Ian Beavis is vice president, marketing of Kia Motors America (KMA). He joined KMA in May 2005. Beavis is primarily responsible for overseeing all marketing operations including advertising, product planning, research and public relations. A 30-year automotive veteran, Beavis has spent his career at a number of companies including Toyota, Lexus, Daimler-Chrysler, Ford, Lincoln-Mercury and Mitsubishi, gaining experience in marketing, advertising, product planning, communications, incentives and agency management.

Beavis joined KMA from Mitsubishi Motors North America, where he served as senior vice president of marketing, public relations and product planning. Prior to that, he had held numerous agency leadership positions including: president and CEO of Foote, Cone & Belding’s West Coast operations; senior vice president of Bozell-Detroit where he managed DaimlerChrysler’s Asia Pacific account; and executive vice president of Saatchi & Saatchi where he was responsible for all Toyota business including operations in Canada and the United States. Earlier in his career, Beavis was marketing communications manager for Lincoln-Mercury Division in Detroit and spent the first 10 years of his career with Ford Motor Company in Australia.

Beavis is a frequent guest lecturer at California State University, Long Beach’s MBA program, as well as a popular keynote speaker at marketing seminars nationwide including Automotive News, iMedia and the Association of National Advertisers. Australian natives, he and his wife, Peta, currently reside in Long Beach, Calif. with their two American Bulldogs. They have two adult sons. In his spare time Beavis is an avid bicyclist, averaging 100 miles per week. He is also a collector of fine wine and art, as well as being an amateur photographer.