Mr. Tom Purves was appointed Chairman and CEO of BMW US Holding Corp., effective May 1, 1999. His responsibilities encompass all sales, marketing and distribution activities for the BMW Group in North, Central and South America. In addition, he is now responsible for the overall launch of MINI in the U.S. market. Since assuming his post, Mr. Purves has led the company to achieve groundbreaking success. Sales volume reached an all-time record of over 256,622 units in 2002, nearly one quarter of BMW Group's 1,057,344 worldwide sales. Prior to arriving in the US, Mr. Purves was a Rover board member, a role he assumed in June 1996. In this capacity, Mr. Purves oversaw the global sales and marketing for the Land Rover, Mini, MG and Rover brands. Mr. Purves joined the BMW Group in 1985 as Sales Director of BMW (GB) Ltd. in Great Britain, where he assumed responsibility for all aspects of sales, distribution, parts, service, dealer and manpower development. During his tenure as president of BMW (GB) Ltd., the company soared to the second largest BMW export market after the USA, and in June of 1990, he was appointed Managing Director of BMW Great Britain Ltd. Mr. Purves began his automotive career with Rolls Royce Ltd. Car Division, as an apprentice engineer. His role with the company evolved to include several management positions in various fields including sales in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. In 2001 and 2003, Automotive News named Mr. Purves an "Automotive All Star" for his achievement in the auto industry. In addition, Mr. Purves serves on the board of directors of the Automotive Youth Educational Systems Inc., a non-profit organization launched in 1995 to help automotive dealers fill the need for qualified technicians. Mr. Purves was educated at Daniel Stewart's College in Edinburgh, Scotland. Date of birth: November 25, 1948