42 | JANUARY 9 • 2020 

business SPOTlight

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B I R M I N G H A M

T

he JN sat down with 
Elliot Darvick to learn 
about his new position 
as Lyft’
s regional director for 
the Midwest. Darvick is a native 
of Metro Detroit, where he 
attended Hillel Day School and 
graduated from Cranbrook-
Kingswood. He has spent the 
past 15 years of his career at the 
intersection of technology, auto-
motive and media — with the 
last three years spent building 
local operations for Lyft across 
Michigan, Ohio and now the 
broader Midwest. He lives with 
his wife and toddler in Chicago, 
where they recently moved after 
spending three years living in 
Huntington Woods.

1. How and when did you get 
involved with Lyft?
I joined the company in 2016 
to start our Detroit office. 

General Motors had just made 
a significant investment in Lyft, 
and there was an eagerness to 
establish and grow a team in the 
Motor City.

2. What is your new job title 
for Lyft? What do you do?
I am regional director for the 
Midwest, which is a territory 
comprising eight states. I sit 

within the Global Operations 
group, which is responsible for 
things like ensuring smooth 
airport operations, delivering 
in-person support to drivers 
and building local partnerships 
to solve transportation barriers. 
My day-to-day is focused pri-
marily on team leadership and 
management, long- and medi-
um-term strategic planning, 
and problem-solving alongside 
my team in pursuit of a better 
customer experience for our 
drivers, riders and communi-
ties.

3. What are some of the chal-
lenging aspects you face in 
your career?
At best, a career is punctuated 
with moments where you real-
ize that “what got me here,
will not get me there.
” I’
ve dou-
bled my team size at least five 
times in the last three years. 
Each time, I’
ve had to learn 
something different to be the 
leader my team deserves and, 
with that, comes admitting you 
don’
t have all the answers you 

need to succeed. It requires 
reinvention, humility and a con-
tinuous commitment to learn-
ing. I love the challenges that 
growth creates, and I’
ve found it 
humbling.

4. What is your favorite part 
about working for Lyft?
It is a company deeply ground-
ed in a mission to remove trans-
portation barriers and reshape 
cities around people, not cars. 
That means fewer medical 
appointments missed by senior 
citizens, fewer jobs out-of-reach 
due to the high cost of car own-
ership and less pollution as we 
reduce the amount of single-oc-
cupancy car trips. I find this 
mission incredibly motivating 
and, with more than 30 million 
active riders on the platform, 
Lyft has the scale to be a mean-
ingful part of driving the change 
we seek.

5. How does Lyft differentiate 
itself from Uber?
I honestly think it’
s most 
important for us to focus on 

here’s to

Schmoozing with 
Elliot Darvick

CORRIE COLF STAFF WRITER

PHOTO COURTESY OF ELLIOT DARVICK

Elliot Darvick

Rabbi Herschel Finman 
of Jewish Ferndale gave the 
invocation to open the Michigan 
Senate on Dec. 5, 2019. Rabbi 
Finman was the guest of State 
Sen. Jeremy Moss. 

Paul Blatt has 
been appointed 
to the position 
of president and 
chief executive 
officer of JVS Hu-
man Services, effective March 
1, 2020. Blatt has been with the 
Southfield-based agency since 
2008, serving as executive vice 
president and chief operating of-
ficer of the nonprofit for the last 
five years. He also works with 
the board of trustees and staff 
serving as an ambassador for 
JVS for prospective board and 
committee members, funding 
sources and community leaders.

The Association of Public Treasurers of the 
United States & Canada recently announced that 
Oakland County Treasurer Andy Meisner and 
his investment team have earned its highest 
professional certification, the Association’
s Invest-
ment Policy Certificate of Excellence Award. The 
certification demonstrates that the Oakland County Treasurer’
s 
Office’
s investment policy and strategy are best practices in 
municipal government, Meisner said.

The American Technion 
Society announced that Joey 
Selesny of Southfield has been 
promoted to the position of 
senior director of development. 
Selesny has been recognized 
for his fundraising capabilities in service 
to the Jewish community through several 
awards and fellowships. 

The Home Builders Association of Southeastern Michigan an-
nounced its 2019 Industry Leadership Award honorees, which in-
clude Hall of Fame — Norm Finkelstein, Norwood Homes, Ltd.; 
and Young Builder of the Year — Justin Friedman, HM Homes. 
The Home association and its Sales & Marketing and Remodelers 
councils announced the 2019 Sales & Design Achievement Com-
petition Winners. One winner was for Single-Family Whole House 
Remodel over 2,000 square feet — Uniland Corporation (Rex 
Rosenhaus and Aaron Rosenhaus).

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