Emergency Safety Solutions, Inc. (ESS) announced it has appointed Tom Metzger as its new CEO.

Metzger is an auto industry veteran in connected vehicle technologies and brings a broad range of business and leadership experience to ESS. Metzger served more than 33 years in a range of leadership positions at Harman International Industries. For the last five years, he served as president & representative director of Japan. 

“Tom is a seasoned, dynamic leader and true auto industry innovator in the connected vehicle space, and we’re honored to add him to the ESS team,” said David Tucker, founder of ESS. “He brings a wealth of telematics-based vehicle connectivity experience, and the deep relationships he’s built over the years with automakers and tiered suppliers is second to none. We’ve been making great progress toward OEM adoption of H.E.L.P. as well as in the aftermarket product space, so his timing couldn’t be better.”

Between stints with Harman, Metzger served as SVP/GM of SiriusXM’s Connected Vehicle Services unit, and in the same role at Agero Connected Vehicle Services’ ATX Group before it was acquired by SiriusXM in 2013. Prior to that, he worked at Harman International in Japan and Korea in a range of roles focused on connected solutions for automakers.

“Every once in a while, that rare opportunity comes around where you literally have a chance to change the world for the better, and that’s why I chose to join ESS,” Metzger said. “We have a product that can help prevent tens of thousands of deaths and hundreds of thousands of injuries globally as we scale up adoption, and I can’t think of a greater personal and professional legacy than to achieve something like that.”

With Metzger’s appointment as CEO, ESS founder David Tucker will remain strategically focused on the company’s growth as chairman and president. Co-founder Stephen Powers will retain his current role as COO.