Nissan’s Kim Less and Judy Wheeler Recognized Among 100 Leading Women in the North American Auto Industry

Kim Less and Judy Wheeler have been named among 100 Leading Women in the North American Auto Industry by Automotive News.

This honor recognizes female leaders in the automotive field – those who make major decisions and have significant influence at their companies. Automotive News has published the list of the industry’s top female executives every five years since 2000.

“Nissan celebrates the achievements of Kim and Judy, whose leadership continues to elevate and inspire women across the entire automotive industry,” said Vinay Shahani, senior vice president, U.S. Marketing and Sales, Nissan Americas. “Nissan is lucky to have Kim and Judy as leaders, as they help decisively shape the future success of Nissan.”

Kim Less, vice president, Aftersales, Nissan Americas, is responsible for driving customer satisfaction, brand loyalty and profitability through positive ownership experiences for North and South American markets. Less is the first woman to lead the Aftersales function for the Americas in Nissan’s history, a role to which she brings more than 30 years of experience in global supply chain, aftersales, manufacturing and engineering.

Since joining Nissan in 2010, Less has earned roles of increasing importance throughout Nissan’s aftersales and parts logistics operations. In her most recent role as director of Aftersales Supply Chain Management, Less led the team to earn the 2020 North American Parts Benchmark Top Automotive Supply Chain award.

Less is currently the executive sponsor for eNable, the company’s affinity group supporting the quality of life and work for employees with disabilities. She also serves as a board member for Second Harvest Food Bank – a Nissan Neighbors partner. She has also been recognized by AutomotiveNews as a 2023 All-Star award recipient.

Judy Wheeler, division vice president, Nissan Sales & Regional Operations for the U.S., is responsible for the field sales organization and leading sales operations, distribution, fleet and certified pre-owned sales. Wheeler’s career exemplifies her resilience and business acumen, spanning 40 years including 14 physical relocations, three foreign service assignments, and 28 diverse positions across sales, marketing, dealer network, aftersales and product planning.

Wheeler has also been a dedicated advocate for women’s advancement, spearheading mentoring programs such as the Women’s Business Synergy Team and Nissan’s Coaching Circles since 2003, positively impacting over 200 participants annually. By the end of 2024, her mentoring efforts had touched the lives of more than 3,000 people.

She also has won an Executive Leadership award and has been recognized by Nashville Business Journal as a 2023 Women of Influence award recipient. This is Wheeler’s second time as an honoree on the Automotive News 100 Leading Women in the North American Auto Industry list.

The 2025 class of Automotive News’ 100 Leading Women in the North American Auto Industry emerged from a months-long nomination and judging process that attracted hundreds of entries from the United States, Canada and Mexico.