ChoiceParts Recruits Seasoned Talent for CTO, CFO and Product Development Posts
7 December 2000
ChoiceParts Recruits Seasoned Talent for CTO, CFO and Product Development Posts
CHICAGO--Dec. 7, 2000--ChoiceParts(TM), LLC., the professional's auto parts network, today announced the appointment of two key executives to complete the formation of its senior management team. Douglas Doughty will serve as chief technology officer (CTO) and Mark S. Haskins will serve as chief financial officer (CFO). ChoiceParts also announced the solidification of its broader technology and product development team, as the company continues to expand its private, B2B exchange for auto repair parts into more than 200 auto dealerships in Dayton, Ohio, Milwaukee and Minneapolis/St. Paul test markets.
"Our expanded management team offers the experience and enthusiasm that will drive the next phase of our growth strategy," said Chan W. Galbato, president and CEO of ChoiceParts. "Since forming the company in May 2000, we have worked closely with our customers to create a highly integrated product. The leadership that this experienced management team brings will enable us to remain aggressively focused on building increased functionality into our product as we expand into new markets."
Galbato said that Doughty's 15 years of technology leadership and Haskins' broad experiences with implementing financial disciplines into operational strategy will ensure that ChoiceParts' product yields a high return on investment for its customers.
Douglas Doughty, CTO
As CTO of ChoiceParts, Doughty, 43, will oversee the integration of ChoiceParts' solution into the dealer management systems of the company's installed base of more than 8,000 automotive retailing customers. He will also focus on building the company's customized solution for the collision repair market, and on ongoing product development as the company builds additional functionality to meet the evolving needs of its customers.
"Doug's impressive track record of leveraging technology to drive inefficiencies out of vertical industries will be critical to the ongoing success of ChoiceParts," said Galbato. "Doug and his technology team will also focus on ensuring that ChoiceParts continues to introduce its customers to technology solutions that will be easy to use and to integrate into their existing processes. As a result, our customers will quickly experience the value, cost savings and efficiency that Internet technology can deliver to the auto parts supply chain."
Doughty most recently served as CTO for Inlight, Inc., a Chicago-based technology company that designs and implements technology solutions to create efficiencies in the health care field. He formerly held the position of senior vice president, chief information/technology officer for the American Bottling Company, and has held technology management positions with W.W. Grainger and McMaster-Carr. Doughty received a bachelor's degree in mathematics and applied computer science from Northern Illinois University, and earned a master's degree in business administration from the University of Chicago.
Mark S. Haskins, CFO
As CFO of ChoiceParts, Haskins, 41, will be responsible for the company's ongoing capital structure, cash flow and financial management.
Haskins most recently served as vice president of finance and CFO of Source Medical Corporation in Toronto, a majority-owned subsidiary of Allegiance Healthcare Corporation, the $4.5 billion distributor and manufacturer of healthcare industry products that was acquired by Cardinal Health in 1999. A certified public accountant, Haskins has diverse domestic and international business experience in corporate and operational finance, information systems and auditing. Prior to Source Medical, he served for more than a decade at Baxter Healthcare Corporation, a $10 billion global biotechnology company, most recently as director of financial reporting for its U.S. Healthcare Division.
"Mark's extensive experience in financial operations will be critical to ChoiceParts' continued, profitable growth, particularly as we roll our product into new markets and focus on delivering a solution to the collision industry early next year," said Galbato.
Haskins graduated from the University of Illinois with a bachelor's degree in accounting.
ChoiceParts' product development team
In addition to Haskins and Doughty, ChoiceParts also announced the formation of its technology and product development team, comprised of experienced IT and commercial veterans from General Electric, IBM, Motorola, AAR and Reynolds and Reynolds.
"We've recruited some of the best and brightest IT and product marketing talent to focus on building integration and increased functionality into our B2B exchange, because our top priority is meeting and exceeding the needs of our customers," said Galbato. "Our product development team will be responsible for taking customer feedback from the automotive retailers who are currently piloting our solution in Dayton, Minneapolis and Milwaukee, and leveraging that customer insight to constantly improve our product to meet the evolving needs of our users."
About ChoiceParts
Founded via partnership among automotive and collision industry leaders CCC Information Services Inc., The Reynolds and Reynolds Company, and the Dealer Services and Claims Solutions Groups of Automatic Data Processing, Inc., ChoiceParts, is an independent company that offers automotive retailers and collision repair specialists a private, online B2B exchange to help them locate, buy and sell auto repair parts with unprecedented speed, accuracy, knowledge and convenience. The integrated approach of ChoiceParts' virtual auto parts exchange enables buyers and sellers in the parts supply chain to deliver higher customer satisfaction rates across the automotive and collision repair industries. Additional information about the company is available on the Web at www.choiceparts.com. Automotive retailers wanting more information about ChoiceParts can call 1-866-212-7832.