SCUSA names new president of Chrysler Capital, and other staff moves

Santander Consumer USA has appointed Betty Jotanovic president of Chrysler Capital and auto relationships. She will report to Bruce Jackson , who was recently named head of the Santander US Auto business and chief executive of Santander Consumer. Jackson previously served as president of Chrysler Capital. [caption id="attachment_57333835" align="alignright" width="200"] Betty Jotanovic [/caption] Jotanovic will be responsible for all aspects of Santander Consumer’s Chrysler Capital and auto relationships and brings 25 years of related experience to this position. Most recently, she served as head of originations for all Santander Auto and Chrysler Capital Credit, funding and dealer management activities. Prior to joining Santander Consumer in 2018, Jotanovic held senior leadership roles at Bank of America, GE Capital and Chrysler Financial . She holds a bachelor's degree in accounting and a law degree from Wayne State University Law School. "I am excited to welcome Betty to her new role and to work together to ensure a smooth transition across all Santander Consumer dealer and OEM relationships,” Jackson said in a statement. “Chrysler Capital has been a Santander Consumer priority for almost a decade and our commitment to this business is unwavering. Betty's depth of auto industry knowledge coupled with her financial and operations experience will enable her to build upon our strong foundation and continue to deliver a best-in-class dealer and customer experience." Santander Consumer had an average managed asset portfolio of more than $65 billion for the third quarter of 2022, according to the company. RumbleOn appoints new CFO Powersports retailer RumbleOn appointed Blake Lawson as its chief financial officer, effective Jan. 17. Lawson will be responsible for leading RumbleOn's financial strategy, accounting, tax, treasury planning and analysis, and finance operations. He will report to Chief Executive Marshall Chesrown, according to a company release. Lawson takes over for Narinder Sahai, who will continue to serve as a special advisor to RumbleOn for 90 days. [caption id="attachment_57333837" align="alignleft" width="200"] Blake Lawson [/caption] Lawson previously served as CFO of RideNow — which RumbleOn acquired in 2021 — and the Coulter Auto Group . Prior to RideNow, he served in several finance roles, including CFO and corporate controller at American Powersports . American Honda shakes up sales team American Honda named Mamadou Diallo senior vice president of sales following the retirement of longtime Executive Vice President of National Operations Dave Gardner. Gardner will retire April 1, and Diallo will assume responsibility for sales operations, including planning, logistics, strategy and new product communication, according to a company release. Gardner “has played an important role over the past three years in helping lead the company in the face of major challenges including the COVID pandemic, supply constraints and the restructuring of our auto sales organization," Diallo said in a statement. "He also helped set the direction for our digital and electrified future in the automobile sales area, which will be a major focus of my efforts in this new role." Gardner’s retirement marks an end to a storied career at the Japanese auto manufacturer. He first joined Honda Canada in 1989, and held roles of “increasing responsibility,” including as zone manager, national sales manager for both brands, assistance vice president for Acura , VP of the customer service division, and VP of sales and marketing for both brands. In 2017, Gardner was appointed president and chief executive of Honda Canada, and went on to become executive vice president of automobile sales in May 2020. Diallo, meanwhile, joined American Honda in 2001 and has held multiple positions within Honda and Acura’s sales team, including senior manager of Acura sales in 2017, AVP of Acura sales, incentives and strategy in 2019, and most recently, VP of auto operations responsible for product planning and logistics for American Honda. Diallo became VP of auto sales in 2022, according to the OEM. Brian Maas elected to chair ATAE Brian Maas, president of the <a href="https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Flink.mediaoutreach.meltwater.com%2Fls%2Fclick%3Fupn%3D1oQc1sSPyB-2FegH5ioOLEyyAJ5HoBpzmW-2Fn2D798pqIc-3D9AUA_Z9dyWsuxy1UM188vB6HehoPcoT2wZuZJ0Msq81idu9-2FVzkjD8zNl-2FhzFIxRsIKfBE7uiQlHUD3mBqPVFjKTiva0BuEEtQMAqliC9CyLxwl-2BkdxZkaV9JXLWLc-2BEJ1r-2BlE-2BA73MvFImsOi5JIaQxwM2wq8XEwX1c0QXic08IWBZuMI9Afz-2B-2BhWSxqYoQynO0632u49hhnTH4A-2FMoeXJ27Gmjc6CtSRn19trxteOJTcScooJgz457F182uFBrIpHS2PUOdmBxgzkDZaAQI-2BD7y90rb192hbPAO5PU7mROV2h2VCBXQHTJee-2BOSepKejA4Dv-2FSmjwtdiuEMI54nZqFcPk3rfBq-2BmRD8-2B-2BKwV4p6Mf9hqpISLPWzG-2BxChVLUne-2BFtkCfacrZ6oHhZPAzllRjeQ-3D-3D&data=05%7C01%7Crwolfbauer%40royalmedia.com%7C383f6ae7a37042cbfe4208daffc7296b%7Ce43c192058cd40998ac829dff7de1368%7C0%7C0%7C638103528122491729%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=wr6C1CSLrJQOyq4iBLzOPDBvUcAR3detR2jqUlnRf60%3D&reserved=0" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener"> California New Car Dealers Association (CNCDA) , was elected the 2023 chairperson of the <a href="https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Flink.mediaoutreach.meltwater.com%2Fls%2Fclick%3Fupn%3D1oQc1sSPyB-2FegH5ioOLEy6bjhx2Wx3DehqJvygaprew-3DG_B7_Z9dyWsuxy1UM188vB6HehoPcoT2wZuZJ0Msq81idu9-2FVzkjD8zNl-2FhzFIxRsIKfBE7uiQlHUD3mBqPVFjKTiva0BuEEtQMAqliC9CyLxwl-2BkdxZkaV9JXLWLc-2BEJ1r-2BlE-2BA73MvFImsOi5JIaQxwM2wq8XEwX1c0QXic08IWBZuMI9Afz-2B-2BhWSxqYoQynO0632u49hhnTH4A-2FMoeXJ27Gmjc6CtSRn19trxteOJTcSfWfgObduF3irYYLzzsYYMgYej6eQMArx7RlptMtTkwZ3GG-2B1kal88iAMvlKKf7wGYdcT5svKAq-2FtZCNuWggFoqhsrvYTgEWwHU29YL9wC20oKiEFnZwcBR5uZTiUddsQ8paeschdmlpLDp13-2BhxI3jPF5nvTYB78KbnKVVYp51rw-3D-3D&data=05%7C01%7Crwolfbauer%40royalmedia.com%7C383f6ae7a37042cbfe4208daffc7296b%7Ce43c192058cd40998ac829dff7de1368%7C0%7C0%7C638103528122491729%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=PvpaLaxOjgUCBvya7ief%2Bk7fRzpz2Xy3PBynxt5rM5U%3D&reserved=0" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener"> Automotive Trade Association Executives (ATAE) at the ATAE annual winter meeting in Dallas. “In the midst of one of the biggest transitions — if not the biggest transition, in the automotive industry, ATAE’s support to dealers while they navigate challenges and shifts in the auto retail industry is more important than ever,” Maas said in a statement. [caption id="attachment_57333838" align="alignright" width="144"] Brian Maas [/caption] Prior to joining CNCDA, Maas served as a lobbyist with the California Bankers Association and spent 12 years as a political law and lobbying expert with Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman in San Francisco and Sacramento. In his role at CNCDA, Maas protects the interests of the nearly 1,300 franchised new-car dealers in the state, with lawmakers and regulatory agencies. Before taking the helm of the association in 2013, Maas directed the political activities and served as the organization’s chief legislative advocate for 12 years, starting in 2002. ATAE represents more than 100 state and metro new car and commercial truck dealer associations in the U.S. and Canada on legislative and regulatory challenges facing dealers. The organization also provides its members with educational and training programs, auto shows, conferences and other business services. Filan steps up to SVP at Open Lending Kevin Filan has been appointed as senior vice president of marketing at automation fintech Open Lending , effective Jan. 26. [caption id="attachment_57333839" align="alignleft" width="200"] Kevin Filan [/caption] Filan will lead the marketing team responsible for corporate marketing strategy and overall performance, including revenue growth. Prior to joining the Austin, Texas-based fintech, Filan spent 11 years at Cox Automotive , where he led the company’s marketing teams across numerous brands, including Autotrader, Kelley Blue Book, DealerTrack, vAuto , and Manheim Auctions . Lanham moves from Meta to CarNow Bob Lanham , former head of automotive retail at Meta , has joined digital retailing platform CarNow as senior vice president of manufacturer relations. Lanham has more than 20 years of experience in technology and leadership, and he will be responsible for supporting sales, product development and marketing operations at CarNow. Lanham’s experience includes regional vice president at Shazam , sales director at Hulu and director of strategic accounts at Yahoo . Portfolio appoints new managing director Lake Forest, Calif.-based Portfolio promoted Cliff Childers to managing director, leading the national sales team to provide F&I services to auto, RV and powersports dealers. [caption id="attachment_57333840" align="alignright" width="200"] Cliff Childers [/caption] With 21 years of industry experience, Childers began his career at Bridgestone before joining Zurich North America as an account executive in 2008. Childers then joined F&I provider National Automotive Experts in 2012 as an account executive before getting promoted to national business development manager in 2019. He then joined Portfolio when the company acquired NAE in 2020. “Anyone who has worked with or even spent a few moments with Cliff knows he is the genuine article — smart, savvy and passionate about helping agents and dealers achieve their goals,” said David Neuenschwander, chief sales at Portfolio. F&I Sentinel adds Scott Zucco to leadership team [caption id="attachment_57333841" align="alignleft" width="200"] Scott Zucco [/caption] Automotive compliance and regulatory risk mitigation solutions provider F&I Sentinel named Scott Zucco vice president of sales. Zucco will be responsible for leading F&I Sentinel’s sales team in defining and executing strategies, according to a company release. Zucco brings more than 30 years of experience in relationship management and business development to his new position. Prior to joining F&I Sentinel, he was a senior account executive at Upstart , an AI lending platform. Zucco also has experience as senior sales executive at Defi Solutions and was senior vice president at risk management service provider Lee and Mason of Maryland. Auto Finance Summit East, Auto Finance News’ new spring event, kicks off May 10-12 at the JW Marriott Nashville featuring a fireside chat with Peter Muriungi, CEO of Chase Auto. Visit autofinance.live.

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