CHICAGO -

After working closely with MAXDigital during his time spent as chief operating officer at CARite, Michael Cavanaugh has been brought aboard to serve as MAXDigital head of strategic partnerships, the company announced Friday.

Under Cavanaugh’s leadership, the national network of car dealers grew from nine stores to 25 stores, according to MAXDigital, a current CARite customer.

Cavanaugh, who brings more than two decades of automotive experience, also completed two tours of duty in Iraq while serving in the United States Marine Corps.

“I have worked with Mike for years and built a great relationship with him while he was at CARite,” MAXDigital senior vice president, business development and head of revenue Brad Kruse said in a news release. “Our entire team is thrilled that he will help MAXDigital expand our strategic partnerships and continue our trajectory as a preferred digital retailing platform in the industry.”

In his new role, Cavanaugh has been tasked with building strategic partnerships with OEMs and other automotive industry vendors.

“This is a dream job for me. I have been passionate about helping the automotive industry evolve and grow, and working with dealers to tackle some of the toughest industry challenges,” said Cavanaugh. “That commitment to the industry is what I have admired most about MAXDigital, While at CARite, the MAXDigital team and their product offering really stood out among the other sea of vendors in automotive.”