On May 12, MRO parts distributor Motion announced two promotions within its executive leadership team. Joe Limbaugh has been appointed Executive Vice President — Chief Operations Officer, while James Howe has been named Executive Vice President — Chief Commercial Officer/Chief Technology Officer.

Limbaugh will celebrate 40 years with Motion in 2023, according to a news release. Since being promoted to Executive Vice President in 2021, Limbaugh has led Motion’s marketing, supply chain, distribution center and fulfillment center operations, real estate and enterprise excellence. In his new role, Limbaugh will maintain those responsibilities while also assuming responsibility for operations in all of Motion’s solutions businesses, including Conveyance Solutions, Fluid Power Solutions, Repair & Services and Motion Ai.

Howe, who recently celebrated 30 years with Motion, was also promoted to Executive Vice President in 2021 and has since been responsible for eCommerce, strategic pricing, sales excellence and corporate accounts. He will continue to lead those areas while adding the responsibility of human resources, according to the release.

“These are two richly deserved executive promotions,” Motion President Randy Breaux said in the release. “Over the years, both Joe and James have proven to be exceptional leaders for Motion in their respective areas of the business. In addition, they play vital roles in defining the strategic direction of the company and continue to take on additional responsibilities to improve our value proposition. Joe and James have built great supporting teams and have done an outstanding job producing fantastic results for Motion and Genuine Parts Company. These changes will certainly enhance the value Motion delivers to our customers, employees and stakeholders.”

Motion was prominently featured on MDM’s Top Distributors list in 2022, ranking as the No. 1 Power Transmission/Bearings Distributor, No. 3 Industrial Distributor, No. 3 MRO Industrial Distributor, No. 3 Fluid Power Distributor and No. 24 Electrical, Data & Security Distributor. Motion was also listed among MDM’s Top Safety Distributors in 2022.