N
early 30 years ago, jetting off to a new
job, Jay Kunkel noticed he was a little
different from the other American
expats boarding the plane to Japan.
“I was just 26, young and single,
whereas most of my colleagues were
around 60, moving to Japan at the end of their
careers, a parting gesture from their companies to
say a job well done,” he recalls. “In those days, all
roads globally led to Tokyo, just as all roads lead to
Shanghai now.”
Which is exactly where Jay is today, in Shanghai.
And in November 2018, he became the Executive
Vice President of Tenneco and Asia President of
DRiV™, a US$6.4 billion spin-off from Tenneco- the global OEM of ride performance and clean
air products for automotive and aftermarket.
While Tenneco focuses on becoming one of
the world’s largest pure play powertrain companies,
DRiV™ (pronounced Drive) will launch on the
New York Stock Exchange in mid-2020, to become
one of the largest global multi-line, multi-brand
aftermarket suppliers and one of the largest OE ride
THE EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT OF TENNECO AND ASIA
PRESIDENT OF DRiV™, JAY KUNKEL, HAS ALWAYS LOVED
A SPIN BEHIND THE WHEEL, BUT AT THE MOMENT HE’S
FOCUSED ON A DIFFERENT SPIN INVOLVING 28 BRANDS
AND A NEST EGG EXCEEDING US$6 BILLION.WORDS WENDY KAY • IMAGES RAUL ARIANO
performance and braking companies to light vehicle
and commercial vehicle customers.
Headquartered in Chicago, DRiV™ employs
around 4,000 people in Asia and 31,000 worldwide
in 64 factories and 67 distribution centres. Jay joined
the company in November, last year. Having already
been Asia President of Continental and Lear, he was
lured by the vision of creating a new company that
was 60 per cent aftermarket and 40 per cent OEM
and flush with billions in revenue.
“I’ve also never done an IPO, so this is a unique
opportunity,” he says. “Apart from the demands
surrounding the launch of the spin, we have the
challenge of getting customers and employees behind
the brand. So, we’ve been showcasing the new
company at global motor shows and sales conferences.
“The message we’ve been communicating is that
DRiV™ is actually one of the largest aftermarket
companies in the world, both in terms of product
and brands. It’s an established company, owning 28
brands, including Monroe®, Champion®, Öhlins®
and MOOG®, with 14 of them more than 100 years
old. That’s an outstanding platform to launch from.”110 | theceomagazine.comDriving the
SPIN
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