The Kiefer Foundation
Oct 12, 2022 5:30 PM
Steve Kiefer, Chairman
The Kiefer Foundation

Introduction of Guest Speaker:  Johann Finkelmeier

Steve Kiefer is the founder of The Kiefer Foundation whose mission is to end distracted driving and all associated traffic deaths and injuries. The Kiefer Foundation was established in 2016, in honor of his son Mitchel Kiefer, who was tragically killed by a distracted driver on September 19th, 2016.  In July 2018, Kiefer received the Distinguished Service Citation from the Automotive Hall of Fame honoring the work he has done to end distracted driving through the Kiefer Foundation.

Kiefer recently retired from General Motors, after nearly 40 years of experience in the automotive industry, including leadership positions in major markets around the world. Kiefer’s most recent position was President, GM International, a position he has held since November 2019. Kiefer was a member of the GM Senior Leadership Team. In this role, he was responsible for GM operations outside of North America and China.  His mandate was to deliver profitable growth in the 60+ international markets in which GM competes. 

Prior to this role Kiefer spent five years as Senior Vice President, Global Purchasing and Supply Chain, where he delivered $2B of annual cost reductions for 5 consecutive years, while significantly improving supplier relationships.  Kiefer joined GM in September 2013 as Vice President, Global Powertrain, after more than a decade of senior leadership roles with the automotive supplier Delphi. 

Kiefer has deep cross functional expertise in all areas of the automotive business, including engineering, sales, purchasing, supply chain, operations, finance, government relations, corporate strategy and general business management. Throughout his career, Kiefer has focused on product innovation to drive customer value and profitable growth. Kiefer is a member of the Michigan Governor’s Traffic Safety Advisory Commission and the Michigan State University College of Engineering Alumni Association Board. He was GM’s key executive at Michigan State University and previously served as a member of the Berkeley Engineering Advisory Board, the Supervisory Board of Adam Opel AG in Germany and the board of directors of United Way for Southeastern Michigan.Kiefer received a master's degree in business administration from the University of Michigan. He earned a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from Michigan State University, which included engineering studies at RWTH Aachen University in Germany.