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DESMOND ROBERTS ELECTED AS NAMAD CHAIRMAN
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SOUTHFIELD, MI - Tues., May 8, 2007 / DiversityBusiness.com /-- The National Association of Minority Automobile Dealers (NAMAD) elected Desmond Roberts to serve a two-year term as Chairman during its Board of Directors meeting last month. Roberts, who is completing a two-year term as President of the General Motors Minority Dealers Association (GMMDA), will begin his new leadership role at the NAMAD Annual Conference that will be held on June 20-23 at the Gaylord Texan Resort and Convention Center in Grapevine, TX.
"I am honored to accept this position at a time when we are facing great challenges in the automotive industry. I am committed to continuing the fight for parity and inclusion of all ethnic-minority dealers," said Roberts. NAMAD's mission is to provide viable opportunities for all ethnic minorities in the automobile industry. "Desmond is well qualified to lead NAMAD through these trying times. He has been a great leader for the GMMDA and I am confident he will be a great Chairman for our association as well," said NAMAD President Damon Lester.
"As the outgoing president of the GMMDA, Desmond made a great mark in our history by leading our association in promoting and protecting the viability and profitability of GM minority dealers across the country. His exceptional leadership skills will be a great asset to the NAMAD organization," said GMMDA executive director Marjorie Staten.
Roberts is the president of Advantage Chevrolet in Hodgkins, IL; Advantage Chevrolet of Bolingbrook in Bolingbrook, IL; and, Advantage Chrysler in Des Plaines, IL. He has received the Jack Smith Leadership Award in 2004 and 2005, appeared on the annual Black Enterprise Magazine's Top 100 Auto Dealers list in 2003, 2004 and 2005 and been featured in several national business and automotive related publications including Automotive News and Ebony Magazine.
A man well-respected by his peers, Roberts made history as the first minority representative ever appointed to the Chicago Auto Trade Association, the oldest and largest dealer organization in the United States. In 2004, he was asked by the Illinois Automobile Dealers Association to testify before the Illinois House of Representatives concerning proposed legislation with the potential to affect new franchised car dealers nationwide.
Roberts earned a Bachelor of Science in Business from City University in New York. After establishing a sound career in the banking and finance industry, he enrolled in the General Motors Minority Dealer Development Academy in 1986 and purchased his first dealership in 1989. He embraces the Chicago community in many ways, serving as Chief Financial Officer for the Make A Difference Youth Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to the academic development of students in preparation for a collegiate experience that will lead to successful achievement of career goals.
The National Association of Minority Automobile Dealers (NAMAD) is a non-profit organization headquartered in the Washington, D.C. area. Founded in 1980, NAMAD is committed to increasing opportunities for ethnic minorities in all aspects of the automotive industry. The automotive industry generates revenue of more than $1,000,000,000,000 (One Trillion Dollars). NAMAD seeks to ensure the presence of a meaningful, representative number of minority entrepreneurs and employees in the retail sales, supplier and service sectors, and the manufacturing ranks. For more information on NAMAD log on to www.namad.org.
The General Motors Minority Dealers Association (GMMDA) is a non-profit organization that represents the interest of over two hundred minority-owned General Motors dealerships across the country. The mission of the GMMDA is to promote, protect and encourage the viability and profitability of all existing General Motors dealers, and to encourage, through cooperative efforts with General Motors, the installation of new minority dealers in viable and profitable opportunities. For more information on GMMDA log on to www.gmmda.org.
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