By Thomas A. Parmalee
When Carriage Services announced a slate of executive promotions and role expansions earlier this year, the moves may have read, at first glance, like a conventional corporate reshuffle.
In reality, according to Vice Chairman and CEO Carlos Quezada, the changes represent the culmination of several years of deliberate planning — and a clear signal that the company has moved from stabilization mode into a new phase of disciplined growth.
“This was not a reactionary process,” Quezada said. “It’s been very thoughtful and very intentional. We’ve been positioning the company so that the structure supports where we’re going next, not where we’ve been.”
From Defense to Offense
When Quezada stepped into the CEO role, he was also serving as COO, with responsibility for operations, sales and much of the company’s day-to-day execution. That dual role made sense during a period when Carriage was focused on improving cash flow, paying down debt, and regaining investor confidence.
That work, he said, is now largely behind them.
“We were on defense for a long time — focused on stability, cash and balance sheet discipline,” Quezada explained. “Today, we’re on offense. That changes what the CEO needs to spend time on.”
The newly formalized leadership structure allows Quezada to focus more fully on capital allocation, financing solutions, investor relationships and long-term strategy — critical functions for a public company re-entering growth mode. At the same time, it places operational execution squarely under leaders who have been intentionally prepared for expanded responsibility.
A Broader COO Role by Design
Central to that shift is the expanded role of Steve Metzger, who has been named president and chief operating officer. He will oversee operations, sales, marketing and mergers and acquisitions. Rather than fragmenting accountability across multiple executives, Carriage chose to consolidate these interdependent functions under a single leader.
“Growth, operations and M&A can’t operate in silos,” Quezada said. “If you want faster decision-making and better integration at the field level, those functions need to be aligned.”
Metzger’s transition has also been a multi-year process. As Carriage worked through its turnaround, he absorbed responsibilities beyond his original scope to preserve capital. With the company on firmer footing, those responsibilities are now being redistributed in a way that better reflects both scale and specialization.
“Part of my responsibility as CEO is succession planning at all levels of leadership,” Quezada noted. “That means broadening skill sets, not protecting titles. Steve is now fully focused on operations and growth — and that’s exactly where we need him.”
Quezada was quick to add, however, that he loves leading Carriage Servies and does not plan to retire anytime soon.
“I want to be here for at least the next eight to 10 years,” he said.
Continuity, Not Disruption
Notably, many of Carriage’s changes involve expanded roles rather than external replacements.
Christine Ngo’s elevation into a more formal human resources leadership role is a case in point. During the company’s restructuring phase, HR responsibilities were absorbed into existing leadership to reduce overhead. With stability restored, Carriage made a conscious decision to reinvest in people systems and leadership development.
“This will be a multi-year journey for Christine,” Quezada said. “But she’s been strategic, thoughtful, and earned the opportunity.”
Similarly, the transition of Sam Mazzu into an expanded general counsel role allows Metzger to step away from legal oversight entirely, reinforcing clearer lines of accountability while preparing the next generation of executive leadership.
“When you’re running a public company, you have to think in five- and ten-year increments,” Quezada said. “You’re placing pieces on the chessboard long before the move becomes obvious.”
A Fundamental Shift in Field Operations
One of the most consequential changes is Carriage’s reorganization of its field operations structure.
Previously, Carriage divided operations into three geographic regions, with each regional executive overseeing both funeral homes and cemeteries. While logical on paper, the structure often required multiple layers of coordination to drive change, particularly within cemetery operations.
The new model introduces a dedicated executive, Rene Negrete, focused exclusively on cemetery operations across the entire Carriage portfolio. Two regional leaders — Robbie Pape (Central West) and Paul Elliott (Central East) — now concentrate solely on funeral home operations.
“That singular focus matters,” Quezada said. “Cemetery operations are complex, and they deserve a unified strategy.”
Negrete, a longtime industry leader with deep ICCFA involvement, brings outside perspective and proven results — an intentional move in a company that emphasizes merit over tenure. He has also known Quezada for 17 years – the two men have a deep respect for each other.
“In cemeteries, we’ve accepted mediocrity in the experience for too long,” Quezada said. “A tent, folding chairs and a thin canopy shouldn’t be the standard. We can do better.”
The goal is not just operational efficiency, but service elevation — particularly during committal experiences, where families say goodbye to their loved one.
The company elevated a couple of other key staff members:
- Alfred White has been promoted to vice president of marketing, continuing to elevate Carriage’s brand, voice and connection with families and communities.
- John Enwright, chief financial officer, has assumed expanded responsibility with oversight of information technology and supply chain, further aligning financial discipline with the systems and infrastructure that support long-term value creation.
Language, Experience, and Meeting Families Where They Are
Operational changes at Carriage increasingly reflect a broader philosophical shift in how funeral professionals engage families. Quezada is candid about the importance of language and experience design — especially as cultural and religious norms continue to evolve.
“We still call ourselves morticians. We say, ‘cremated remains,’ while families say ‘ashes,’” he said. “Those details matter.”
Carriage is encouraging teams to think less in terms of rigid spaces and more in terms of adaptable experiences — chapels that can become celebration rooms, services that reflect faith traditions or secular values with equal authenticity.
“Before we make arrangements or plan logistics, we want families to see what’s possible,” Quezada said. “Light a candle. Change the language. Let them picture themselves honoring someone they love.”
Carriage Services also believes in doing the little things that do not cost money to make families feel special.
“Giving you a reserved spot in the parking lot does not cost anything,” Quezada said. “I can be there when you arrive, open the door and be their waiting for you.”
He’s also laser focused on getting location managers to properly allocate human capital.
“Put people where they are the best,” he said. “If someone is very good at something but they are not doing it, that is NOT a good use of human capital.”
Meritocracy in Practice
Carriage frequently describes itself as performance-driven, but Quezada is clear about what that means in practice.
“Tenure by itself doesn’t earn responsibility,” he said. “Results do.”
Internal promotions are earned through demonstrated performance, while external hires —such as Negrete — are brought in when specialized expertise is needed. The objective, Quezada said, is not to preserve tradition but to elevate outcomes for families, employees and communities.
This philosophy extends to Carriage’s four core values, purpose statement and operating objectives, which are intentionally simple but embedded into performance reviews, coaching conversations and daily decision-making.
Purposeful Growth, Not Growth for Its Own Sake
With financial stability restored, Carriage is again leaning into acquisitions — but with clear guardrails. The company is highly selective, focusing on strategic markets with sustainable call volume, growth demographics and opportunities for cultural alignment.
“We’re not trying to be the largest,” Quezada said. “We’re trying to create premier experiences in markets where we can truly make an impact.”
Carriage reviews numerous potential acquisition opportunities each year, declining most that do not meet its selective criteria. The company favors quality assets over marginal volume and believes its operational model can meaningfully improve performance for the right partners.
Private equity–backed consolidation has intensified competition, but Quezada believes that clarity of purpose and cultural consistency differentiate Carriage in conversations with independent owners.
He says that knowing full well that not every funeral home for sale is for Carraige Services.
“If you look at our financials, they are very strong,” he said. “Large consolidators do well partly because of their size, but we do it by having quality assets. If you own a funeral home in a small town doing 80 calls, you may be three calls away from losing money. We want firms that are a little bigger, where the market has growth opportunity – we call these strategic markets.”
Looking Ahead
As Carriage moves toward its 2030 vision, the leadership changes reflect a company that has learned from constraint, invested in people and emerged with a clearer understanding of who it is — and who it aims to serve.
“What excites me most,” Quezada said, “is that the plan worked better than we expected —and the team rose to meet it. Now we’re building for what’s next.”
For deathcare professionals watching Carriage’s trajectory, the message is clear: This is not a company chasing scale for its own sake, but one deliberately aligning leadership, culture and operations to support sustained, purposeful growth.
Follow FuneralVision.com on LinkedIn.
Follow FuneralVision.com on X.
Follow FuneralVision.com on Facebook.
