HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. – Dec. 7, 2020 – CDK Global, Inc. (Nasdaq: CDK), a leading retail automotive technology company, announced today that David Hahn has joined the company as chief information security officer (CISO). He will also be a member of the executive leadership team. 

In his role, Hahn is responsible for developing a global strategy and executing the roadmap for managing technology risk and information security across the company’s IT, product engineering, and research and development departments.

“Product security and protecting from, detecting and responding to cybersecurity threats are critical components of our plan to innovate, scale and modernize our technologies,” said Mahesh Shah, executive vice president and chief product and technology officer, CDK Global. “David’s diverse experience across information security—including fraud, identity, monitoring, application security and cloud enablement—helps us further ensure a safe, reliable network and suite of products for our customers, while protecting our organization.”

Hahn has a history in information security as a trusted business partner addressing the ever-growing and complex cybersecurity landscape. He recently served as the chief security officer (CSO) for Silicon Valley Bank and focused on information security, physical security and business continuity. Prior to Silicon Valley Bank, Hahn held leadership roles of increasing responsibility with Wells Fargo Bank, Intuit and Hearst Corporation. He also serves as an advisory board member for companies focused on information security and risk management, including LogicHub, SafeBreach and Eclipz. Hahn holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from San Jose State University and a Master of Business Administration from Golden Gate University.

“I am excited to be part of the CDK Global team and to build a strategy that continues to ensure security for the company and our customers,” said Hahn. “My initial focus is to review our current state of information security, identify additional opportunities to further safeguard our data and information, and create a plan to mitigate future risk.”

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About CDK Global, Inc.
With approximately $2 billion in revenues, CDK Global (Nasdaq: CDK) is a leading global provider of integrated information technology solutions to the automotive retail and adjacent industries. Focused on enabling end-to-end automotive commerce, CDK Global provides solutions to dealers in more than 100 countries around the world, serving approximately 30,000 retail locations and most automotive manufacturers. CDK solutions automate and integrate all parts of the dealership and buying process, including the acquisition, sale, financing, insuring, parts supply, repair, and maintenance of vehicles. Visit cdkglobal.com.

DSES 2020 was fun. I wish we could have met everyone in person, but we were able to gain some great insights from experts in automotive. 

One of the cornerstones of DSES every year is the Innovation Cup. This contest is a product bake-off that is judged by dealership personnel. Applicants submit their new or significantly updated products, and our dealer panel selects a chosen few to present their idea on stage (or, in this case, on-Zoom). 

Check out the video of this year's contest, and congratulations to Foureyes for coming away with the trophy.

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--CDK Global, Inc. (Nasdaq: CDK), a leading retail automotive technology company, announced that Kirsten Garen has joined the company as chief information officer (CIO). She will also be a member of the executive leadership team.

In her role, Garen will execute the IT strategy to drive innovation and operational excellence in support of the customers, partners and employees of CDK Global.

”Kirsten’s ability to align operational execution and technology transformation with business outcomes make her the perfect fit to accelerate our vision to modernize, transform and support a digital future for our customers and employees,” said Mahesh Shah, executive vice president and chief product and technology officer, CDK Global. “She prioritizes developing talent and team collaboration that matches well with our core values and corporate culture.”

With more than 30 years of experience in technology and operations roles, Garen brings a diverse experience in driving transformations in customer-centric, growing organizations. Most recently, she served as CIO for Delta Dental of California where she led all technology functions. Prior to Delta Dental, she served as CIO for Bank of the West. Garen has also held senior executive technology and operations roles at VISA, Charles Schwab and Bankers Trust.

She holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Michigan and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School.

“I’m delighted to join CDK. I see tremendous opportunity for enterprise collaboration to drive efficiency and scale that will allow us to grow and work with our clients to transform their businesses,” said Garen. “We will focus on streamlining and optimizing the work of our teams to allow them to innovate and create new client solutions.”

About CDK Global, Inc.

With approximately $2 billion in revenues, CDK Global (Nasdaq: CDK) is a leading global provider of integrated information technology solutions to the automotive retail and adjacent industries. Focused on enabling end-to-end automotive commerce, CDK Global provides solutions to dealers in more than 100 countries around the world, serving approximately 30,000 retail locations and most automotive manufacturers. CDK solutions automate and integrate all parts of the dealership and buying process, including the acquisition, sale, financing, insuring, parts supply, repair, and maintenance of vehicles. Visit cdkglobal.com.

The Vehicle Intelligence Company's Industry-First Solution for Dealerships Recognized as Top Automotive Industry Disruptor for the Second Time in Three Years

IRVINE, Calif., Oct. 28, 2020—Spireon, the vehicle intelligence company, today announced its MyDealer 2.0 for Kahu® solution has been named the 2020 Compass Intelligence IoT Innovator for Auto Dealership Management. Spireon's MyDealer 2.0 was recognized for its advancements to empower dealerships to engage with customers regularly, ensuring accurate and personalized offers and service reminders. The Compass Intelligence IoT Innovator awards honor companies demonstrating innovation in IoT solutions, products, applications and technology.

"MyDealer 2.0 was developed in direct response to the realization that dealerships were largely being left out of the connected car revolution, resulting in a massive missed revenue opportunity. With MyDealer 2.0, dealerships have reimagined the dealer/customer life cycle. In fact, in a September survey, 52% of customers who received a dealer notification through Kahu said they contacts or visited their dealer," said Brian Skutta, president of automotive at Spireon. "We are honored to be recognized by the Compass Intelligence IoT Innovator awards for the third consecutive year — twice under the auto dealership management category. It's a great validation of our team's commitment to providing solutions that address the industry's biggest challenges and increase our customers' bottom line."

Kahu, the 2018 Compass Intelligence IoT Innovator in Auto Dealer Management, is the first connected car solution designed to bridge the gap between traditional dealer marketing approaches and modern consumer needs, offering a high value, high frequency mobile app to consumers, and making ongoing engagement convenient and personalized. The MyDealer module is designed to keep dealership branding, services, products and community activities top of mind with customers. This creates brand affinity with the consumer and opens the door for ongoing revenue opportunities.

The next iteration, MyDealer 2.0, increases consumer engagement through a high-value mobile app, putting vehicle maintenance and control directly into the customer's hand. Customers now receive tailored service reminders, may schedule necessary service appointments, and have visibility into their car's maintenance needs and history all on their mobile phone. MyDealer 2.0 also delivers convenience and automation by leveraging previous dealer repair order (RO) history, original equipment manufacturer (OEM) recommended vehicle maintenance schedules, and precise mileage driven to push service reminders and enable online or click-to-call appointment scheduling from the trusted Kahu consumer app.

"The global pandemic has not slowed adoption of IoT, and in fact has accelerated projects around automation and remote operation," says Stephanie Atkinson, CEO of Compass Intelligence. The IoT Innovator Awards program builds on existing research, market studies, custom advisory, and insight reports made available on CompassIntel.com. "We congratulate the 26 innovative companies and organizations that demonstrate new products/solutions, processes, and methods that support in IoT growth."

For more information about MyDealer for Kahu, visit: https://www.spireon.com/kahu.

About The CompassIntel IoT Innovator Awards

The 3rd Annual CompassIntel IoT Innovator Awards honors companies and vendors demonstrating innovation in Internet of Things solutions, products, applications, and technology. Categories run across 21 IoT innovation categories.  In addition, Compass Intelligence may also annually recognize startups, stand-out products, and emerging and established IoT companies that have made an impact to the market and has demonstrated superior innovation to elevate IoT.

About Spireon

Spireon, the vehicle intelligence company, is the leading provider of aftermarket telematics solutions in North America. By equipping cars, trucks, trailers and other mobile assets with GPS devices and sensors, Spireon turns any vehicle into a connected vehicle. Award-winning products GoldStar, Kahu and FleetLocate deliver 24x7 asset visibility and actionable insights to auto dealers, lenders, transportation companies, service fleet managers, rental car companies and consumers to increase safety and productivity, boost profits and protect assets. Spireon's NSpire IoT platform powers all Spireon solutions, supporting nearly 4 million active subscribers and processing more than 1 billion data events each month. Learn more at www.spireon.com.

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As the DrivingSales Executive Summit is rapidly approaching, I thought I would take a minute and define the certifications we have on the agenda. In this post, we will discuss what they are, how they work and review the topics that are going to be presented.

These certifications mark a shift in how we see events in automotive. Live events are great, and I am going to miss the face-to-face interactions that occur each year in Vegas. There is an energy that comes with this collaboration.  I guess it is what it is.

With all the advantages of an in-person event, there are some shortcomings. You could leave an event with a notebook full of insights and ideas. Let’s be honest. How many of them do you implement?

The objective of these certifications (which we were intending on launching before COVID-19) is to move from theory to application on some of these key topics. We want to help dealers implement proven processes and strategies in their stores.

We went out and found industry experts to teach these master certifications. They created a scorecard with the metrics that defined success in their topic. In other words, what does a 5-star dealership look like in Facebook Advertising? We then created a certification designed to help a dealership get better on those KPIs. This consists of training (both live and web-based), habits, and achievements.

Each certification takes 90 days to complete, and the first live training session occurs at DSES. Basically, by attending DSES and completing on (or many) of these certifications, you will hit the ground running in 2021.

We feel these certifications bridge the gap between education and execution, and we would love to have you join us. You can check out the master certifications that are taking place this year . To register for DSES, click here.

Although we can’t all meet at the Aria in Las Vegas this year, we are still planning on a successful event, and with these certifications, you definitely won’t want to miss it.

I hope to see you there.

As the years progress, it’s been interesting to watch the growth in the conversation around human capital management. It hasn’t been that long since HCM was an acronym that wouldn’t mean anything to a dealership, but it is becoming commonplace in today’s environment. In fact, NADA 2020 had multiple sessions around the topic. 

 In order to compete today, there needs to be an emphasis on the customer experience. This isn’t new. In fact, we’ve been discussing it at the DrivingSales Executive Summit for years. Ultimately, customer experience is the differentiator that sets your store apart from the one down the street. We can’t compete on price anymore.

 What is becoming apparent, however, is how an organization needs to work on their employee experience in order to build a quality customer experience. Dealers that struggle with turnover and poor performance won’t be able to deliver an experience that customers expect in retail today. You need a higher caliber of employee to deliver a better customer experience.

 In addition, as we approached DSES last year, I was looking at Carvana as being the big disrupter. After all, they are a platform play that is leveraging technology to streamline the process. As the dumpster fire that is 2020 progressed, the disruption didn’t come from Carvana, but came from COVID. It forced dealerships to look at their operations in a different light. We had to evolve in order to deliver a vehicle, let alone a customer experience.

 Which brings us to today. I’ve talked to dealers all over the US and Canada, and they are telling me their sales departments are experiencing tremendous profitability, and one of the reasons is that they are doing more with less. Less inventory and less staff. Most haven’t hired back to pre-COVID levels. They are running extremely efficiently. Obviously, vehicle availability has something to do with it as well.

 Here is the challenge. Can you develop a high-performing dealership organization that can deliver a quality customer experience and does it more efficiently? How do you find, acquire, and develop this talent inside of your organization?

This year at DSES, we have two 90-day Master Certifications around employee performance and retention. In addition, there are multiple sessions on human capital management. We invite you to attend and learn what you need to know to implement a strong HCM strategy in your dealership.

HCM isn’t going away. It will only gain more traction as we move forward. The competitive advantage can be captured by those who invest in and implement strategies to harness it in their dealerships today. Eventually, it will become a cost of doing business. But right now, it can be a real differentiator.

Don't miss DSES. We won't be able to meet in person, but we can still get together and learn from experts. You can register here.

90-day course on Inspired Satisfaction Employee Retention to begin at DSES in November

Salt Lake City, UT – October 8 – DrivingSales today announced that Car Motivators is presenting a Master Certification at the upcoming DrivingSales Executive Summit (DSES). DSES is taking place virtually November 2-6. 

The Inspired Satisfaction(tm) masterclass is for dealers who want their managers to be the best possible leaders for their team. Dealers who believe employee retention equals customer retention, and want to help their managers find new and consistent ways to focus on sales instead of trying to constantly rebuild their team. This masterclass will give you a practical tool that managers will use to predict employee turnover, and coaching on tactical ways managers can immediately turn off, the turnover!

“These Master Certifications provide dealers with a real opportunity to learn from industry experts.” said Bart Wilson, DrivingSales Director of Operations. “Car Motivators is a leader in Inspired Satisfaction Employee Retention. We’re excited to have them share some of their insight and instruct dealers on best practices at DSES.” 

This Master Certification will take place over a 90-day span, kicking off at the DrivingSales Executive Summit November 2-6. These certifications are designed to help dealership employees implement processes that will help them grow. Certifications will involve training as well as activities. Progress will be measured against industry-specific KPIs and scored monthly. 

“Car Motivators will be providing Driving Sales Masterclass Leadership attendees the Inspired Satisfaction(tm) Survey and coaching. This tool has helped dozens of dealerships from coast to coast predict and prevent employee turnover.” said presenter, Sean Kelley #thecarbizcoach, CEO of Car Motivators Inc, founder of Digital Smart Needs and Coach Chat. 

The DrivingSales Executive Summit will be held virtually in the first week of November. Content will include progressive workshops and presentations around the challenges and opportunities dealers face today. Master Certifications are designed to help them bridge the gap between education and execution. 

Dealers can register for the DrivingSales Executive Summit and this Master Certification by visiting drivingsales.com/dses. 

Visit http://www.drivingsales.com/dses for more information and to register for the event. 

For more information about the DrivingSales Master Certifications, go to http://www.drivingsales.com/dses/inspired-satisfaction-employee-retention/.

About DrivingSales 

Founded in 2008 and dedicated to the dealer community, DrivingSales is a business intelligence and performance improvement company that delivers unbiased*, profit-building information to make automobile dealers more successful through three distinct channels: DrivingSales HCM, DrivingSales University and DrivingSales Media. DrivingSales Data houses the largest database of cross-vendor, dealership performance data in the North American auto industry and provides dealerships with the most statistically accurate performance benchmarks and metrics for their marketing and technology investments. Approximately one in every three dealerships in the United States has a registered member in the DrivingSales community.

About Car Motivators

Car Motivators takes proven selling techniques, combined centuries of leadership experience, a massive library of content, true automotive industry success, and delivers world class customized training that both car dealers from coast to coast and top 100 companies in the world leverage.

Strong partnership enables one of the largest CDK installations across eight states

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. – September 23, 2020 – CDK Global, Inc., (Nasdaq: CDK), a leading retail automotive technology company, today announced that it completed one of its largest installations of CDK Drive, its core dealership management system (DMS) solution, for all Greenway Automotive Group (Greenway) dealerships. Despite safety and travel regulations brought on by the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the multi-site and multi-state DMS installation was seamlessly completed for 46 dealerships across eight states.

“The decision to change DMS providers is substantial for any automotive dealership, and one they should not enter into lightly,” said Brian Krzanich, president and chief executive officer, CDK Global. “By developing a solid partnership, rooted in listening and better understanding Greenway’s needs, we provided a tailored, unique experience that met the distinct challenges Greenway was facing, all while navigating the unprecedented circumstances of a global pandemic. The Greenway installation not only illustrates our capabilities, but also demonstrates our agility, and continued focus on being the best partner for our customers.”

Amid the global pandemic, CDK pivoted its installation process to better meet customers’ needs. What began as a standard onsite installation experience quickly evolved into one that required an equal commitment to partnership and teamwork from both CDK and Greenway. The result was an installation that continued without delays or data loss.

“When we began our search for a new DMS partner, we were apprehensive about making such a significant change,” said Carl Atkinson, president, Greenway Automotive Group. “CDK put us at ease, focused on process over product, and made sure we could build out the ‘Greenway Way’ for our employees and customers. The partnership developed through the installation process helped us work together through the challenges that emerged from COVID-19. This collaboration has provided a solid foundation for Greenway and CDK that we will continue to grow and strengthen as we look toward the future.”

Greenway Automotive Group serves customers in Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia, South Carolina, Missouri, Texas, and Pennsylvania.

About CDK Global, Inc.
With $2 billion in revenues, CDK Global (Nasdaq: CDK) is a leading global provider of integrated information technology solutions to the automotive retail and adjacent industries. Focused on enabling end-to-end automotive commerce, CDK Global provides solutions to dealers in more than 100 countries around the world, serving approximately 30,000 retail locations and most automotive manufacturers. CDK solutions automate and integrate all parts of the dealership and buying process, including the acquisition, sale, financing, insuring, parts supply, repair, and maintenance of vehicles. Visit cdkglobal.com.

Contacts:
Media Contact:
Roxanne Pipitone
Senior Director, Corporate Communications
847.485.4423
Roxanne.pipitone@cdk.com

Investor Relations Contact:
Julie Schlueter
Director, Investor Relations
847.485.4643
Julie.Schlueter@cdk.com

Cross-sector of more than 40 public and private companies and organizations commit to improve Black representation in corporate boardrooms

The Board Challenge today announced the launch of a pledge for U.S. corporate boards of directors to add a Black director within the next year. Founded by Altimeter Capital, Valence and theBoardlist, signed by 17 Founding Pledge Partners, and supported by 27 Charter Pledge Partners that already have at least one Black director, the initiative seeks to accelerate action to improve the diversity of corporate boards starting with the representation of Black leaders on the boards of U.S. companies. Every U.S. company is encouraged to take the pledge at theboardchallenge.org, and companies that have at least one Black director are asked to sign on to express their support and use their resources to drive change.

The Board Challenge launches with the support of companies and individuals representing a wide-array of industries and sectors including corporate, non-profit and training and education. These supporters include organizations such as the Executive Leadership Council, the NAACP and National Urban League who commit to supporting the mission and using their platforms to drive awareness and participation in the movement.

Founding Pledge Partners commit to adding at least one Black director to their respective boards in the next 12 months. Participants include: Accolade, Altimeter Growth Corp, Amperity, Bolster, Gusto, Heritage-Crystal Clean, Inc., Heritage Environmental Services, HopSkipDrive, Kin, M.M.LaFleur, Nextdoor, PagerDuty, RealSelf, Ripple, Senreve, Vinyl Me, Please, and Zillow. The Board Challenge co-founders will check in with Founding Pledge Partners within six months and at 12 months to evaluate their progress in adding a Black director.

Charter Pledge Partners are organizations that already have at least one Black director and will continue to use their resources to accelerate change. Charter Pledge Partners play a critical role in driving visibility around the importance and value of increasing diversity at the boardroom level. Participants include: Avnet, Broadridge Financial Solutions, CDK Global, Cockroach Labs, Corning Incorporated, Elovee, Executive Leadership Council, Impact Capital Managers, Lightspeed, Lyft, Merck, Nasdaq, Nordstrom, Okta, Ranpak, Redfin, Ro, Sonos, Southern California Public Radio, SurveyMonkey, The New York Stock Exchange, The RealReal, Uber, United Airlines, Upstart, Verizon, and WW (formerly Weight Watchers).

Black leaders are underrepresented in America's public and private boardrooms. Approximately 66% of Fortune 500 company board members are white men and 18% of members are white women, while only 9% of members are Black men and women, according to a report by the Alliance for Board Diversity and Deloitte. And while many companies tout their commitment to improve diversity, equity and inclusion, progress at the boardroom level is limited. According to Black Enterprise, 187 S&P 500 companies, or about 37%, did not have any Black directors in 2019 – only a two percentage point improvement since 2018.

"America has been reminded again in tragic fashion that we must redouble our efforts to build a more inclusive society. Business leaders can't let this moment pass us by without playing our part and taking this tangible step to build a more diverse boardroom," said Brad Gerstner, founder and CEO of Altimeter Capital and co-founder of The Board Challenge. "As a next step, we are encouraging companies to take the pledge and add a Black director in the next 12 months. The Board Challenge is a movement to accelerate these changes and help companies tap into the energy and talents of all underrepresented groups."

True and full racial representation at the board level is in the best interest of companies, employees, customers and communities and helps to advance and support a more equitable society.

• Diverse boards of directors are 43% more likely than non-diverse boards to achieve financial performance above the national industry median for companies in the top quartile versus bottom quartile, according to McKinsey & Company's Delivering Through Diversity 2018 report.
• More than nine in 10 directors (94%) agree that board diversity brings unique perspectives to the boardroom, according to PwC's 2019 Annual Corporate Directors Survey. Additionally, 87% said board diversity enhances board performance and 76% said it enhances company performance.
• More than half (53%) of investors say board diversity should be a top focus, according to a 2019 report from the EY Center for Board Matters.

As part of taking the pledge, partners commit to progress reports along the way, including six-month and one-year reporting on results with participants. The Board Challenge co-founders will provide partners with access to qualified talent to help in their search and recruitment of Black director candidates, while supporters will offer resources and training.

"One objection we hear is whether companies can find the kind of diverse board talent they are looking for. It is 2020 – it is not a pipeline problem, it is a perspective problem," said Guy Primus, CEO of Valence and co-founder of The Board Challenge. "Valence alone is connected to hundreds of board-ready leaders from every position imaginable."

"Another objection is that the focus on diverse candidates is too narrow. We know focus yields results and this is the start of a much bigger movement," said Sukhinder Singh Cassidy, founder and chairman of theBoardlist and co-founder of The Board Challenge. "theBoardlist has been focused on diversifying boards since 2015 and we know that making the commitment to look outside one's network and dedicating the effort to be inclusive is ultimately what works."

Find more information about pledge participants and supporters, take the pledge and offer support at theboardchallenge.org.

Have you ever been riding in a car where you got to your destination and had no idea how you got there? Maybe you're in an Uber. If you had to describe the route the driver took could you do it?

Let's call that "passenger thinking". Because you weren't accountable for driving and didn't need to focus on the route, you didn't think about it. You were happy to let someone else take over.

It's ok to have passenger thinking when you need to get from an airport to a hotel. But his same thinking can happen with your employees, and it's dangerous. Passenger employees are just along for the ride. They aren't involved in their own failure or success. They rely on someone else (their manager? The dealership?) to drive. This isn't healthy and you need to do anything you can to eliminate passenger thinking in your organization. How can you do this?

First, set correct expectations. Encourage your employees to think about tomorrow as well as today. What do they want to do when they grow up? How can their current role help to get them there? What do they need to do (learning, performance, etc) to get there? This is a very valuable conversation to have with an employee.

Next, employee engagement is a two-way street. When setting goals, implementing new processes or initiatives, conducting 1 on 1's, make sure each of your employees knows that you need their input and feedback. This is essential because you can't read their minds. 

You may think or know exactly what each employee needs to do to improve, but you want your team to discover this for themselves. This establishes that they are the drivers of their career, and you are there to help them. This can actually help make your job a lot easier. You aren't babysitting,  but rather leading.

Another tip is to provide regular, structured feedback. I've always said that if you want me to be successful, you need to show me what success looks like. Create performance metrics for each job role and sit down with each employee monthly to review their actual numbers. This allows you to course-correct and celebrate the wins. But more importantly, you can have a conversation with them about where they are in their growth. 

Engaged employees are invested employees. They can see a clear path to success and take an active role in their development.

Quit driving your employees around. Implement a structure that allows them to take the wheel of their future.