GRAPEVINE, Texas and STAUTON, Va. –Management of the newly formed Automotive Parts Services Group (The Group) held its first joint strategic planning meeting Jan. 5-6 in Staunton, Va. The meeting marked the first time that co-CEOs, Bill Maggs fromPronto and Rusty Bishop from Federated, brought together some of their key staff members for a strategic planning exercise.

The two-day meeting included a tour of the 370,000-square-foot Co-Man warehouse complex and a discussion of the future plans for expansion and shared utilization. There also were presentations and discussions on data management and process sharing, electronic catalog capabilities, technology programs and various member support functions.

Plans were developed for supplier relationships and line review processes, and goals were established for various improvement initiatives. Growth strategies were discussed and new member applications for both Federated and Pronto were reviewed and evaluated.

A major area of focus was national account support with a review of each program. Plans were created to improve coverage and service to these important customers. A decision was made for The Group to operate as one entity with these major accounts immediately, in order to facilitate better service, availability and a streamlined administrative process. The combined national account team will meet several times in the next month to execute plans.

“To see the value this merger will bring to our members to help grow their businesses is exciting and to begin implementing some of the joint strategies is really rewarding,” said Maggs.

During the meeting, there also was discussion of the global market, with a review of the 1Parts strategy that provides strategic interface with suppliers and distributors around the world. Discussions centered around trends and opportunities for global collaboration.

Future meeting dates for The Group were reviewed and joint membership meetings were planned for as early as 2016. Federated management is planning to attend the Pronto board of directors meeting in mid-February 2015 and several other future meetings will be scheduled together.

“Watching the tremendous talent from both organizations working together was inspiring,” said Bishop. “The results will have outstanding benefits for our members and their customers.”