David Watts,Infiniti of South Atlanta/Heritage Automotive Group

David grew up in Chicago and northwest Indiana. His father was with the Secret Service and was an FBI agent for 30 years. His mother was a metallurgical engineer and, later in her career, a businesswoman and political whip. His younger brother is a retired American Airlines pilot and now works in the automobile industry.

He graduated from Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana with a BS in Business, with degrees in both accounting and marketing. Later in life, he attended and completed Harvard University’s Executive Management Program.

After graduating from Purdue, David began work with Big 8 public accounting firm Peat, Marwick and Mitchell, now KPMG.

During his first three years at the firm, David dealt with insurance, manufacturing, construction, bank and finance companies, and auto dealers. For the next five years, he specialized in consulting, auditing and tax preparations, as well as mergers and acquisitions for automobile dealers.

He had decided to pursue his MBA and had given notice to Peat Marwick when his last client—an auto dealer—asked him to come on board as his CFO. He accepted the offer and has been in the automobile business ever since.

David believes the Leadership Coweta experience will develop his leadership skills while helping him find ways “to equip our managers and partners with these tools so they can apply them to become more impactful leaders and productive partners.”

He is certain Leadership Coweta will change his outlook on both his job and the community, saying, “If I thought the program was not going to be impactful, I would not have agreed to attend it. I am looking forward to the curriculum as well as learning firsthand from others in the class who have varied backgrounds and business acumen to share. Developing bonds with other team members is a secondary goal as well, with a long-term vision that the group could collectively spearhead their own initiatives. My other primary goal is to share key learning points with my dealership team members.”