Yokohama Tire Corp. has hired Jeff Barna as chief operating officer, effective Jan. 13.

In his new role, Barna will be responsible for sales, marketing and product planning, and will be on YTC’s executive committee. He will report to Shinichi Takimoto, YTC president.

“Jeff is another strategic investment in the future of Yokohama Tire Corporation in the American market, like our modern manufacturing plant in Mississippi, new and upgraded distribution centers, new R&D technical center in North Carolina, stream of new products in the consumer, commercial and OTR space, and commitment to expanded OE partnerships,” said Hideto Katsuragawa, CEO of Yokohama Corp. of North America and CEO of YTC.

Prior to joining Yokohama, Barna worked in management, sales and logistics positions, most recently at Nilfisk-Advance Inc. He has also worked at Exide Technologies and began his career at Tenneco Automotive selling Monroe shock absorbers in the metropolitan New York market.

“Jeff sold a range of products to many of the same high-quality companies that Yokohama sells to,” said Shinichi Takimoto, YTC president. “Jeff will work closely with our team to strengthen Yokohama and make us more valuable to our business partners. His experience starting at the street level of the auto parts business, to broader areas of responsibility, and right up to the board rooms of multi-national companies is a perfect match for today’s competitive business climate and our lean team.”