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Lithia CFO leaves for dot-com land By DAVID PRESZLER Brian Neill is leaving rapidly expanding Lithia Motors for perhaps the only place he can hope for even faster growth: the land of the dot.coms. Chain links with online marketer Lithia Motors is venturing into business-to-business e-commerce. The Medford-based auto dealership chain said Tuesday that it will use an online digital marketplace called bbcn.com to purchase goods and services for its operations. bbcn.com, which stands for business to business commerce networks, connects dealers with suppliers electronically. The Houston-based firm offers a competitive online purchasing service similar to an auction that Lithia says will reduce costs for dealers and suppliers. "In time, we expect to see substantial savings by using bbcn.com's procurement site," said Sid DeBoer, Lithia's chairman and chief executive. Neill, the chief financial officer who guided the Medford company public in 1996, has resigned to become CFO and executive vice president of Florida-based ePowerSports.com. His last day is Thursday. "This new opportunity in the Internet arena with ePowerSports.com is one I just couldn't turn down," said Neill, a longtime Rogue Valley banker who joined Lithia as CFO in September 1995. "It made me an offer I couldn't refuse, though it's hard to leave Lithia." Jeff DeBoer will take over as Lithia's CFO and senior vice president April 1. DeBoer, the 35-year-old son of company chairman and chief executive Sid DeBoer, has been vice president of finance and investor relations since joining Lithia in 1997. "Brian and I have been working together for three years," said DeBoer, adding that he feels ready to take on the added responsibility. "We've got a great team." Before coming to Lithia, DeBoer was an equity analyst and sector fund manager for Fidelity Investments of Japan and an international credit officer for The Fuji Bank, based in Tokyo. He got his masters of business administration from London Business School in 1994 and learned the auto retailing business at the National Auto Dealers Association's Dealer Academy in 1998. The 46-year-old Neill is leaving behind a job that paid him $94,500 in 1998, not counting a $25,300 bonus and stock options, according to Lithia's 1999 proxy statement. The proxy showing 1999 executive compensation has yet to be filed. Neill holds 31,959 shares of Lithia stock; based on Tuesday's closing price of $16.88, those shares are worth nearly $540,000. Neill said Lithia is still a great company and has no intention of selling his stake. "I'll still be a shareholder," he said. Neill joined Lithia in 1995 to help prepare the auto dealership for its December 1996 initial public offering. Since then, Lithia has grown from five dealerships to 45 in six Western states and gained a listing on the New York Stock Exchange. It made $19.1 million in 1999 on sales of $1.24 billion and has 2,800 employees, including 600 in Medford. ePowerSports.com, based West Palm Beach, is a 3-year-old company that sells motorcycles, personal watercraft and all-terrain vehicles online and at 11 dealerships in Florida. The company is privately owned, for now, but Neill said part of his job will be to explore taking it public. As part of the deal, he'll get an ownership stake in the business. Before joining Lithia, Neill worked for Valley of the Rogue Bank and Jackson County Federal Bank, which was bought out by Key Bank in 1994. Lithia also promoted three vice presidents to senior vice president: Don Jones Jr., retail operations; Bryan DeBoer, mergers and acquisitions/operations; and Douglas Moreland, regional operations. Three new vice presidents also were named: Bob Striplin, marketing; Kyra Drennan, information systems; and Larissa McAlister, finance and reporting. Today's Edition : News | Sports | Business | Weather | Tempo | Classifieds Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA