Boating Industry named Brandon Cerka the 2026 Mover & Shaker of the Year with the launch of its October issue. The recognition comes after 14 years at Suzuki Marine USA and follows his early 2026 promotion to Executive Vice President, Sales, Marketing & Service.
Cerka said the company moved through a period when it had challenges with processes and service, and that he built sales while putting marketing processes in place. He said that work led to him taking over service and receiving the EVP title.
Brandon Cerka and Suzuki Marine USA
Cerka said Suzuki marine treats sales, service and marketing as one function. He put it this way: "When you look at Suzuki marine, it’s not about sales, service and marketing. It’s all in one. It doesn’t matter if we’re selling something; we’re also servicing something. These assets should be together at all times."
That approach is the basis for the company’s training push under his direction. Cerka described training as a continuing effort, saying, "To Cerka, training is not a one-time event. It’s an ongoing commitment to quality, consistency and dealer readiness."
Suzuki Marine University Program
Suzuki Marine USA started year-round training and launched the Suzuki Marine University Program to educate and train technicians. The program offers classes at centralized locations in the Northwest, Midwest, Northeast and Southern U.S., as well as at Suzuki Marine's Tampa, Florida headquarters.
The company also launched the Suzuki Ultimate Rigging Installer Program, which sets standards for installing, inspecting and delivering Suzuki outboards to customers. Under Cerka, Suzuki Marine also increased its warranty, which can reach up to seven years for new motors when they are properly installed by a trained authorized dealer or boat builder.
T.R.A.C. and Techline
Cerka helped implement T.R.A.C., short for Test, Review, Analyze and Correct. Suzuki's dedicated Techline is ready when an issue is not corrected or one hour passes without progress toward solving the issue.
Cerka tied that work to customer service, saying, "Across the board, we are taking training to new levels. Our approach is to find every way we can improve and do a better job of taking care of the customer all day, every day,"
For dealers and technicians, the practical effect is straightforward: more structured training, clearer installation standards and a service path that moves unresolved problems to Techline after one hour. The award places Cerka’s role at the center of Suzuki Marine USA’s sales, service and training network, and it leaves one open question for readers inside that network: how much the new programs have changed readiness and customer results.
