Business leaders in the news
■ Rivergate Health Care Center in Riverview was awarded Facility of the Year Award for its Northeast Division by Life Care Centers of America. It recognizes the center as the top one in the division, which includes 25 skilled nursing and rehabilitation facilities in Michigan, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania and Ohio. Rivergate Health Care Center's Executive Director Mitch Metzger was praised for the center's customer service.
■ Steven Chester rejoined Miller Canfield in Detroit as the firm's senior counsel in the energy, environmental and regulatory group. Previously, he was deputy assistant administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance and a director of the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality. He had been a principal of Miller Canfield from 1995 to 2003. He received his law degree from Wayne State University and his bachelor's degree from Michigan State University.
■ Enrique Aguilar joined AMDG Financial in Plymouth as an adviser and wealth manager. He has 20 years of experience, including investment management work at Ford Motor and Lear. He is a former captain in the Army, and holds degrees from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and Duke University.
■ Sharyl Smith was named to the American Heart Association's metro Detroit board of directors. Smith is McLaren Macomb's vice president of marketing, planning and public relations. Prior to joining McLaren Macomb, Smith was with the Detroit Medical Center's Detroit Receiving Hospital, where she was administrative director of marketing. She received a bachelor of science degree from Eastern Michigan University and is accredited in public relations. She also is on the boards of Black Family Development and the Martha T. Berry Foundation.
■ David Huller was appointed to a U.S. Small Business Administration's Regulatory Fairness Board that includes Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota. He is the founder and owner of ICAP Enterprises, a small business in Rocky River, Ohio.
■ Harold Karp was named interim president and CEO of Tecumseh Products in Ann Arbor. Gary Cowger was appointed chairman. Karp was employed by the investment group, Alpine Group, or one of its portfolio companies for 18 years. He also was president and CEO of Wolverine Tube.
■ Four new managing directors have joined the tax and advisory practice of U.S. audit, tax and advisory firm KPMG.
William Diehl was named an advisory managing director to co-lead Detroit's transactions and restructuring practice. Prior to joining the firm, Diehl served as president and CEO of BBK, a global restructuring group based in Detroit. He received a bachelor's degree in accounting from Wayne State University and a master's degree from Central Michigan University.
Guy Morgan joined KPMG as advisory managing director in the industrial manufacturing, automotive practice. He received a bachelor's degree in business from Western Michigan University and a master's degree from Central Michigan University.
Jennifer Heckman joined as a managing director in the federal tax practice. She recently served as vice president, global tax and treasury at Dura Automotive, and received a bachelor's degree from Michigan State University. She is a CPA.
Ajai Vasudevan joined the firm as advisory managing director in the industrial manufacturing, automotive practice. He was a senior manager at Deloitte Consulting. He has a master's degree in business administration from the University of Michigan, a master's degree from Wayne State University, and a bachelor's degree from Mangalore University in India.
■ Lisa Kreza was hired as a mortgage loan originator with Lake Michigan Credit Union in its Farmington Hills branch. She has a finance from Schoolcraft College and more than 25 years of experience. She previously worked at Bank of America and Michigan Mutual.
■ Katherine Land joined Bingham Farms-based Identity as an account assistant. Prior to joining Identity, she worked as news editor for Oakland University where she managed and assigned all news for the university's website. She also served as a district executive for the Boy Scouts of America, a writer and production assistant at WXYZ-TV, and worked in Beijing, China, as a news reporter and editor. She graduated with a master's degree from OU and a bachelor's degree from Central Michigan University.
■ Sandy Eisho was named financial analyst and administrator at Farbman Group/NAI Farbman, a commercial real estate firm based in Southfield. Prior to his new position, she was a technical administrative specialist at Clear Rate Communications.
■ Scott Clifford joined Kerr Russell law firm as a program manager for the immigration department. He has 10 years of experience in the immigration profession as an officer with U.S. Customs and Border Patrol.
■ Michael Jackson II was elected president of the D. Augustus Straker Bar Association, an organization of attorneys that promotes legal practice opportunities for minorities and women. Jackson is a member of Miller Canfield's employment and labor group. He is a graduate of the Howard University School of Law and received a bachelor's degree and master's degree in business administration from Florida A&M University.