Jeffrey Mark Overly appointed new chairman of auto parts maker Sona Comstar

Overly, an independent director since 2021, brings over four decades of global manufacturing experience to the role following the passing of former chairman Sunjay Kapur

The board of directors of Sona Comstar on Monday appointed Jeffrey Mark Overly as the chairman of the company. Overly has served as an independent director of the company since February 2021.

 

The appointment follows the death of Sunjay Kapur, chairman and non-executive director of the auto parts maker, earlier this month. The Gurugram-based component maker supplies gears, rotator shafts, starter motors and steering components to India’s passenger and commercial vehicle industry.

 

Overly has been on the board of the company for almost five years and has an excellent attendance record, having participated in all board and committee meetings during his tenure. Despite being in a different time zone, he has contributed significantly to the deliberations and decision-making of the board and its committees, the company said. 

 

Overly holds a bachelor’s degree in industrial management from the University of Cincinnati and a master’s degree in business from Central Michigan University. He has over 43 years of operating experience.

 

He was an operating partner in the Corporate Private Equity Group, based in New York, at the time of his retirement from Blackstone Group in 2018 and continues to support Blackstone by serving on the boards of several of its portfolio companies. Overly has been involved in monitoring, advising and supporting operational excellence, supply chain improvement, and strategic initiatives in Blackstone's global portfolio holdings.

 

Before joining Blackstone in 2008, he served as vice-president of global fixture operations at Kohler Company, where he was responsible for global manufacturing operations, including the entire supply chain—from procurement to shipment of finished products—via a multi-warehouse regional distribution centre network. Prior to that, Overly served for 25 years at General Motors Corporation and Delphi Corporation in various operations and engineering roles with global responsibilities.

 

Overly is also an independent director on the boards of Performance Food Group, Fortrex Inc Ltd (formerly known as Packer Sanitation Services Incorporated), and Comstar Automotive USA LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Sona Comstar. He also serves as a director on the boards of Sabre Industries Inc and Supply One Inc.