Jared Rowe has been named president of AutoTrader.com. He succeeds Alan Smith, who is leaving AutoTrader to pursue personal interests.

Rowe previously served for two and a half years as president of Kelley Blue Book. While at the helm of Kelley Blue Book, Rowe led the business to deliver innovative solutions for both consumers and advertisers. Under his leadership, the company exceeded revenue, profit and traffic targets.

Before joining Kelley Blue Book, Rowe served as vice president, product management for AutoTrader.com. Prior to that he worked at FordDirect, where he was a founding member of the leadership team. Earlier in his career, he held management positions at Toyota and Autobytel, an automotive media and marketing services company. Rowe holds an MBA from the University of Michigan's Stephen M. Ross School of Business and an undergraduate degree in automotive marketing and management from Northwood University.

"I am thrilled to lead the incredibly talented AutoTrader.com team. An undisputed leader, AutoTrader.com plays a critical role in the automotive industry -- helping consumers quickly find their perfect vehicle," Rowe said. "We are a valued partner for our advertisers, enabling them to showcase their offerings prominently and effectively."

Succeeding Rowe is Steve Lind, who has been named president of Kelley Blue Book. Lind will oversee all aspects of the brand and business. Lind previously served as Kelley Blue Book's vice president of operations. He is a veteran of the automotive industry, having worked for Autobytel, Nissan and LeadPoint before joining Kelley Blue Book in 2012. Lind holds an MBA from the University of Notre Dame's Mendoza College of Business and an undergraduate degree in business from Miami University. Lind helped launch innovative new marketing programs at Kelley Blue Book and is credited with driving the growth of Kelley Blue Book brand awareness exponentially. Under Lind's leadership, the business delivered double-digit audience growth and has seen unaided awareness rise significantly. He oversaw the modernization of Kelley Blue Book's ad serving platform, significant investment in its analytic and insight capability, and delivery of valuable market intelligence to OEM clients. Today, Kelley Blue Book is The Trusted Resource® for car valuation, and is ranked highest in its category for brand equity in the 2014 Harris Poll EquiTrend. 

"I'm honored to lead and serve Kelley Blue Book - an iconic and trusted automotive brand.  We will continue to provide vehicle valuations and deliver impactful branding solutions for our customers," said Steve Lind.

"We have two dynamic and talented leaders in Jared Rowe and Steve Lind who will deliver for our customers, engage their teams and drive us into a successful future in the automotive space," stated Jim Franchi, president, media. "I want to thank Alan Smith for his leadership and wish him every success in the future."