President, Chief Executive Officer & Director, LKQ Corp
Beyond the Desk with Justin Jude
About Justin Jude
In a September 2024 internal interview titled "Beyond the Desk with Justin Jude," LKQ's incoming CEO discussed his personal interests and leadership philosophy. Jude described himself as someone who "finds comfort in all foods" and said his hobby is spending time with his children, who play volleyball, horseback ride, basketball, and baseball. He noted that he enjoys riding ATVs in his free time. Jude said his favorite superhero is Superman and that he would choose the ability to fly as a superpower. He cited Winston Churchill as a historical figure he would like to have dinner with, praising Churchill's ability to "bring different parties together during the war." Jude reflected on his travels to LKQ's European operations, saying he was impressed by mass transit and the convenience of trains. He described a favorite memory of watching his children play in the ocean in Turks and Caicos. Jude referenced a piece of advice from Rick Galloway about listening more, stating, "I think we all could probably listen better, whether at work or with family." He also noted that a simple pleasure he cannot live without is talking to his children while traveling for work. Regarding LKQ's business, Jude said, "If you look at the history of LKQ, we're a recycling business — we're all about sustainability and we've always been about sustainability."
Transcript (46 segments)
I
Interviewer0:10
Justin.
J
Justin Jude0:11
Yes, Jen.
I
Interviewer0:11
I've gotten to know you over the past three years. I know your wife, Kelly, daughter, Alexis, Cole, your son.
J
Justin Jude0:17
Yes.
I
Interviewer0:18
But the rest of LKQ is really dying to get to know who is Justin Jude, who is our next CEO. So we'd like to do something called beyond the desk with Justin. Twelve very easy questions that we're going to talk through. Are you ready?
J
Justin Jude0:29
Okay. Yes, I am.
I
Interviewer0:36
Now, let's start with something simple. What's your comfort food go to?
J
Justin Jude0:43
That's hard and easy because there is not a single food. I love food. If I eat a burger one day, it's great. But then I want pizza the next day or I want a steak the next day. I find comfort in all foods. All food.
I
Interviewer0:56
Comfort in all foods. You just can't single it down.
J
Justin Jude0:58
No, it's hard. And, yeah, you know exactly what I'm talking about. But I enjoy sports with my kids, so my daughter's in volleyball, horseback riding, my son's in basketball and baseball. In between those four different events, it keeps me quite busy. But if I have free time outside of that, I like to ride ATVs and just, you know, be one with nature.
I
Interviewer1:31
Be one with nature. With a little bit of horsepower.
J
Justin Jude1:34
With a little bit of horsepower.
I
Interviewer1:37
So I'm curious about your childhood memories. You grew up in Ohio. We all know that you're a Buckeye fan.
J
Justin Jude1:42
Yes.
I
Interviewer1:43
What was your favorite game to play as a kid?
J
Justin Jude1:46
Surprisingly, it was football. I mean, Ohio State's great football college, but I was never very good. And my body was not designed for football, but I loved football. More manly, right? I don't know. I think it's less, but it'd be nice if it was, you know, popped or cracked along or, you know, popped the rib and cracked it. But no, I was just deal to the football, got spear with a helmet. And then I woke up about five minutes later and they rushed me to the hospital.
I
Interviewer2:28
I am sure if that injury had not happened, the Buckeyes would have been calling the Ohio state.
J
Justin Jude2:32
The Ohio state. Yeah, I might have.
I
Interviewer2:35
All right, we're getting a little deeper now. If you could have dinner with any historical figure, who would it be and why?
J
Justin Jude2:44
That is a tough question. There's multiple folks I'd love to have dinner with. Probably the one that's fresh in my mind is, I would say, Winston Churchill. I just visited our European operations, and when I was in London, come up with a new logo like the stay calm and carry on.
I
Interviewer3:16
Stay calm and carry on. I love it. So travel, you've been traveling a lot to our European operations?
J
Justin Jude3:21
I have.
I
Interviewer3:21
And often open your eyes to new experiences. What's the most interesting place you've visited so far?
J
Justin Jude3:28
I would say Europe in general. So pretty. You know, LKQ, I didn't really. I never spent any time in Europe, and so I've made quite a bit of trips over there to meet with our different executive teams and seeing the UK and Switzerland and our German operations and Benelux. I'm just amazed at mass transit, trains. Just how you can jump on a train and go four hours away instead of an airplane. Convenience of it.
I
Interviewer3:54
I'm a beach person. Love to go to the beach. My family loves to go to the beach. So as long as the water's clear and it's warm and there's refreshing drinks coming, I like to go to the beach, stay hydrated.
J
Justin Jude4:25
Safety first. So all the beaches we've been to as a family are individually Turks and Caicos. I like that place. That's gorgeous. The clear water and all the locals there, they thrive on tourism, so they're just so nice, and they cater to tourism and the beaches are beautiful, the water's clear. Great sea life to watch. If you want to snorkel or scuba dive, it's a great place.
I
Interviewer4:52
I agree. Here's a fun scenario. If you could have one superpower for a day, what would it be?
J
Justin Jude4:58
That's easy. Fly. But I figured if I can fly, I'm not worried about falling. It's not really a fear of heights, it's a fear of falling.
I
Interviewer5:17
So I would say, yeah, we all have little things that make our day better. What's a simple pleasure that you just can't live without?
J
Justin Jude5:25
I'd say talk to my kids. I travel a lot with work, so being able to call them in the morning before they go to school, getting on FaceTime between school and practice, or right before they go to bed. No matter how bad my day was or good it was, it just always gets better after I talk to them.
I
Interviewer5:40
This next question is meaningful to me because I just love music. Looking back at your life soundtrack, what song would you say is your life anthem?
J
Justin Jude5:50
That's another tough question. And a good question. Songs that get me up the beat and are like, if it comes to mind, Thunderstruck. All the ones from my warm-up tape in high school. And they're still on my warm-ups. But you got to go with what works, right?
I
Interviewer6:25
Yes, absolutely. All right. Little personal. What's one of your favorite memories of your kids?
J
Justin Jude6:31
You know, the best times that I remember are always vacations. And we spend time together quite a bit at Christmas and different holidays. But when we go on vacation, it's just the family and it's all about the kids. And one that comes to mind is Turks and Caicos, where I can see my kids out there playing in the ocean, splashing around, throwing a ball back and forth, and I'm just sitting there watching, and it gets emotional a little bit to think about it.
I
Interviewer7:10
In all the places of the world, where's one place that you haven't been but you would like to visit?
J
Justin Jude7:16
I'd have to say Hawaii. I've never been to Hawaii either. Never been. When my wife and I got engaged and we got married, we talked about going to Hawaii on our honeymoon, and financially, that did not happen. And 21 years later, we've still yet to go to Hawaii. But there's a lot of beautiful places in this world, but of all the places that we've talked about and I've looked at going to is Hawaii.
I
Interviewer7:40
Yeah, that's an amazing place. That's on my list, too. So, finally, if you could master one skill that you don't have right now, what would it be?
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Justin Jude7:49
So I think I have some skills that they need to be improved upon. Rick Galloway always talks about, you know, you have two ears and one mouth, so listen more.
I
Interviewer8:10
I'm gonna throw an extra one in there, because I noticed the shirt that you're wearing is a little nostalgic. It's vintage. It's our old logo. What can you tell me about that shirt?
J
Justin Jude8:22
Well, I mean, if you look at the history of LKQ, we're a recycling business right now. We're all about sustainability, and we've always been about sustainability, so there is some nostalgia to it. But I guess if we're a recycling business at heart, we're a sustainable business. That's why I wore it.
I
Interviewer8:38
That's a perfect reason. That's your nod to sustainability?
J
Justin Jude8:41
Yes. That's exactly. A great example all around, Justin. I love it.
I
Interviewer8:45
Well, thank you so much for spending the time with me today, and I hope everyone got a chance to get to know you a little bit better.
J
Justin Jude8:51
Well, thank you for the questions, and I hope they got to know me a little bit better as well.
I
Interviewer8:53
Great, thanks.
J
Justin Jude8:56
Thanks.