Autosled announced that it has appointed former Tesla and SolarCity executive Leon “Lee” Keshishian as Chief Executive Officer to spearhead its leadership team.
Keshishian joined Autosled initially as a board advisor to assist the company through its strategic planning and funding efforts. During that process, he was asked to join full time to lead the company into its next stage of growth in automotive logistics. As CEO, he is focused on talent acquisition, scaling the business for accelerated growth and securing funding. A marketing and business professional with high growth operations experience across consumer products, renewable energy and logistics, Keshishian is uniquely positioned to move the company forward.
“Having known Lee since high school, I was excited to initially get him involved in Autosled’s mission to transform the automotive logistics market as an advisor,” noted David Sperau, co founder and Autosled’s chief revenue officer. “After working with him over several months in that capacity, and witnessing his ability to develop strategic plans, hire top talent and position operations for scalable growth, we were excited to have him join us full time.”
A former executive at Tesla, Keshishian is no stranger to the opportunities available in automotive transport, nor the fast-paced environment of a company that’s in demand. Early in his career, he managed brands like Dial Soap, launched new housing developments for Pulte Homes and co founded one of the first renewable energy companies in the Mid Atlantic region. After the acquisition of Clean Currents Solar by SolarCity, Keshishian grew from one location in Maryland to over 30 facilities and over 3,000 employees that sold and installed residential and commercial solar and energy storage systems on the East Coast, building the largest region in the largest solar company in America. After SolarCity was acquired by sister company Tesla, he integrated his team and supported the expansion of Tesla products, such as EV charging, energy storage and new roofing products. The team also helped build automobiles in California, construct battery lines in Nevada and delivered autos at quarter endings, exposing him to the logistics challenges. After leaving Tesla in 2018, Keshishian founded an asset management company for SolarCity customers, KWH Care. This quickly merged with Palmetto Solar bringing Keshishian on board as chief operating officer. At Palmetto, he hired and grew its fulfillment and field operations teams resulting in a 400% growth in 2 years. As a result, the company has become one of the top companies in the United States. As Covid hit, Keshishian reconnected with his former classmate David Sperau on his new venture, Autosled. Spending time with David and his brother Dan, he became convinced of the market potential and began advising the company.
“Lee has really helped us prepare for growth bringing funding partners who share our vision of changing the way automotive vehicles are transported,” said Dan Sperau, co founder and chief financial officer. “He has helped set us up for an exciting 2022.”