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Kyle Birch: Industry Influencer

No, he doesn’t have millions of online followers. No, he doesn’t own a skin care brand or post about his morning routine. He may not be the first person who comes to mind when you hear the word “influencer,” but this year, Kyle Birch was undoubtedly one of the most influential people in the auto finance industry.

In addition to his full-time role as GM Financial’s President of North America Operations, Kyle picked up several temporary duties, affirming his place as a preeminent voice in the industry.

Most notably, Kyle has served as chairman of the board for the American Financial Services Association (AFSA) since the organization’s October 2023 annual meeting. He also participated and spoke at the annual meeting between AFSA and National Automobile Dealers Association board members related to challenges and opportunities in our industry.

What is AFSA?

As the primary trade association for the consumer credit industry, AFSA is among the nation’s most influential consumer finance groups, shaping the industry and advocating for its members on a broad range of public policy issues.

The group formed in 1916 to promote state laws that would improve Americans’ access to small loans, which were not widely available at the time. In the 1970s, the group merged with another trade organization and expanded its scope and membership to include diversified financial services firms and consumer credit subsidiaries.

In its modern form, AFSA’s mission is to promote safe, ethical lending to responsible, informed borrowers and to improve and protect consumer access to credit. Its more than 450 members provide consumers with many kinds of credit, from traditional installment loans and vehicle financing to mortgages and payment cards. AFSA members do not offer payday or vehicle title loans.

GM Financial is a longtime AFSA member, and GM Financial executives, including Dan Berce, have previously served on AFSA’s board.

Kyle’s AFSA journey

Kyle’s reputation as a prudent thought leader and his decades-long stewardship of GM Financial’s U.S. and Canada operations (not to mention his pre-GM Financial work experience in banking regulation with the FDIC) made him an ideal fit for the role of AFSA board chair.

This is not the first time AFSA has looked to Kyle for leadership. In past years, he has served as AFSA treasurer and spent time both as chair and vice chair of AFSA’s Vehicle Finance Board.

In his role as AFSA chair, Kyle oversees board activity and presides over the AFSA Executive Committee. Other responsibilities include working closely with the AFSA team on operational and legislative issues affecting the auto finance industry and advising the AFSA Education Foundation, often addressing emerging industry leaders to promote growth and career development.

Consequently, he spent much of the first half of this year on the road.

Making appearances in Las Vegas, Atlanta, Washington, D.C., and more, Kyle spoke at several of the industry’s most important meetings and presided over many more. Here are some of the highlights:

• In January, Kyle was a featured speaker at AFSA’s Vehicle Finance Conference and acted as moderator for a fireside chat with an executive from Penske Auto Group. Per tradition, he was also a featured guest on the Auto Remarketing Podcast, recorded during the conference.
• In April, Kyle joined a peer from Nissan’s captive to share perspectives on the state of the industry and discuss how technology continues to improve efficiencies during the Auto Intel Summit in Raleigh, North Carolina.
• In early June, Kyle was the subject of his own fireside chat during the National Automotive Finance Association’s annual conference, sharing a brief history of auto finance and discussing some macroeconomic insights into the nonprime lending space.
• Later in June, Kyle was a keynote speaker at the AFSA Education Foundation’s “THE EDGE” management development program, which collaborates with Mercer University to offer high quality training for consumer finance professionals.

A common thread running through those speaking engagements was a focus on leadership skills and attributes.

“One of the goals I had for my tenure as AFSA chair was to help businesses attract young talent and provide that young talent with tools and resources to grow and evolve into the next generation of finance leaders,” Kyle said.

Throughout his own leadership journey, Kyle developed a personal leadership top 10 list, which details traits of strong leaders, shares advice with aspiring leaders and reinforces positive behaviors among leaders who wish to continue their development. Although it’s adjusted from time to time, the current list includes the following:

Leadership top 10

If you weren’t fortunate enough to have a front-row seat at one of Kyle’s talks this year, fear not. Here’s a brief look at his top 10:

1. Honesty and integrity
   • Be a trusted leader.
2. Confidence, commitment and passion
   • Let people see your enthusiasm.
3. Be an effective (incredible) communicator
   • Have a plan! Hope is not a plan!
4. Create lasting relationships
   • Your career will be built on relationships; choose wisely.
5. Be good at dealing with conflict
   • The hardest part of being a leader, but you will be respected for it.
6. Be a really good listener
   • Surround yourself with a great team and listen; you’ll be pleasantly surprised!
7. Promote innovation and teamwork
   • Create an atmosphere that people thrive in; be fun and focused.
8. Delegation and empowerment
   • Don’t mistake being a hard worker with being a good leader.
9. Be results-oriented
   • No one is working to be average; be great and exceed your goals.
10. Make decisions
    • Be decisive, own your decision but have the flexibility to change your mind.

A lasting impact

Like all good things, Kyle’s tenure as AFSA chair will come to an end in October when the group elects a new chair. But Kyle will maintain a position on the board and continue to have a direct influence on the organization as he assumes the role of immediate past chairman.

And the lessons he shared across the country are sure to have a lasting impact, strengthening today’s industry and empowering the next generation of leaders.

“It’s been a privilege to serve as chair and represent GM Financial throughout the year,” Kyle said.

“AFSA’s been around for more than 100 years, in one form or another, so it’s been a great experience to contribute to such a storied institution in such a meaningful way,” he said.

“I’m grateful for the opportunity and for the trust and encouragement of my peers. I’m more optimistic than ever about the future of our industry and can’t wait for what’s next.”

By Jake Stevens, GM Financial

Jake Stevens uses his writing skills to help others make sense of complex topics. His second greatest passion, after auto finance, is cheering on the Crimson Tide.