HIGHLAND, Mich. — Marissa Hunt is LaFontaine Automotive Group's communicator and problem solver.
As corporate controller, she oversees compliance, accounting and human resources, but she also has a seat at the table as the company hones its vision and considers acquisitions. With a dozen dealerships acquired since 2012, there has been a lot of the latter.
Corporate controller Marissa Hunt makes sure the LaFontaine management team gets the direction it needs to tackle problems and guide store employees.
"We do a lot of behind-the-scenes discussions on our road map to success, what the LaFontaine family vision is," said Hunt, from her post at the dealership group's corporate offices inside its flagship Buick-GMC-Cadillac dealership in Highland, Mich.
Hunt and other managers then help the LaFontaine family instill that vision in the retailer's 17 stores. "It's a big machine to move, so it takes a lot of people," she said
Hunt, 44, joined LaFontaine in 2015 as a controller for three stores after spending 17 years at a nearby dealership owned by a competitor. She quickly became corporate controller, with eight controllers reporting to her.
"Everyone deserves that opportunity to advance. And those discussions happen all the time," Hunt said. "If they raise their hand and show that desire, then we put them on a path. We teach them. We try to mentor that person."
Every week, Hunt sends an update to the controllers and general managers outlining topics being discussed with the executive team, issues and concerns in the stores and direction on where the team should focus its attention.
The memo is "a summary to keep everybody together and on the same page," she said. "Communication is key in this place. There's so many moving parts, and we're all spread out so far that if communication falls apart, that's going to be a major hiccup."
As head controller, Hunt also dives into data analytics for the group and carefully examines the company's cash flow.
"I love finding out and dissecting numbers and saying, 'What happened here? What's the problem? What can we do to fix it? What can we do to change and improve?' That's my passion," she said.
Even with the recent added stores, COO Ryan LaFontaine still looks to expand the group, Hunt said. During acquisition conversations, Hunt gives the leadership team a rundown of current brands' performances to help them assess the business case for potential deals.
Think long term, but be ready to turn on a dime: Employee turnover, customer experience, stair-step incentive targets. Automotive News reporters and editors visited dealerships around the country to learn more about the nature of modern auto retailing.The company's family focus resonates with Hunt. When she is not at the dealership, she's at the gym — at 5:45 every morning — or often on the sidelines of high school football games watching her sons in the marching band.
"Family is key," Hunt said. "LaFontaine ... says, 'family, faith and friends.' I have that same motto outside of work as well."
Hunt learned to be prepared early in her career from a mentor, a dealership consultant who worked with her previous employer. Her mentor encouraged her to anticipate questions from her managers, she said.
"I really learned to dig in and understand every aspect of the financial statements," Hunt said. "I never wanted there to be a question that somebody asked me that I didn't know the answer to."
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