Leadership

Named CEO in 2021, Peter Kelly’s focus—OPENLANE’s purpose—is simple: “make wholesale easy so our customers can be more successful.” Leveraging his deep technology expertise, Kelly leads OPENLANE’s strategy, planning and growth, overseeing the development and delivery of next-generation products, services and capabilities and ensuring OPENLANE’s core businesses continue to innovate and evolve to meet the changing needs of customers. Kelly also serves on OPENLANE’s board of directors.

Prior to assuming his current role, Kelly was named president in 2019. As president, Kelly oversaw all business units and was responsible for the company’s digital platforms and solutions. He was also charged with strategic and operational oversight of the company’s data as a service, information technology and sales and marketing functions.

Kelly joined the company in 2011 through the acquisition of OPENLANE, the world’s leading online auction platform supporting private-label upstream programs for more than 40 OEM and financial institution brands. As co-founder, president and chief executive officer of OPENLANE, Kelly led the company from startup to the scaleup of what is now the leading online wholesale auction platform in North America sustaining more than one million transactions per year.

Earlier in his career, Kelly spent eight years managing engineering, construction and procurement projects for Taylor Woodrow, a U.K.-based construction and development firm. Kelly holds an engineering degree from University College Dublin and an MBA from Stanford University.

Chuck Coleman is Executive Vice President, Chief Legal Officer and Secretary. In this role, Coleman oversees strategic legal and business planning for OPENLANE and its subsidiaries, including corporate governance, securities, litigation and worldwide merger and acquisition activities.

Coleman assumed his current role in 2019. He joined the company in 2015 as Vice President, Assistant General Counsel and Assistant Secretary, and was promoted in 2017 to Senior Vice President and General Counsel. Coleman was instrumental in the negotiation and planning of OPENLANE’s corporate headquarters and directed legal activities in connection with the company’s domestic and international acquisitions—including the spin-off of the company’s second-largest business unit in 2019 and the sale of its US physical auction business in 2022.

Prior to joining OPENLANE, Coleman was a partner with the law firm of Krieg DeVault LLP, where he was chair of the business practice group, gaining nearly 20 years of corporate and mergers and acquisitions experience.

Coleman has several times been recognized as an Indiana Super Lawyer and an Indiana Super Lawyers Rising Star. He graduated from the University of Notre Dame, where he obtained a bachelor’s degree in accounting, and then earned his law degree from the University of Alabama School of Law.

James Coyle, executive vice president and president, North American marketplaces, leads OPENLANE’s marketplaces in the U.S. and Canada and is charged with their overall growth and business success. He is responsible for expanding the company’s digital footprint and delivering a differentiated suite of products and services to OPENLANE’s diverse customer base. From innovation to strategy and execution, Coyle’s focus is on new approaches for attracting, engaging and satisfying customers. He also oversees OPENLANE’s digital finance operations, autoniq, RDN, Velocicast and pricing analytics.

Coyle joined the company in 2021 as executive vice president and chief digital officer, and assumed his current role in August 2023. He brings a proven track record of success rapidly scaling digital marketplaces across a variety of industries and geographies to the company. Most recently, he served as CEO of RealSelf, a digital marketplace connecting consumers with physicians for medical and cosmetic procedures. Previously, Coyle served as chief customer officer at Varsity Tutors, where he tripled the size of the business in less than three years and helped position the company for its successful IPO. Earlier in his career, he held roles at Amazon and Microsoft.

Coyle holds a bachelor of science degree in public financial management from Indiana University.

Brad Lakhia, executive vice president and chief financial officer, leads all financial and reporting functions across OPENLANE, as well as investor relations and the company’s capital investment strategy. A skilled financial operator, Lakhia is charged with harnessing OPENLANE’s data-rich environment to drive performance and accountability while accelerating growth and enhancing value for both customers and stockholders.

Lakhia brings more than 25 years of experience including treasury, financial planning and analysis, business development, mergers and acquisitions, and operational finance within large and complex companies. Most recently, he served as VP Finance, Americas for The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, the company’s largest business unit representing over $10 billion in revenue, where he helped lead the business to deliver significant long-term structural cost reductions while navigating unprecedented industry volatility. Prior to Goodyear, he held leadership roles with Andeavor (formerly Tesoro and now part of Marathon Petroleum Corporation) overseeing business planning and analysis as well as treasury and credit.

Lakhia holds a bachelor of science degree in accounting from The Ohio State University, a master of business administration in finance from Case Western Reserve University, and is a non-practicing CPA.

Will Mitchell is president of AFC. As president, Mitchell directs the development and implementation of the company’s overall strategy and growth objectives, as well as corporate administration.

Mitchell brings more than 20 years of operational and strategic expertise to his role as president. Under his watch, AFC has grown market share, launched new flexible financing solutions for independent dealers and advanced the company’s digital transformation while continuing to deliver best-in-class customer experience. He joined AFC in 2015, was named vice president of business development in 2018 and chief operating officer in 2021.

Prior to joining AFC, Mitchell held business development and strategy roles at companies in the energy and other industries. He also served for eight years in the Army National Guard. He holds a bachelor’s degree in finance from Indiana University.

Tobin Richer is Executive Vice President of Marketing and Communications at OPENLANE. In this role, Richer is responsible for the company’s enterprise marketing and communications activities, including oversight of internal staff and agency resources to accelerate customer acquisition and sales, enhance the customer experience, improve retention and loyalty and promote the overall brand, strategy and reputation for OPENLANE and subsidiaries. Richer leads a diverse team of marketing and communications professionals focused on executing data-driven, multi-channel brand awareness, customer engagement, product promotion, sales enablement, corporate reputation and social responsibility campaigns. He also leads all strategic communications functions across OPENLANE including public relations, social media and executive, internal, and crisis communications, as well as all enterprise customer experience functions.

Richer has more than 20 years of proven results accelerating growth, transforming culture and amplifying brands in geographically and operationally diverse environments ranging from technology startups to established Fortune 50 environments. Prior to joining KAR, he held several senior leadership positions at Anthem, Inc. (now Elevance Health), including Vice President of Corporate Communications where he led all executive communications, clinical communications, reputation management and creative services activities. At Anthem, Richer also served as Executive Advisor to the CEO and Staff Vice President of Clinical Health Policy and Promotion where he focused on effectively positioning Anthem’s executives and communicating the company’s public policy positioning during health reform.

Before his time at Anthem, Richer was an attorney in the corporate health care practice at Michael Best & Friedrich LLP in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Richer began his career building statistical models and providing policy and regulatory analyses supporting the identification, investigation and prosecution of Medicare and Medicaid fraud at the US Department of Health and Human Services. In 2001, his work earned him the “Administrator’s Award,” the agency’s highest honor.

Richer previously served on the boards of directors of the United Way of Central Indiana, the Indianapolis Opera and the Indiana chapter of the American Heart Association. He holds a juris doctorate from the DePaul University College of Law, a master of public health degree from the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, and a bachelor’s degree from University of Wisconsin-Madison.