Management Team
The management team of AAE has a combined 150 years of experience in the automotive industry. With the pursuit of excellence as their guiding principle, this management team is focused on keeping the company on the forefront of the industry.
Chairman & Strategic Advisor - Ben Treece
With 41 years of manufacturing experience as an original equipment supplier, Mr. Treece brings senior leadership and operational expertise to the AAE organization. Before retiring and joining AAE, Mr. Treece was formally Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of a US automotive interior manufacturer. With operational responsibilities for 37 manufacturing plants worldwide, Mr. Treece designed and developed AAE remanufacturing processes and quality control systems.
As a graduate of North Carolina State University with an industrial engineering degree, Mr. Treece also holds an MBA from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. As one of the first American manufacturing executives to go to Japan and study the Japese production system, Mr. Treece’s innovative and sometimes unorthodox approaches have earned him the respect and reputation as a manufacturing expert.
President & CEO - John Treece
Mr. Treece acquired AAE in 2002. With a 22 year career that began in sales, Mr. Treece quickly ascended to senior sales management positions before transitioning into product development and marketing. Mr. Treece’s marketing experiences include senior product manager, brand manager, and director of global product development. Transitioning to top organizational leadership and management responsibilities, Mr. Treece was Director of the Global Product Development Group and oversaw an annual $38 million product development budget with worldwide responsibilities for all product research and development. Mr. Treece and his family lived and worked in Europe for 5 years as a managing director of a $260 million revenue business unit for a Fortune 500 company.
Mr. Treece has an extensive 15 years of international business experience traveling and working in Asia, Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. Mr. Treece brings the vision and strategic direction which has driven AAE’s advancements since the acquisition.
Mr. Treece holds an equally impressive educational background with a BA from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and an MBA from the University of Chicago. He has attended numerous executive education programs. Mr. Treece continues to be invited as a guest speaker or panelist at national sales and marketing seminars and continues to actively participate in executive industry forums.
Maria Treece – Vice President and Corporate Secretary
Maria Treece joined AAE shortly after the acquisition of the company in 2002 in what was supposed to be a part time support role. She quickly became a full time fixture within the management team at AAE participating in the operational and strategic development of the company. Currently overseeing all administrative functions including Customer Service, Accounts Receivable, Human Resources and Supplier relations, Maria employs a whatever it takes approach to exceeding customers expectations.
As a graduate of Virginia Tech with a Chemistry degree, Maria previously worked for Kelly Springfield Tire Company as a tread compound developer. Most recently, Maria was a senior sales associate for a national medical device manufacturer. Holding national OSHA laboratory safety meetings, Maria was instrumental in the development and launch of propriety software aimed at streamlining the medical laboratory compliance process. This work earned her the responsibilities as Chief Manufacturing Safety Officer. Leaving the business world to focus on raising three daughters, Maria continued to be a strong support of her husband’s career before returning to the business world with AAE.
Steve Bertling - CTO and CFO
Mr. Steve Bertling joined AAE in December 2007 as the Chief Technology Officer and as the Chief Financial Officer. Steve has been responsible for implementing new technology solutions throughout the manufacturing process as well as upgrading the company’s point of sales and financial reporting systems. Steve has overseen the company’s Internet and cataloging data base development.
Steve has held a series of high level financial positions during his 21 year IT and finance career. In his last position, Steve was Vice President Controller of a Fortune 500 company. In that role, Steve oversaw all aspects of financial accounting including treasury services, cost accounting, international financial statement consolidation, Sarbanes Oxley compliance, the audit function, the controllership function, and GAAP compliance. Steve was responsible for the developing the annual financial plan along with monitoring the attainment of plan.
Prior to this role, Steve was director of international accounting. This role involved the oversight over 9 foreign subsidiaries. The controller of each subsidiary reported directly to him. Steve oversaw the annual business planning process and his group performed cash flow and currency exposure analysis as well as the consolidation of each foreign subsidiary’s financials into those of the overall company. Steve also was responsible for variance analysis and the attainment of the annual plan. Steve also oversaw the audit function and internal controls of each subsidiary.
Along with solid work experience Steve has an equally impressive educational background with a Master Degree in Accounting from the University of Iowa. Holding the distinction as a CPA and CMA, Steve’s experience has brought much needed expertise to the AAE organization.
Byron Clifton – Director of Manufacturing and R&D
Mr. Clifton is a 16 year veteran with AAE. Having virtually worked and managed in every aspect of the remanufacturing process, Byron’s hands on experience has uniquely qualified him for these responsibilities. In addition, Byron is responsible for overseeing all R&D programs and assisting with the development of the NEW Rack & Pinion and Pump program.
AAE’s Consulting Team
Always hard at work, the AAE consulting team can be found most days roaming the halls and offices looking for the occasional productivity improvement opportunity, but mostly looking for anyone willing to share a snack with them.