MONARCH BEACH, Calif. – Diversified automotive company JM Family Enterprises Inc. (JM Family) was named in the 2009 InformationWeek 500, an annual listing of the nation’s most innovative users of business technology. Ranked No. 167, the company was also featured in an article, “20 Great Ideas to Steal,” for its use of texting and mobile technologies to drive automotive dealership profitability.

“Our technology associates have been extremely dedicated to our dealer customers during this tough economic environment, and they have continuously made it their top priority to provide quality service” said Ken Yerves, JM Family’s chief information officer. “Receiving this honor is a tribute to their passion and innovation for technology.” 

As one of the company’s five core values — consideration, cooperation, communication, accountability and innovation — remaining innovative is of utmost importance to JM Family. In response to the industry downturn, the company created a dealer services team to focus on technology innovation. By leveraging social computing technologies, the team rolled out numerous programs and automotive marketing campaigns. For example, dealers are running sweepstakes and giveaways using text messaging. They are also displaying vehicles in popular areas with a text number in the windshield for interested customers to receive information.

The 2009 InformationWeek 500 companies were revealed Sept. 14 at an awards ceremony held during the InformationWeek 500 Conference in Dana Point, Calif.