Okada America Names Jim Brown President
Okada America has promoted Jim Brown to the position of president. Brown, who replaced Tony Neikirk, previously served as executive vice president of Okada America, appointed to that position in 2015.
Neikirk, who steps down after 20 years of service to Okada in many managerial capacities, will continue to serve as a consultant to Okada America through the transition.
Brown has more than 30 years of experience in construction and mining equipment. The company said he has brought a “focused, proactive customer philosophy” to Okada. He has extensive expertise at the manufacturing level and recognizes the importance of putting customers first. His previous experience includes engineering, general management and outside sales of construction and mining equipment. He has served in upper management for engineering personnel, national accounts, product marketing, service center facilities and sales and service departments.
As president Brown will establish both company and individual sales goals while maintainin and strengthening the distributor network. Brown said he hopes “to meet the changing market challenges by building on the ‘Okada tradition’ of great products and customer-oriented product support.”
Brown is a native of Ohio, who graduated from Kent St. University and the University of Notre Dame. He has been actively involved with the Associated Equipment Manufacturers, having served as chairman of the Mounted Breakers Manufacturers Bureau.
About the Author
Michael Roth
Editor
Michael Roth has covered the equipment rental industry full time for RER since 1989 and has served as the magazine’s editor in chief since 1994. He has nearly 30 years experience as a professional journalist. Roth has visited hundreds of rental centers and industry manufacturers, written hundreds of feature stories for RER and thousands of news stories for the magazine and its electronic newsletter RER Reports. Roth has interviewed leading executives for most of the industry’s largest rental companies and manufacturers as well as hundreds of smaller independent companies. He has visited with and reported on rental companies and manufacturers in Europe, Central America and Asia as well as Mexico, Canada and the United States. Roth was co-founder of RER Reports, the industry’s first weekly newsletter, which began as a fax newsletter in 1996, and later became an online newsletter. Roth has spoken at conventions sponsored by the American Rental Association, Associated Equipment Distributors, California Rental Association and other industry events and has spoken before industry groups in several countries. He lives and works in Los Angeles when he’s not traveling to cover industry events.