in 2018. He has represented clients in a broad array of real estate transactions, finance, and litigation. Michael represents banks, other lenders, and title insurance companies in a full range of transactions and disputes, and has represented landowners whose property is being condemned through eminent domain.
With more than 25 years of litigation experience, Odom serves as an arbitrator and mediator and is registered on the Alabama State Court mediation roster and the Alabama arbitrator roster.
“I am very proud to be named a member at McGlinchey, where I will continue the standard of excellent service delivered to our clients,” Odom said.
Stoecker joined the firm in 2017 as an associate.
“He is a talented trial lawyer whose practice spans a wide variety of commercial litigation topics including labor and employment as well as consumer financial services matters at the state, federal, and appellate levels,” the firm said. Chase has written extensively to advise clients on topics ranging from employers’ COVID-19 protocols to litigation updates and reports.”
Stoecker added, “Being named of counsel at McGlinchey is an exciting development in my practice. I look forward to serving clients alongside my colleagues in this capacity.”
Carleton recently welcomed a new executive who possesses vast experience with multiple automakers.
The provider of accurate and compliant lending calculations and document generation solutions announced the addition of Mark Futa as vice president of sales and marketing to be responsible for the leadership of the Carleton sales team and developing new business opportunities.
Futa comes to Carleton with a tremendous sales and marketing background. He spent many years with Ford and Nissan as well as the University of Notre Dame. According to a news release, his experiences include sales strategy, brand management, executive leadership and a proven track-record for building relationships.
With the recent launch of Carleton CarCalcs, and the continued growth of core products — CarletonDocs, CarletonAccess, and CarletonAudit — Carleton explained that it has strengthened its business development efforts to positioned the company as a leader in providing dynamic and compliant software for the automotive finance industry.
“Mark’s experience with large automotive captives and their dealers brings to Carleton a high level of understanding to the ever-changing automotive sales and lending environment,” Carleton president Matt Ruszkowski said in the news release.
“We continue to experience a high demand for our products and services in the automotive industry and with the addition of Mark to our leadership team, Carleton is well poised for continued record growth,” Ruszkowski continued.
Futa also shared his perspectives about joining Carleton.
“Carleton’s product and services are highly respected and rare within the lending industry. I am fortunate to be joining such a recognized company that prides itself on top quality service,” Futa said. “Carleton’s experience with payment calculations and the resulting compliance requirements on a state and federal level is second to none.
“I am excited to join the dedicated and passionate team at Carleton and look forward to working with Carleton’s world-class compliance and development specialists in providing lending solutions,” he went on to say.
To learn more about Carleton and its solutions, go to www.carletoninc.com or contact Futa at 574-243-6040, ext. 245, or [email protected].
Automotive Personnel founder Don Jasensky now has run his own executive search firm to help finance companies and dealerships for 33 years.
And during the past couple of years, Jasensky has seen some of the most dramatic changes with how employers find their new staff and how workers decide where to leverage their talents.
Jasensky shared a wide array of recommendations to help operations large and small in this episode of the Auto Remarketing Podcast.
To listen to the conversation, click on the link available below, or visit the Auto Remarketing Podcast page.
Download and subscribe to the Auto Remarketing Podcast on iTunes or on Google Play.
JM Family Enterprises tapped Eric Gebhard to be the company’s interim chief financial officer last May.
On Wednesday, an executive Gebhard helped to recruit became the company’s permanent CFO.
Taking on this role as well as holding the title of senior vice president is Ravi Abbineni, who now will be leading the company’s financial operations.
Now with Abbineni in place, the company said in a news release that Gebhard will return to focusing full time as JM Family’s treasurer and group vice president of financial operations.
An accomplished CFO with 20 years of experience, JM Family highlighted that Abbineni has worked in a number of industries, including consumer finance, insurance, real estate, treasury, commercial banking and asset management. He most recently served as managing director, CFO and head of strategy for Citizens Commercial Banking.
Prior to that position, Abbineni held CFO roles for JPMorgan Chase in its middle market and specialized industries banking and global real estate divisions, as well as with GE Capital’s commercial real estate division. He also served as the GE CFO for Hyundai Capital & Hyundai Card Joint Ventures in Seoul, South Korea.
Abbineni has focused on financial management, strategic planning, auditing, and mergers and acquisitions. The company said his professional experience will be an asset as JM Family executes its growth strategy and expands its leadership position both organically and through acquisitions, leveraging its strong culture and success in the franchise business model.
“Ravi’s impressive breadth of experience and knowledge of various aspects of the financial industry made him an ideal candidate as JM Family looks to grow its position beyond automotive,” JM Family president and chief executive officer Brent Burns said. “We are excited to leverage his expertise and fresh perspective going forward and are certain that he and his family will find a welcoming home here at JM Family.”
VisionMenu welcomed a new chief operating officer this week.
Taking on the position for the F&I software provider is Steven Meeker, who arrives as VisionMenu said it’s experiencing rapid growth that prompted the expansion of its executive team to meet customer needs.
“We are elated to have Steven join us,” VisionMenu president Ron Martin said in a news release. “He knows the industry inside and out. He has worked with some of the largest dealer groups in the country and knows how to expand F&I profits for our providers, agents and dealerships.”
Prior to this role, Meeker served as chief strategy officer of DealerSocket, which was acquired by Solera Holdings. He led DealerSocket acquisitions, strategic partnerships and key dealer account relations.
The new VisionMenu COO is bullish on the F&I space and his new company’s position in it.
“In a changing automotive landscape, VisionMenu remains committed to innovation and will be releasing new tools to expand dealer F&I profits and improve software workflows to create a better experience,” Meeker said.
For more information, visit www.visiondealersolutions.com.
After the closing of the company’s sale to an investor group led by Warburg Pincus as well as an expansion of its origination strategy last month, more significant changes at Exeter Finance came late on Thursday.
The non-prime auto finance company announced chief financial officer Brad Nall will retire. Nall’s successor will be auto finance industry veteran Jason Kulas, who will assume duties as the company’s new CFO and vice chairman in February.
According to a company news release, Nall has served as chief financial officer for five years and has held senior leadership roles at Exeter since 2012. In all, he has worked in the financial services sector for more than 25 years.
“Brad has been an incredible leader for our company and has played a key role in every strategic decision we’ve made as we’ve grown the company over the last five years. He has been a steady, valuable voice in the C-suite throughout his tenure as CFO, and I am personally sad to see him go,” Exeter Finance chief executive officer Jason Grubb said.
“At the same time, I’m very excited for Brad and his family. He has worked hard for a long time and has earned the retirement that’s ahead of him. We all wish him the very best,” Grubb continued.
Grubb said that Nall will remain with the company into March, assisting Kulas through a transition period. Exeter indicated Kulas will officially assume the role as CFO and vice chairman on Feb. 15.
Kulas has more than 25 years of experience in the financial services sector and has served as an Exeter board member and advisor since 2019.
Kulas is non-executive chairman of Cash Converters, and most recently served as the chief executive officer of EZCORP after previously holding positions as an independent director and as the company’s president and chief financial officer.
Kulas also served more than 10 years in the CFO, president and CEO positions at Santander Consumer USA and was a managing director of investment banking with J.P. Morgan.
“Jason understands our industry and knows our company well. He has tremendous vision and incredible leadership abilities, and I know he will be a strong strategic partner to everyone in our organization,” said Grubb, who worked with Kulas when both executives were employed at SCUSA.
“We have plans to grow Exeter to serve more auto dealers and consumers in the years ahead, and Jason is going to be a great asset to have on our executive leadership team,” Grubb added.
Exeter board chairman Tom Dundon echoed Grubb’s sentiments, offering high praise for both Nall and Kulas.
“Brad Nall has been an integral part of the executive team that turned Exeter around over the last handful of years and built it into an industry leader,” Dundon said. “We can’t thank him enough.
“As we grow the company from here, we all agree Jason Kulas is exactly the right leader to help expand our offerings and guide Exeter forward. He possesses both the experience and insight needed to succeed in this critical role, and we couldn’t be more excited,” Dundon went on to say.
For the second time this week, StoneEagle elevated one of its internal executives into an expanded leadership role.
On Friday, the provider of F&I and service metrics for the past 35 years named Kathy Burns as its new chief customer officer in a move that arrived five days after the company promoted Damar Christopher to be its chief operating officer.
Burns has worked at StoneEagle for almost two years, most recently as the company’s vice president of enterprise client success. During this time, the company highlighted Burns implemented a new approach to client support and communication helping StoneEagle maintain enterprise-level client retention consistently above 95%.
More than 6,000 automotive dealership customers now use StoneEagle’s retail solutions — growth that required collaboration, challenging processes, flexibility, and team transformation.
Under Burns’ leadership, the client success teams at StoneEagle have merged into one cohesive unit, providing exemplary support to all customers, regardless of the size of their business.
In her new role, Burns will expand StoneEagle’s account management presence, continuing to build teams for both the retail and enterprise divisions of the company. Ensuring client stability is Burns’ primary focus as chief customer officer as she now will oversee the entire customer lifecycle from implementation to product use expansion.
“We are excited to have begun the journey of upgrading StoneEagle’s enterprise clients from legacy systems to the most advanced administration platform on the market today, StoneEagleADMIN,” StoneEagle Cindy Allen chief executive officer said in a news release. “Structuring our teams, processes, and migration approach in the most scalable way possible is critical to helping our clients leverage the tremendous efficiencies offered by this new platform. This is foundational in enabling our clients to differentiate their organizations as quickly and effectively as possible.
“Kathy’s depth of knowledge and extensive experience in undertakings of this scale, coupled with a track record of high client satisfaction throughout the process is exceptional,” Allen continued. “Having her lead our incredibly talented client-facing management team during this season of growth keeps us focused on our clients’ success as we grow.”
