2012 Keynote Speakers
NADA's Chairman Address
Stephen Wade
St. George, UT
2011 NADA Chairman
2:30pm, Saturday, Feb. 4, 2012 - Las Vegas Convention Center, Exhibit Hall N-1
Stephen W. Wade, president of Stephen Wade Auto Center in St. George, Utah, is the 2011 chairman of NADA and represents Utah’s franchised new-car and -truck dealers on the association’s board of directors.
Previously, Wade served as NADA's region IV vice chairman and on the Policy and Bylaws, ATAE/NADA, Finance, Government Relations and Industry Relations committees. He served as chairman of the Industry Relations Task Force. Wade also served as president of the Utah Automobile Dealers Association in 1981.
Wade has owned more than 20 franchises throughout Utah and has served on numerous auto manufacturing committees, boards and associations. Currently, Wade’s franchises include BMW, Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Chrysler, Dodge, GMC, Honda, Jeep, Mazda, Mercedes, Nissan, Ram, Subaru, Toyota and Volvo.
Active in his community, Wade has served as board of trustees chairman for Dixie State College and founder of SunFirst Bank of St. George. He is also the owner of KCSG, a TV station based in Southern Utah. Wade has served as chairman of the Salt Lake County American Cancer Society and state chairman of the Utah American Cancer Society. He chaired the special events committee of Utah’s Federation for Drug Free Youth and is an alumni board member for the University of Utah. Wade also served in the National Guard from 1969 through 1975.
Industry Message
Sergio Marchionne
CEO, Chrysler,LLC
2:30pm, Saturday, Feb. 4, 2012 - Las Vegas Convention Center, Exhibit Hall N-1
Born in Chieti, Abruzzo, Marchionne has dual Canadian and Italian citizenship. He is a barrister and solicitor, and Certifed General Accountant. He is also a member of the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants. His undergraduate studies were completed at the University of Toronto. He went on to earn his Masters in Business Administration form the University of Windsor in 1980 and his Bachelor of Laws from Osgoode Hall Law School of York University in 1983.
He began his professional career in Canada. From 1983 to 1985 he worked as a chartered accountant and tax specialist for Deloitte & Touche. From 1985 to 1988 he was Group Controller and the Director of Corporate Development at the Lawson Mardon Group in Toronto. In 1989 he moved to Glenex Industries where he worked for two years as Executive Vice President.
From 1990 to 1992 he was Vice President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer at Acklands Ltd. Between 1992 and 1994 he became Vice President of Legal and Corporate Development and Chief Financial Officer of the Lawson Group, which was acquired by Alusuisse Lonza (Algroup) in 1994.
Between 1994 and 2000 he worked in Algroup of Zurich, and eventually became Chief Executive Officer in 1997. He was then at the helm of the Lonza Group Ltd. of Basel, after its spin from Algroup, as Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director (2000-2001) and then as Chairman (2002).
In February 2002, he became Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of the SGS S.A. of Geneva. In March 2006, he was appointed Chairman of SGS. In addition, he is a member of the Supervisory Board of Hochtief. Prior to becoming CEO of the Fiat Group, he had been a member of the Board of Directors since May 2003.
Inspirational Message
Aron Ralston
Mountain Climber & Inspirational Survivor
9:30am, Sunday, Feb. 5, 2012 - Las Vegas Convention Center, Exhibit Hall N-1
Mountain Climber and Inspiration for the Film 127 Hours In 2003 Aron Ralston’s story made headlines worldwide. After being pinned by a half-ton boulder for nearly a week in a remote three-foot-wide slot canyon in southern Utah, Ralston narrowly escaped death by severing his right forearm with a dull pocketknife. After applying a tourniquet, he hiked and rappelled for five hours through Blue John Canyon before searchers in a helicopter miraculously rescued him.
Ralston documented the life-altering experience and his remarkable will to survive in his New York Times best-selling book, Between a Rock and a Hard Place. His story has been adapted into a movie, 127 Hours, by Oscar-winning director Danny Boyle. Thanks to the movie’s success, the book was back on the Best Seller’s list in 2010.
Ralston graduated as Carnegie Mellon University’s top student in mechanical engineering in 1997, with Phi Beta Kappa honors for a second degree in French. He left his job as a mechanical engineer with Intel in 2002 to follow his passion for outdoor adventures in Colorado. Aided by radical prosthetic devices that he helped design–Ralston has expanded his adventures to the world’s great peaks, deserts, and rivers. He is the only person to have solo-climbed all 59 of Colorado's 14,000-foot-high mountains in winter; the only person with a disability to have skied from the summit of Denali, North America’s tallest mountain; and in April 2009, he became the first amputee to row a raft through the Grand Canyon. Today, Ralston lives with his wife Jessica and their son in Boulder, Colorado. He also advocates for Utah and Colorado wilderness.
Incoming NADA Chairman's Address
Bill Underriner
Billings, MT
2011 NADA Vice Chairman
2012 Incoming NADA Chairman
3:30pm, Monday, Feb. 6, 2012 - Las Vegas Convention Center, Exhibit Hall N-1
William P. Underriner, president and co-owner of Underriner Motors in Billings, Mont., is vice chairman of the National Automobile Dealers Association and represents Montana’s franchised new-car dealers on the association’s board of directors.
In the automobile business since 1984, Underriner took over the family business in 2001. He currently owns Honda, Hyundai, Buick and Volvo franchises in Billings. Previously, he served three terms as Treasurer of NADA and on the association’s Executive, Industry Relations, Dealership Operations and Membership committees. He has also served as chairman of the association’s Finance and Convention committees. Underriner has held a variety of offices with the Montana Automobile Dealers Association, including chairman of the board. He has been a member of the Dealers Election Action Committee’s (DEAC) Presidents Club for five years.
Active in his community, Underriner has served as past president of the United Way of Yellowstone County and has served on the boards of directors for the following organizations: Yellowstone Art Museum; Zoo Montana; National Council for the Prevention of Child Abuse; American Cancer Society Relay for Life; and Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis Helena branch. Underriner is also an active supporter of the Billings Symphony, Festival of Trees, Boy Scouts of Montana, Billings Chamber of Commerce and the Billings YMCA.
Keynote Address
George W. Bush
43rd President of the United States
Founder of the George W. Bush Foundation
3:30 pm, Monday, Feb. 6, 2012 - Las Vegas Convention Center, Exhibit Hall N-1
President George W. Bush served in the Oval Office for eight of the most consequential years in American history. Faced with challenges from a terrorist attack to a global financial crisis, he made difficult decisions that will shape the nation’s course and world affairs for decades to come. Many of these decisions are outlined in his book Decision Points (Release date: November 9, 2010), a strikingly personal and candid account revealing how and why he made the defining decisions in his presidency and personal life.
President Bush's leadership after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, was an inspiration to millions of Americans. His policies, while controversial at times, kept the country safe for more than seven years and liberated more than 50 million people from tyranny. Working with leaders in Congress and elsewhere, President Bush also raised standards and accountability in public education, added a prescription drug benefit to Medicare that helped more than 40 million beneficiaries, improved air quality and made America’s energy supply more secure, designated more ocean area habitats for environmental protection than any predecessor, launched historic efforts to fight HIV/AIDS and malaria in Africa, and strengthened America’s relationships with strategically important nations like India, China and Japan.
He shares with audiences candid insights on his eight years in the White House, his experiences with other world leaders, the nature of public leadership and decision making and a wide variety of domestic and international issues.