NC Auto Dealers Association President and CEO Robert Glaser to Retire Effective December 31, 2023
Dealer Association Names John Policastro as 4th President/CEO in its Nearly 90-Year History
RALEIGH, N.C. – September 19, 2023 – The North Carolina Automobile Dealers Association (NCADA) has announced that Robert J. Glaser, chief executive officer and president of the Association, will step down effective December 31, 2023. Mr. John Policastro, Esq., currently executive vice president and general counsel, has been appointed as the Association’s next President and CEO and will assume that role on January 1, 2024.
Glaser has been NCADA’s chief executive officer since February 1, 1996. He joined NCADA in 1996 as the association’s executive vice president and assumed the role of CEO and president in 1999. After years of experience in association management and public accounting in the Washington, DC area, Glaser moved to North Carolina in 1996 to lead the state automotive trade association.
Glaser is the past chairman of the Automotive Trade Association Executives (ATAE) in McLean, VA, and is also the past chairman of the Association Executives of North Carolina (AENC) headquartered in Raleigh. He was also a member of the Board of Directors for the Dealers Choice Mutual Insurance Company and the NCADA Insurance Trust.
Glaser previously served on the Board of Trustees of Methodist University in Fayetteville, NC, as well as the Institute for Organizational Management Notre Dame Board of Regents; he served as the first chair of the Holly Springs Parks and Recreation Board and also served on the Triangle Catholic Schools Athletic Association; he coached youth sports from 1977 to 2010. He has published several articles regarding association management, the auto industry and public accounting.
Within North Carolina’s political community, Glaser was an original member of the Legislative Commission on Global Climate Change in 2005, served on the Board of the North Carolina Forum for Research and Economic Education (NCFREE) from 2004-2009 and the North Carolina SelfInsurance Security Association from 1998 to 2008.
“I am both grateful and humbled to have led NCADA as its CEO over the past two and a half decades and very honored for the many opportunities and experiences I’ve had throughout my career. I am extremely proud of our association’s volunteer leadership and their unwavering commitment to look ahead, take care of their customers and protect the core values of this great industry. I am confident that with the leadership that we have in place, the association is in great shape for the years ahead,” commented Glaser.
“John Policastro has been preparing for his new role as my successor for several years, and having worked together for eighteen years, 2024 is the right time for John to step forward and assume his place as only the fourth CEO of NCADA. I’m certain that he will carry on the traditions that are the core tenets of NCADA,” noted Glaser.
Glaser’s involvement in the creation and implementation of statewide civic programs was embodied by the association’s members. Glaser started the Teacher of the Year program in 1999 to support the North Carolina education sector and started the Drive for Troops program in 2006 and the Support our Troops program in 2008. Both programs benefited the families of local, North Carolina-based military personnel.
Along with volunteers from the association, Glaser founded Triangle Flight of Honor in 2010 which worked to fly more the 800 World War II veterans to Washington, DC to honor their commitment and sacrifice more than 70 years prior. More recently, on the 15th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on America, Glaser led a team to create the North Carolina Hometown Heroes program that is currently in place and that has recognized more than 1,000 local North Carolina first responders to date.
Ms. Alycia Kellum, NCADA’s Board Chair noted, “On behalf of the entire NCADA Board of Directors, I would like to recognize Bob’s significant leadership and guidance – nearly three decades – for both the association and the industry. He is seen as a leader among his peers in the auto industry, and all industry members have benefited from both his leadership and guidance. Strong leaders require strong successors, and the Board is pleased to appoint John Policastro to the role of CEO and president. His experiences and personal style equip him well for the challenges ahead, and we are confident that he will build upon the strong foundation that Bob has built.”
