Kim Parson: One of the Most Influential Women in the Industry

Posted 5/15/2012
By Levy Joffrion

Kim Parson, who owns and manages five ASA member-shops in Maryland, is determined to make the industry better “one car at a time.”

And she’s doing such an outstanding job at it, that it has just brought her recognition as one of the most influential women in the collision repair industry.

Kim was recognized July 19 by AkzoNobel Auto­motive & Aerospace Coatings Americas, which sponsors the prestigious and coveted honor, at a presentation in San Antonio. The award presenters said Kim and two other women (see related photo on page 4) were selected this year “for their contributions to the organizations they represent as well as the automotive industry at large and their respective communities.”

Nicholas Dreisch, Kim’s oldest son, has been working at ACT for more than three years. Her youngest son, Benjamin, is an 11-year-old boy scout. Her daughter, Alexandra, a senior at the University of South Carolina, advises her mother on marketing. ACT uses billboards, media such as Facebook and Twitter, community events and charities in its marketing. Kim’s husband, Steven, is in the masonry business.

Less than 20 years ago, Kim didn’t know anything about repairing automobiles. Today, she is president of Automotive Collision Technologies Inc. (ACT), a Maryland-based firm that has five shops and expects to make $13 million this year.

When Kim got into the industry 18 years ago, she was appalled at what she saw. She came from a white-collar-worker background into what is basically a blue-collar world.

She was a sales engineer for IBM for 10 years. She left the corporation to start a family. Later, she joined the collision repair industry.

When Kim got into collision repair, she was dismayed that it was often regarded as a shoddy industry. She took it as a challenge and was determined to make things better. Better for the workers, better for customers and better for the industry as a whole.

For example, she found technicians had no benefits, so she has added benefits for her employees. She also decided that when she did an estimate, she would regard it as a contract and would be sure to do all the work called for by the estimate. Her business would not take shortcuts when it came to its  customers. They would live up to their agreements. In short, she was determined to bring integrity to the business.

She also recognized the responsibility her business had toward the environment and her shops were among the first in the nation to start using waterborne paint. 

		Automotive Collision Technologies Inc. includes five shops in (from top left) Randallstown, Annapolis, Hunt Valley, (second row, from left) Westminster and Glen Burnie, Md.

Among the many other ways in which her shops make sure they are responsible citizens, they work with the Ravens football team and the Boys and Girls Clubs of America through local talent such as the Ladarius Webb Foundation. ACT prides itself on being involved in the community and with vo-tech schools.

Her company is listed in the Baltimore Business Journal as the 18th largest woman-owned business in Maryland. It’s also listed as one of the top 50 largest private companies in Maryland and the fastest-growing company for three years.

Kim has strived to create a workplace where her employees are happy. She believes that creates a culture in which a customer’s experience is great the minute he or she walks through the door of any ACT shop.

Shown are some shop interiors. “I love interior decorating and making customers feel at home,” says Kim.

“We try to improve peoples’ lives,” says Kim. “And I think we, as a company, have made a whole lot of people’s lives better.”

What’s it like being a woman in the collision repair industry? “It’s a challenge,” says Kim. “I feel like a woman has to work twice as hard as a man to prove herself, and has to prove herself every day.”

Her biggest challenge to growing the business has been in finding competent technical help, but that’s changing. She is surprised by the number of applicants she has today. “I had two just this morning,” she said.

What’s ahead for ACT? “We’d like to keep on growing,” says Kim, “until eventually, we have 10 shops. We’re working on No. 6, which we plan to open this fall.”