Donald S. Gottwald — COO & Chief Strategy Officer at KAR Auction Services

Mr. Donald S. Gottwald, also known as Don, has been the Chief Operating Officer of KAR Auction Services, Inc. since March 24, 2014 and has been its Chief Strategy Officer since August 28, 2017. Mr. Gottwald served as the Chief Executive Officer and President of AFC Cal, LLC. He served as Principal Executive Officer and President at Adesa Dealer Services, LLC. Mr. Gottwald served as Chief Executive Officer and President of Automotive Finance Corporation, an affiliate of Insurance Auto Auctions Inc., KAR Auction Services Inc. and Adesa Indianapolis Inc., since January 2009. He has significant experience in the financial services industry. He joined AFC in January 2009. Mr. Gottwald served as an Executive Vice President of Dealer Business at HSBC Auto Finance, where he was instrumental in the strategic leadership of its originations, marketing, sales, product management, pricing and analytics and responsible for servicing 8 000 commercial customers. Prior to HSBC Auto Finance, he spent 12 years in roles of increased responsibility with GMAC Financial Services. He managed several of HSBC Auto Finance subsidiaries, including Saab Financial Services Corp. and American Suzuki Financial Services. He began his career as a Business Manager at a Cleveland-area dealership in the finance and insurance department. He serves as a Director of Automotive Finance Corporation. He serves as a Director of AFC Cal, LLC. He was the Chairman of the vehicle finance division of American Financial Services Association. He is a Member of the American Financial Services Association and serves on its Board of Directors. Mr. Gottwald holds a Bachelor's degree in Management from Northwood University in Midland, Mich and an MBA from Duke University's Fuqua School of Business in Durham, N.C.