DALLAS — Organizers of F&I Think Tank announced that trainer and F&I futurist Tony Dupaquier will serve as emcee of this year’s event, which is being held as part of Industry Summit 2017 (Sept. 11–14) at the Gaylord Texan Resort & Convention Center in Dallas.
The announcement marks the return of Dupaquier to the Industry Summit stage. The more than 25-year industry veteran currently serves as director of training at The Academy, an Austin, Texas-based training firm focusing on dealership front-end operations. At F&I Think Tank, Dupaquier will guide the daylong event’s discussions, which begin at 9 a.m. on Thursday, Sept. 14.
“I am honored to emcee F&I Think Tank this year. We will look at F&I’s past, present, and where we’ll be in the future,” Dupaquier said. “We’re also going to talk best practices and technology, but ‘the customer’ will dominate F&I Think Tank in 2017. This is going to be one heck of an event.”
F&I Think Tank was created in partnership with Ethical F&I Managers, a more than 7,000-member Facebook group founded by F&I and Showroom’s “Mad” Marv Eleazer. The event was designed to recreate the information exchange that takes place daily in EFI by offering several open forum-type sessions that allow attendees to share ideas and techniques and pose tough-to-handle customer objections or situations to top F&I trainers and industry insiders.
This year, the event has added F&I 20 Group as a partner. The more than 10,000-member Facebook group was created by F&I trainer Shaka Dyson, who joins Dupaquier as one of several top F&I trainers on the F&I Think Tank Roster.
Dupaquier worked every position in variable operations and is a former Nissan National Walk-Around Champion. He is considered one of the industry’s most forward-thinking F&I and sales trainers and consultants, and been a featured speaker at the National Automobile Dealers Association’s annual convention, as well as numerous dealer 20 Group and dealer associations.
“Tony is best known for his Stump the Pro session at Industry Summit, and we’re excited to have him guide the discussions at F&I Think Tank,” said Gregory Arroyo, show chair and editorial director of F&I and Showroom and Auto Dealer Today magazines. “But he’ll have his work cut out for him. Yes, his role is emcee, but he’ll be responsible for refereeing what I expect will be passionate discussions and debate about the future of the F&I profession.”
Registration for Industry Summit 2017 is open at the event’s website. Attendees who register by Aug. 11 will enjoy a $100 discount. To discuss sponsorship and exhibition opportunities, contact David Gesualdo at (727) 947-4027 or via email.
