Executive Team

Chuck has over 30 years in the automotive industry, building companies and top-performing teams. Prior to moving to XLerate Group, Chuck was co-founder and CEO of Primeritus Financial Services, where he still serves on the board of directors. Chuck has served as a senior executive at OpenLane, ADESA, Banc One Credit Company, Drivers Mart and Alamo Rent A Car.

A graduate of Vanderbilt University (BA) and Florida Atlantic University (MBA), Chuck resides in Nashville, TN with his wife and three children.

Paul has served in numerous public and private executive leadership and board director roles during his career, including notable roles as interim CEO and Board Director of Hill International, CFO and Treasurer for MYR Group, Board Director for GameStop, CFO and Board Director for privately held Seven Multi-Site Solutions. Additionally, Paul has extensive experience in acquisitions, integrations, and debt and equity capital markets.

Charlie Kunkel joined America’s Auto Auction (formerly XLerate Group) in July, 2017 as its Chief Financial Officer. A Certified Public Accountant with over 25 years of finance and accounting experience, Kunkel has extensive experience operating in complex, fast growth, and international organizations. Prior to joining XLerate Group, Kunkel served for two years as the CFO for Harris and Ford, LLC, a leading international chemical distributor based in Indianapolis. For the 14 years prior to that, Kunkel was based out of San Diego where he held a variety of senior financial and operational roles for Carl Zeiss Vision, the world’s second largest manufacturer of eyeglass lenses. A certified Lean Six Sigma Green Belt, Charlie is adept at developing efficient business processes and systems. He is known for building strong finance teams that partner with the business to ensure it is operating at maximum efficiency and with a laser focus on the most critical business drivers.

Kunkel received his BS, Finance from Indiana University and his MBA from Butler University. Charlie and his wife, Kelli, reside in Indianapolis with their two teenage sons.

Chris Burton is responsible for all aspects of business development, leadership, compliance, analytics, initiatives, and performance. Chris joined America’s in 2015 then transitioned to Auction Credit in 2017. While at America’s AA, he helped grow from a portfolio of 12 auctions to 21 auctions. He is a CPA and began his career in Public Accounting as an auditor and managed the America’s Auto Auction financial statement audit for four years. Burton then joined the Deal Advisory practice at KPMG, where he assisted private equity and strategic clients with both buy-side and sell-side advisory services including quality of earnings, carve out and integration considerations, business risk identification, and normalization and forecasting of net working capital.

Chris attended Southern Methodist University where he received a B.A. in Finance and received his M.S. in Accounting from the University of Texas at Dallas.

Laura Taylor is a Senior Vice President. Prior to being named a regional VP, she served as general manager of Charleston Auto Auction. Having been with the Charleston, South Carolina auction for 18 years, serving as GM since 2009, Laura’s commitment to the auto auction industry is an impressive array of service. Her tenure with NAAA’s Southern Chapter began in 2010 and culminated with her current Chairman seat, and her position as the 2020 NAAA President. Laura serves on the board of IAASC, HOME and is a member of the Independent Auction Group. She has served on numerous committees with IARA, PAC, CAR, and NAAA safety committee. Laura Taylor is a Warren Young recipient and 2013 Women in Remarketing. Her commitment to this industry is safety in the lanes.

Laura Taylor joined Charleston Auto Auction in 2004 and has been GM since 2009. Her years of commitment to the auto auction industry have led to an impressive array of achievements, including her tenure as 2020 NAAA President and her current roles on the executive boards of IARA, IAASC, and HOME (a regional charity for displaced male youths). Taylor is a 2012 CAR and Northwoods University graduate, a Warren Young recipient, and has served on numerous IARA and NAAA committees.

John Swofford joined America’s Auto Auction in 2009 and served as a senior vice president. He has been responsible for co-managing and overseeing the performance of the company’s auction locations, managing auction GMs, and developing greenfield auction locations. Before joining AAA, Swofford spent 16 years in various management-level positions with Manheim and ADT Automotive. He was part of a Manheim management team responsible for opening its first location in China. Swofford is a licensed auctioneer and has been in the industry for over 30 years.

Brian Thomas, who also served as a senior vice president with America’s Auto Auction, was responsible for directing auction operations across AAA’s locations. Thomas’ purview included customer service, management, sales, performance, new business, auction operations, management, and overall performance of the auction locations. He began his career in the auto auction industry as an Operations Manager at Tri-State Auto Auction (PA) in 2000. He served as GM of Capital City Auto Auction (WV) before coming to AAA in 2008.

Pat Dudash came on board with America’s AA (formerly XLerate Group) in November, 2014 as SVP of Sales with 25 years’ experience in the automotive retail, wholesale, remarketing, services and rental car segments. He is an accomplished sales and marketing professional who has built high performance sales teams in his previous positions.

Dudash had been a senior sales or remarketing executive at Insurance Auto Auctions, ADESA, JM Family and Alamo Rent A Car. He brings unique insight into the impact of technology on both the physical and upstream remarketing channels.

Pat is a graduate of the Florida State University (BS and MBA). He resides in Palm Beach Gardens, FL with his wife and 4 teenagers.

For over 20 years, Kelly has worked in the auto remarketing industry, including 10 years with Manheim and at Dealertrack, where he helped launch a marketplace.

During his tenure, Kelly has played a key role in the creation and launch of the company’s online selling portal XLOnline Marketplace, while building strong business relationships with commercial clients. He created a network of online sales management at the auctions, and manages a national digital service team that earns accolades from OVE and SmartAuction for both growth and total sales.

Kelly earned his BBA in Marketing from Texas Tech University and resides in Texas with his wife and daughter.

Jennifer, a 20+ year industry veteran, has extensive experience managing dealer and commercial sales teams. She currently serves as the Vice President of Institutional Sales where she brings a customer focused leadership approach to her team. Prior to joining the America’s Auto Auction National Sales team, she was Vice President of National Accounts for the McConkey Auction Group and most recently lead the sales teams at America’s AA Kansas City. Jennifer currently serves on the National Auto Auction Association board.

Joe Ruch has over 20 years of experience in the auto auction industry. He currently serves as Vice President of Operational Excellence for America’s Auction Group, where he identifies and implements best practices.

Prior to America’s AA, Joe spent seven years as the Vice President of Operations for Direct Auction Services, working in both the reconditioning and transportation divisions. His career began with Manheim Auctions, where he filled various roles over his 13-year tenure, including Director of Operations and Assistant General Manager.

Peggy is an experienced human resource professional with significant experience and business acumen in facilitating sustainable change and building strong diverse cultures. Peggy believes in success through building relationships of trust and delivering results with integrity.

Peggy holds a Bachelor of Science from Indiana University, majoring in Human Resource Management and Business Management.

Sawyer started in the auction industry as a sales representative with the Brasher’s family auctions. Throughout the next decade, he continued his growth in the industry with regional and national sales management positions, joining America’s in 2021.

For 20+ years, Melissa has worked in the auto auction industry. Prior to being named Marketing Director, she served as the Marketing Manager at America’s Auto Auction Kansas City and played a key role in building their successful marketing program. During her career, Melissa has held various positions including dealer sales positions and sales management positions.