PLANO, Texas — Mike Groff, who became Toyota Motor Credit Corp.’s seventh employee when he joined the fledgling company in 1983, will retire as the captive’s president and CEO on Aug. 31, 2018, the company announced today. The executive, who also served as a member of the company’s board of directors and CEO of Americas Region of Toyota Financial Services International Corp. (TFSIC), will serve as an advisor to TFS until Nov. 16.
Appointed to replace Groff is Mark Templin, who joined Toyota in 1990 and has served as chairman of the Toyota Motor Credit Corp. (TMCC)’s board of directors since May 2016. He also serves and is expected to continue to serve as director, president and COO of TFSIC and director and group COO of TFS. From April 2013 to December 2017, Templin also served as managing officer of Toyota Motor Corp.
“Mark brings a global depth of knowledge and experience in both the finance and automotive sides of the business,” said Groff. “His Lexus background means he knows how to deliver best-in-class customer experiences. I know the company will be in good hands with Mark at the helm.”
Groff first served as an operations administrator, a role that entailed a wide range of responsibilities as the company started operations and began to grow. Groff then transferred to Toyota Motor Insurance Services (TMIS) in 1991, and held positions in product development and management. After three years with TMIS, Groff transferred back to TMCC and held a series of progressive leadership positions in the areas of sales, marketing, strategic planning, information technology, and customer service. He was instrumental in the rebranding of TMCC and TMIS as Toyota Financial Services.
In 2013, Groff was named the captive’s president and CEO. Under his leadership, TFS joined Toyota Motor North America Inc. (TMNA) in a successful relocation of its headquarters to a modern campus in Plano, Texas. According to officials, Groff has led continued growth at TFS and the company now ranks as one of the nation's largest auto finance providers.
The captive has more than four million active customer accounts, over eight million insurance agreements in force, total assets of more than $120 billion, and employs approximately 3,300 team members across the country. In addition, he was responsible for TFS operations in Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Argentina, Brazil, and Venezuela.
Under Groff's leadership, TFS also expanded its commitment to corporate social responsibility. The company introduced a series of programs to support underserved youth, provide scholarships, and promote financial education among young people. TFS is a major sponsor of the Boys and Girls Clubs of America and the Girl Scouts of the USA, where the company introduced the "Driving My Financial Future" campaign.
Groff, a national trustee for the Boys and Girls Clubs of America, coupled the company's philanthropic donations with opportunities for team member involvement. Under his leadership, TFS received the prestigious Points of Light Foundation Civic 50 award four times, an honor that recognizes the 50 most community-minded companies in the nation.
Mark Templin, who joined Toyota in 1990, replacews Mike Groff as president and CEO of Toyota's captive finance company.
Since joining Toyota Motor Sales (TMS) in 1990, Templin has held a number of positions. He previously served as group vice president and general manager of the Lexus Division for TMS, overseeing all aspects of Lexus' U.S. automotive operations, including sales and marketing, retail development, customer satisfaction, and product planning. His responsibilities included coordinating sales activities, dealer relations, parts and service operations, and marketing operations of four regional offices around the country. He concurrently served as general manager of the Lexus planning division, TMC, working closely with international Lexus affiliates.
Templin also served as general manager for the Lexus Southern area, assistant general manager for both the Southern and Western area Lexus offices, sales administration manager, retail operations manager at Lexus' national headquarters in Torrance, Calif., and vice president of parts, service, customer satisfaction, and training for the Lexus division. Templin also served as vice president of Lexus marketing and vice president of Scion.
"I am honored to lead Toyota Financial Services operations in the U.S. and the Americas Region," said Templin. "Mike has positioned the company for continued success and I look forward to building on our strong heritage of delivering the best products and services to meet the needs of our customers and dealer partners. I know that we can be a great partner to the automotive side of the business in achieving Akio Toyoda's vision of mobility for all."
