One of our senior coaches, Brian Canning, told me that there is no doubt that in writing this we are going to upset many of you. But if we can get you to take a close look at your shop operation, I think a little of your wrath is well worth my effort. I would apologize in advance to those very rare shops that are doing the things they should be. But for many of you, I am truthfully hoping that the truth hurts enough to get you to act and to correct what is going on in your shop, because that will put you in the best possible position to thrive in this challenging market.
Every day, I have the honor and privilege of coaching great shop owners from across the U.S. and Canada. Many of these shops are hugely successful and are among the very best out there. But most are just regular repair facilities with regular owners, regular service managers and regular inefficiencies.
Lead or Get Someone Who Will
Before I get into the several operational issues I need to discuss, I would talk to you about leadership and accountability. The other items I would talk about are little more than process, but they cannot occur until you take on the role of leader or until you pay somebody to take it on for you. Having the best, most effective procedures will mean little if your people are not doing the things they are supposed to be doing. That can only happen if we have leadership and accountability and somebody insisting that our staff do the things we ask and if we are holding our people accountable for the result.
Most of you, certainly most of the shop owners that I talk to, are reluctant and even scared to take on that role. I would say it again: The best people performing the best plan will fail in their efforts unless somebody is leading them to the promised land of accomplishment. They will not go by themselves and if we are not leading, they arrive as a pack, usually far from where we would want them to be. Leadership ensures that our people perform and makes sure they are doing the things we want them to do and that they are doing it as we would have it done.
Too many of you spend your time developing that perfect process and forget about the leadership and accountability part. Excellence never happens by accident, and you have a much better chance of getting there even working a marginal plan than you do if you leave a great plan to happen all on its own. Do yourself a huge favor and lead.
Stop making the assumption that your people are doing and saying the things you think they are as they interact with your existing and your potential customers. We in the automotive repair industry, and just like everyone else in a service industry, we live and die by the relationships we have with our customers and how well we use the telephone. You would be amazed and likely embarrassed by how poorly our customers are being treated and likely angry at how unwelcoming and unfriendly we are on the phone.
I would not have you take my word on this. I would have you pay somebody to mystery-shop your shop or record a week’s worth of phone conversations. There are great options out there now and companies whose whole function in life is to test these customer service waters. My only caution would be to go into it ready to be embarrassed and to be just as prepared to act on whatever issues present themselves. This is a training assessment, not an opportunity to fire everybody and clean house. We are looking to make our existing staff better prepared and more willing to deliver excellence.
Forty Productivity Robbers
Do not be afraid to ask your technicians to improve. Productivity numbers across the U.S. are unacceptably low, but this is much more a leadership issue than a reflection on the quality of our techs. Get to where you can accurately measure individual tech’s productivity, set high expectations, build a process that supports productivity and provide incentives that drive individual and team productivity. If your techs are productive and you are maximizing the selling opportunities that are coming into your shop, you are very likely profitable. That is why we are here, right?
Verify your inspection process. This one is a sore spot with me. We have no chance of exceeding our customers’ expectations unless we are willing to commit ourselves to doing thorough and consistent inspections that include recommendations for maintenance services. But very few of us are doing anything to ensure that this is happening. How often are we looking at the hard copies our techs are generating to verify what they are doing, and how often are we looking to see what items are failing to make it from the inspection sheet to the estimate and the finalized repair order? I will give you the most frequent answer: almost never. More of that unsupervised process and more of that hands off leadership that is sinking our business and our industry. You need to do something very different here and actually lead and make sure you are finding the repairs and services that are there to be found.
Ask for the business. Too often we and our service advisors are looking at what our techs are recommending as though it were our car and our wallet and neglecting to let our customers know what our techs are finding. As long as we can stand on the ethical altar and truthfully say that a repair or service is needed or due or will be needed or due before the next service interval, we need to let our customers know. And let them know not just to make a sale but because we care and are concerned about them and their car.
The Perfect Storm
Many of you have a tough time believing it, but that economy out there is just about as good as it gets for us. Nobody is buying new cars. Our customers are nervous but know that the cars they are holding on to will need to be maintained and repaired. If you are not looking and if you are not recommending, you are right, this is a terrible economy. I think it is the best selling opportunity we have seen in the automotive repair industry in at least twenty years. How are your sales this year?
I would ask you to look at your business operation very critically. I think you will find things that will shock you and things that will explain why you are falling short of what you had expected and falling short of what it will take to retain existing customers and to attract new ones. I would then ask you to commit to something better and lead to that promised land. If, on the other hand, you are satisfied and not willing to take that critical look and not willing to make the necessary changes, well I think you are assuming that everything is okay. We all know about that “assume” word, right?
I would have you look into that mirror. If you would like a list of the “Forty Biggest Productivity Robbers,” send me an e-mail at [email protected] and I would be happy to give you a place to start improving your shop operations.
