Fixed Ops Magazine 2024 Vol 21-1 - 50

Hire the best people you can and choose your vendors wisely.
through the door. In this case, it's a numbers game. You
may need to hire more advisors and technicians to grow
the business. Assess your current workload and team
capabilities. Conduct market research to identify industry
benchmarks and determine possible gaps to decide
if you need to hire more people to meet demand.
More often than not, you will find that your advisors are
writing too many customers per day and simply don't
have the time to properly advise the customer on their
recommended maintenance needs. If this is the case,
consider hiring more advisors or at minimum a greeter
and focusing on the customer experience and freeing
up more time for your advisor to sell.
At first this feels like an expense until you see the dramatic
increase in hours sold. You will also find that your
technicians are focused on fixing broken and not performing
a quality multi-point inspection that leads to
profitable preventive maintenance services such as fuel
services, coolant and brake fluid exchanges.
Consistent technician training around the multi-point inspection
is without exception the highest ROI activity
you can implement for increased profitability and then
role-play with your advisors on how to present those
recommendations to customers. Be proactive and design
the customer experience from meet and greet to
vehicle delivery and invest in building a skilled team to
perform these functions.
DO YOU HAVE A THOROUGH
ONBOARDING PROCESS?
This is a big one. If you've determined that more staff is
needed to increase the profitability of your dealership, it
is important to have a well thought out onboarding process
that confirms to the new employee that they have
made the right decision to work for your organization.
This will reduce anxiety and maintain excitement in their
new role. Furthermore, you spent the time, effort, and
money to advertise the role and interview candidates
so let's get them started right. Review your onboarding
process to ensure it effectively integrates new team
members as seamlessly as possible. Strike a balance
between efficiency and thorough integration. Tailor the
50
onboarding experience to highlight your dealership's
values, mission, and long-term goals to help align new
members with the organizational culture.
Depending on the role, consider incorporating vendor
training during the onboarding process for a comprehensive
introduction. Get feedback from recent hires to
optimize the onboarding process continually. Doing all
this will help new team members assimilate and set the
foundation for their success within the dealership.
HAVE YOU CHOSEN YOUR
VENDORS WISELY?
A mentor once told me, hire the best people you can
and choose your vendors wisely.
Some vendors drop off boxes and head out the door
while others go beyond product delivery and can help
you with growing the business. Seek partners that offer
training, industry insights, and problem-solving abilities,
while being committed to mutual growth. Gather team
feedback to find the best partnerships that align with
dealership goals and customer satisfaction.
Taking the time to plan for your success creates a blueprint
for everyone on your team to follow. Educate, train,
and define goals which promote both employee growth
and your dealership success. By carefully considering
and optimizing each of these elements, dealership owners
can pave the way for a prosperous and growth-oriented
2024.
Andy Baldassarre leads
the marketing and training
departments for BG
Products, Inc. He has over
25 years of experience in
the automotive industry
with an emphasis on
adult learning in the automotive
workplace.
Fixed Ops Magazine 2024 Vol 21-1

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Fixed Ops Magazine 2024 Vol 21-1
