SEMA Member News—July/August 2012
YEN Member Insights
Members of the Young Executives Network (YEN) have access to the group’s YEN Member Insights. They are interview-style articles on topics that are sure to be helpful to young executives who may gain insights from the experience and knowledge of other members and can in turn be featured in the spotlight, giving them and their companies great exposure. The following are some of the YEN Member Insights from the recent past.
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Mickey Andrade
After seeing his skill at designing graphics for customer cars, the owner of the business bought an old box truck, and they turned it into a mobile vinyl graphics studio. Andrade traveled to local car dealerships and stereo shops, where he would design, cut and apply graphics and pinstripes to cars for customers. His work was noticed as a result, and he was eventually offered a job at the famous Modern Image Signworks in Huntington Beach, California—the epicenter of the booming import scene in the ’90s and a long way from Ohio. Read More: www.SEMA.org/mickey-andrade |
Mickey Andrade started as an enthusiast, growing up in the suburbs of Akron, Ohio, building models and collecting die-cast cars. He started saving for cars at 15, buying his first one at 16 and beginning to modify it almost immediately. He read car magazines and dreamed about future projects, but it wasn’t until he took a job in college at a sign shop that his future began to take shape.
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Brian Reese Vice President of Engineering for Comp Performance Group
With the flair of an entrepreneur and the experience of a highly trained engineer, Reese has overseen the development of some of COMP Performance Group’s biggest product hits in the last few years, including FAST EZ-EFI Self Tuning Fuel Injection and COMP Cams Engine Oils. He cut his teeth as a GM development engineer before moving on as chief of engineering for SLP Performance Parts—a position he held for eight years. When the opportunity to become the vice president of engineering at CPG opened, he was hooked. In this interview, Reese gives us insights into how a hard-charging young vice president should lead and manage an organization’s best resource—older, experienced employees. Read More: www.SEMA.org/brian-reese |
Few individuals in the performance industry reach the vice president level by the young age of 36. Even fewer work for a marquee manufacturer like COMP Performance Group, as Brian Reese does. The company includes leading brands, such as Comp Cams, TCI, FAST, ZEX, RHS, Inglese, Quarter Master and others.
| Sarah Stokes Vice President of Sales for Local Motors
She then went on to the Harvard business school for graduate studies and received her MBA. She also served in the Marine Corps, which gave her a valuable skill set. She now resides in Phoenix, Arizona, where Local Motors is located. Local Motors is a new American car company that is setting an exciting and sustainable course to design cars. Revolutionary yet simple, Local Motors creates a direct connection with its customers, who guide and participate in design development based on personal desires. The process is open source, and the results are meaningful, exciting cars that are designed specifically for car enthusiasts. All chassis and body vehicle data is shared to make the experience more enjoyable. Read More: www.SEMA.org/sarah-stokes |
Sarah Stokes is the vice president of sales for a unique business in the automotive industry. The Texas native graduated from the University of Texas with a bachelor of business administration degree in the Engineering Route to Business program.