Stephanie Compton and Lynn Weaver likely have spoken dozens of times by phone during their mutual time in the remarketing industry.

But an exchange earlier this fall between the vice president of asset remarketing for Exeter Finance and the recently retired executive director of the Independent Auction Group (IAG) was much different. It was Weaver contacting Compton to inform her she had been selected as this year’s National Remarketing Executive of the Year, an accolade presented by IAG.

“I will tell you that you don’t usually catch me speechless very often. But I was completely caught off guard and completely speechless when I received a phone call from Lynn Weaver,” Compton said during another phone call, this time with Cherokee Media Group.

“I think I was shocked more than anything,” Compton continued. “If I look at all of the peers I have in this industry, this award could have gone to any of them. To know that I was selected, I’m very grateful and humbled but very excited as well. It gives you a sense of accomplishment, knowing that all of the grit and grind, hard work and things you put into place, things you and your team do day in and day out that it doesn’t go unrecognized.

“Being given an award is not really something any of us expect, but it feels good when someone calls and says we’re going to give this to you. It’s pretty exciting,” Compton went on to say.

Compton will officially be given the award during Used Car Week, which begins on Nov. 6 in Scottsdale, Ariz.

Weaver explained why Compton joined a group of honorees that includes last year’s recipient, Darrin Aiken of Wheels Donlen, as well as other industry leaders such as Jim Jackson of Holman, Steve Solomon of Santander and Scott Mousaw of United Auto Credit.

“Stephanie is a 25-year veteran of the remarketing industry,” Weaver said. “Over that period of time, she has always been admired by her peers and especially the Independent Auction Group. Her work at Exeter has been amazing as we watch Stephanie and Exeter continue to grow. Congratulations Stephanie from the Independent Auction Group.

In addition to her current role, Stephanie has held progressively responsible leadership positions at Exeter since joining the company in 2019. Previously, she held asset remarketing leadership positions at Santander Consumer USA, Diversified Vehicle Services, PAR North America, American Investment Bank and Tranex Credit Corp.

One of her previous superiors was David Gryglewicz, who Compton credited for leading her to being successful in the remarketing space. Along with this accolade, Compton also was among Cherokee Media Group’s Women in Remarketing honorees in 2020.

“His mentorship and leadership really impacted me early in my career,” Compton said about working with Gryglewicz. “It forced me to get out of my comfort zone and pushing me to be the best I could be, holding me accountable. He also gave me a list of rules to live by that he followed himself in that you treat everyone with respect. You’re never to big to handle a task. And that integrity is everything. As I look at my career and where I am today, and getting this award, he was probably one of the biggest mentors.”

Compton also credited her current supervisor, Brent Huisman, who is Exeter’s senior vice president of repossession and remarketing. Huisman is part of a supportive team at Exeter that Compton praised, too.

“When you look at our company as a whole, it really starts from the top. You look at our executive team all the way down to our frontline employees, it’s a culture. It’s the way we’re built. We’re truly a family. One of the pillars of our success is people excellence. We practice that daily,” Compton said.

“I personally I’m very privileged to have a pretty outstanding team, between our internal auction coordinators and our auction managers and then you’ve got Brent Huisman, who is a large supporter and advocate. And not just for me personally, but our entire department. You can find him on any given day at the office talking to staff. He joins team huddles. We have a monthly town hall. He speaks at each one. He genuinely has an interest in our team and success. He really supports everything we do,” Compton went on to say.

Compton also plays a role in that cultural cultivating at Exeter. She is currently the executive sponsor of Exeter’s Women’s Employee Resource Group and a committee member of the company’s mentorship program.

“It’s something I enjoy and I’m proud of. It’s something where we’re all learning. The purpose was not only to connect, but to really create a culture that allows employees the opportunity to feel like they’re equally engaged, valued and empowered. Our vision overall is to be present in areas and have a safe culture and community,” Compton said.

Compton also is part of the entire remarketing community, which she praised, as well.

“All of us are just so blessed to work in such an amazing industry,” Compton said. “It allows us to network, have learning opportunities, and even further, to establish life-long friendships. There’s so many people who come into this business and very few leave. That says a lot about our industry. When people do leave, it’s only because they’re retiring. Sometimes, they even find something to do on the side to stay involved.”

Compton acknowledged how she does her job has changed significantly over the past 25 years. It’s been an evolution, as she described it.

“Evolution, in my opinion, is probably one of the largest elements of change that’s not only helped me, but I would say everybody in our industry to be more successful,” Compton said.

“I can remember when I first started doing this, we had hand-written, faxed condition reports. We would get overnight packages with actual photographs of vehicles. We would use pocket-sized Black Books to get our values. You didn’t have the online platforms like we do today. You either covered a sale in person, or if you didn’t, you had an auction representative that stood on the block on your behalf and called you with if bids,” she continued.

“Now we have systems like AutoIMS that really make a lot of our lives easier whether it’s inventory management or reporting book values or even education. For me, evolution in general has helped me through my career,” Compton added.

When Compton isn’t handling an array of remarketing tasks for Exeter, including leadership of two dozen regional asset remarketing managers, auction coordinators and other support staff, she enjoys spending time with her husband, Johnnie, and daughters, Sam and Sarah.

When not reading books about leadership, autobiographies, or true crime fiction, she’s scouring Pintrest to fuel one of her other passions — cooking.

“I love to cook anytime, anywhere,” Compton said. “I love to try new things.”