How Steve Greenfield hopes to change the dealership game through auto innovation

Each year before the NADA Show, the Lighthouse Award is presented by PCG Companies to an executive making waves in automotive innovation. This year Brian Pasch and his team at PCG Companies have selected Steve Greenfield, the CEO and Founder of Automotive Ventures and host of The Future of Automotive, for the award. On this episode of Inside Automotive, Greenfield and Pasch join host Jim Fitzpatrick to discuss the award and what’s next for Automotive Ventures.

Pasch explains that PCG Companies determines the Lighthouse Award nominee based off of the quality of their contributions to automotive retailers. Only executives with a track record of cultivating auto innovation through education and support can qualify. Greenfield is legendary in this regard, with a long history of shining light on game-changing entrepreneurs and startups. His work at Automotive Ventures has also brought important technological advancements to the car-selling process. “It’s really never been done to this level,” congratulates Pasch, adding, “[Steve] is a unique contributor to the evolution of the whole automotive retail ecosystem.”

For Greenfield, however, the award isn’t just about recognition. Instead, he hopes to bring even more attention to the business leaders taking auto innovation to the next level. Despite their importance, startups which bring new and better technology to the industry are often overlooked by retailers simply because of brand recognition. “We need to do more to help these entrepreneurs to have a voice. Greenfield notes that he intends to do all he can to give these companies the resources they need to excel and grow.

As for Automotive Ventures, its founder already knows what the company will be focusing on next. Greenfield notes that artificial intelligence and automation are resources which remain largely untapped by dealers, but promise massive returns on investments in the future. The car business is also burdened with unresolved issues. Electric vehicle tax credits have arrived, but remain difficult to navigate, since no database has emerged to help businesses assist their customers in finding a qualifying vehicle. Subscription services are likely here to stay, but little work has been done to determine how the used-car market should sell cars with features locked behind paywalls. Greenfield intends to search for solutions to these problems, and hopes his upcoming visit to the NADA conference later this month will help him find entrepreneurs who can help him further auto innovation in these areas.

The growth of the car business depends on auto innovation, especially for retailers who have long been ignored by technology firms despite their massive impact on the American economy. Greenfield’s work to attract interest to the needs of dealerships, while promoting entrepreneurs who revolutionize the car-selling process, is vital to the industry’s future success.