Tag Archives: management training

Want to have a big day today? Get a checkup.

Posted on May 3, 2012 | 3 Comments

“When our research tracked 20,000 new hires, 46% of them failed within 18 months. But even more surprising than the failure rate, was that when new hires failed, 89% of the time it was for attitudinal reasons and only 11% of the time for a lack of skill. The attitudinal deficits that doomed these failed hires included a lack of coachability, low levels of emotional intelligence, motivation and temperament.”  Mark Murphy, Hiring for Attitude, Forbes

In the car business , it’s all attitude.

This quote struck me like a bolt of lightning this morning.  Didja ever have that happen to you? You go into work or pick up the paper or see or hear something and BAM it’s in your head and everything seems different even if it’s only for a little while.

Anyways, I think I have probably heard “do a checkup from the neck up” at least a million times in my career. It is as pure an attitude adjustment technique today as it was when first uttered. I picture a Roman general saying to his troops just before battle “Hey, get in the war man. Do a checkup from the neck up before we rush over that moat” or something like that.  That’s how old it is.

And just like everything else that’s been around awhile there is a reason it’s still being used today.  Because it works.

Here are 5 ways you can do a little Attitude Adjustment before you start talking to customers today.

  1. Find a reason to smile. And if you don’t have a reason to smile, just start smiling. Even if you are by yourself. It sounds weird, but it works. Smiling produces a physical and mental change in our body and creates a positive energy that will carry you through the day. Don’t believe me? Try frowning and scowling all day. Go ask your significant other to do something for you while scowling at them and see what happens.
  2. Make a quick checklist of 10 things you are grateful for. Then put that checklist on your desk or carry it around in your pocket and look at it a couple of times a day. You could do one now and then another one at the end of the day and compare. In fact, if you post it somewhere other people can read it (hint: customers) you might find yourself making a few more sales.
  3. Make it your mission today to infect someone else with your attitude. Try it. The next customer that comes in don’t say this to yourself “Here comes a mooch, bet they don’t buy squat.” Instead say this to yourself “Hey, that’s great! A customer is here to see me! Fantastic! I can’t wait to tell them about _______” put a big smile on your mug and get to work. The same thing applies in service.
  4. Become solution focused and not problem focused. Hey, Mr./Ms. Salesperson/Service Advisor, every deal is not a deal until it is a deal. Which means even if they need a new car or need new brakes, it can go sideways. You have to stay solution focused until the deal is done. Centered on the solution, not the problem. If you are always thinking about ways of solving problems, you will solve them. If all you think about is “Why did this happen to me” get ready for more unfortunate “happenings.”
  5.  Start using positive language on yourself. Positive words instead of negative words. Don’t say “This sucks” every time something does not go your way. Say this instead. “I’ll find a way” or “I’ll make it happen” and start doing something different. Here is a simple rule you can apply. E + R = O. Event plus Response equals an Outcome. If you are not having enough good Outcomes, you need to change your Response. It starts with positive language and carries over to positive Action.

I should be writing a big closing statement here and itemizing all of the important points. But I won’t.

Want to have a big day today??? Then do those things that lead to Success. Start by Changing your Attitude.

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Posted in DealerPro Training Solutions, Leadership, Leonard Buchholz, Training

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“Missed it by that much”

Posted on January 16, 2012 | Leave a comment

There is an old saying carpenters use. “Measure twice, cut once.”

I recently went to a Dealer to present DealerPro and our Performance Driven Training Program and guess what…I measured once and missed the cut.

I didn’t miss by much. About a 1/16th of and inch or so. When you really think about it, on a small scale, 1/16th is not that much at all. It really does not seem that big a deal.

But miss by 1/16th of an inch when you are calculating something like the square footage of your home and taxes are involved and suddenly you remember things like high school algebra and can quote complex mathematical theories.

The point I am making is everyday we all say things to ourselves like “Oh, it’s ok if I don’t give that Customer a menu because I know that they don’t buy anything” or “I’m not going to worry about that multipoint inspection. They were in just a few months ago” and we give ourselves a pass.

Why?

It’s just a little bit and it won’t make a difference. Right?

I flew 200o miles to present our program to a Dealer that was not prepared to see me because I failed to follow my own process. I got busy with other things and did not “measure twice, cut once.” Can you guess the end result?

It’s never the big disaster that kills a deal. Big disasters almost always start with small decisions that don’t really seem that important when you are making them.

Deciding not to personally call this Dealer and get him on the phone even after we had talked a couple of times, did not seem that big a deal. I mean, everybody reads their email…right? And everybody can read and follow directions…can’t they?

It was only a little shortcut. And it caused a huge miss.

Are your Service Advisors taking those little “shortcuts” because in their minds “it’s just a little thing” and nobody will notice? Are you allowing your Service Team to circumvent, use “choice implementation” or refuse to follow processes that are in place? Are they “missing the cut?”

Take the time NOW to review everything you are doing that is working and  everything that is not working and find out why.

Grandma dropped her car off and did not get a multipoint inspection? Why?

Mr. Jones came in for a recall and was not offered a menu? Why?

Billybob the local twice a month customer came in and was not greeted properly? Why?

Silly Sally the Service Advisor did not complete and walk around on her 10 writeups today? Why?

Ms. Coffeecellphone came in and was completely taken care of and even wrote a letter to the owner about her recent service experience. Why?

It’s not just about what is not being done. It also about what is being done correctly.

Find out what is being done correctly… train, show,coach, review, train, show, coach, review, lather, rinse, repeat daily for maximum results.

Do this enough and missing by just a 1/16th becomes a footnote in your Success Story.

Me, I’m back to measuring twice. I hate missing the cut. Don’t you?

(send me an email with the name of the famous tv show that the title of this blog post came from and I’ll get your Service Advisors signed up for a free e-learning series lbuchholz@dealerprotraining.com)

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Posted in Uncategorized, Fixed Operations, Fixed Operations Training, Training, Don Reed DealerPro Training Solutions, Dealership

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Smothered by the Rut Blanket

Posted on September 5, 2011 | Leave a comment

What would a Professional Service Advisor do?

Professional Service Advisors are prepared for the day ahead of them and don’t get caught in the “why bother because everyday is the same” rut.

Now, why is this so important? I mean, c’mon, isn’t every day just the same?

Open the door, reset the alarm, start the coffee, turn on the computers, check for night drops, check your email,  flip through the stack of carry-overs, etc, etc, etc.

Sounds like the “same ol’, same ol’” to me. No change required.  No need to do anything different.  You can live your life like a sheeple.  Lots of companies need sheeples.

If that is the kind of career and the kind of earnings you want, then go for it.  It is easy to be easy.  You can let your whole life creep along this way, no problem.

What you have to realize is that it is not the daily routine that gets you; it’s the thinking behind the daily routine. If the day before you looks like and feels just like yesterday, then it must be the same.

And that’s when the rut gets you.  Ruts do not grab you suddenly from behind like a mugger on a city street.  It is not a full front assault. Because if getting into a rut was like that, we would all take precautions and avoid it.

No, getting into a rut or “stinkin’ thinkin’” is more like being smothered by a soft layer of blankets, one blanket at a time.  When you get that first blanket, it’s all warm and cozy (just like your daily routine) and  it feels good.  Who wouldn’t feel secure in a snugly little blanket?

Then the next blanket gets piled on and you feel even more warm and cozy,  just like Grandmas house at night in the winter after a cup of hot chocolate.  Doesn’t that sound nice?

And every day another soft blanket gets piled on and before you know it, you are being crushed by a pile of blankets a thousand feet tall.  You can’t breathe, you can’t move, in fact, you can’t even get out from under that pile of blankets. It’s so freaking heavy it squeezes the life out of you like hot cheeze wiz. Gruesomely gooey.

Blankets don’t seem so  warm and cozy now, do they? Ruts are like that.  Softly smothering you while wrapping you up with a false sense of security. And nothing rips through that blanket like a bucket of cold water than the Dealership getting sold, or the manager getting fired.  Where is your blanket now Linus?

Earl Nightingale said “A rut is nothing more than a grave with the ends kicked out.”

We all want our days to have some routine and normalcy.  It is what makes the world go around.  What we don’t  want to do is assume that everyday will be the same as the last one and start assuming that our Professional life and career growth stops merely because we have figured out a way to stay “warm and cozy.”

Professional Service Advisors get prepared for their day and their careers because they know that every Customer is different and it is better to be prepared to Take Action that to have Action Taken.  And they take that into their Professional life as well.  They don’t stand around and wait for the manager to say “Hey, have you completed training this year?”  They are constantly taking the time to become better at their profession and better prepared than their competition.

Here is another way to think about it.  If this does not describe you, then it’s the Advisor standing next to you getting prepared.  Your immediate competition.

Here are 10 ways you can get ready for your day, your career and your Professional life.  Get out of your rut.

  1. Read more. Read anything that contributes to your abilities, your skill sets and education. You own those 3 free and clear. Making them better pays dividends to you 10 times what you put into it.
  2. Practice your skill sets frequently. Role play, write a new greeting, new script, anything that will stimulate your mind and get you thinking about how you can do something better or different for your Customer. This will lead to a sense of satisfaction and just as important, more income.
  3. Start a focus group in your workplace with other Advisors. You don’t need permission from anyone, JUST DO IT! Believe it or not, there are other Advisors in your store that have issues just like you. Waiting for someone to help is not going to get it done. Pick a subject that needs attention in your Service Drive, get the other Advisors together and get started on taking care of it.
  4. Mentor someone at work. Teaching them the right way to do things will keep you on the right track, stimulate new thinking and may, just maybe, lead you to a new way of doing business.
  5. Join a Professional Organization or Association. This will let you connect with others in the car biz while allowing  you to gain knowledge and skills. Google it.
  6. Join Toastmasters. If you are a true Service Professional and have not taken advantage of learning how to speak on your feet (for nearly nothing by the way) how Professional can you be?
  7. Take a class. Writing, Speaking, Computer etc… Get new knowledge!
  8. Teach a class at work. Teaching and Mentoring is the new “old school.” Skills and knowledge are being lost in the workplace faster than can be replaced. Someone has to lead the way, why not you?
  9. Write down what you have to do the next day before you leave that day, go through all of your carry-overs, go through all of your appointments and make notes so you are prepared to talk to your Customer, check with Parts and make sure the VOR Parts got ordered (can you see where this is going?) etc.
  10. GET HUNGRY! GET PASSIONATE! People love doing business with people who are HUNGRY and PASSIONATE about what they do. ( I use Caps to show you how PASSIONATE I am about the Service Business) There is absolutely no better experience than dealing with a Professional who wants to do a better job because they are HUNGRY and PASSIONATE about their Profession.

Preparing for the day ahead is not just about the very next day. It’s about being ready for every day, about changing your life and getting out of it what you want.

Professionals get prepared.

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Posted in Dealership, Leadership

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Comfort Zone vs Accountability

Posted on July 28, 2011 | Leave a comment

As a Dealer, did last year bring you the return on investment that
you expected?

As a General Manager did you meet or exceed your net profit
projections for the year?

If you are a Fixed Operations Director did you increase your customer pay retail sales for parts and labor over last year?

For all three of you, is your Service Absorption rising year over
year? If any of your answers were “NO”, then you must ask yourself…why?

To begin with, your financial statements will show you where the opportunities for improvement (conditions) are but what they won’t show you is how to fix them. To fix them you have to know what’s causing the out of line condition.

Once the cause is determined you can then make the corrections
necessary to properly bring the condition in line with industry guides. For those of you who have ever written a repair order you probably recognized this as the “Three C’s”, Condition-Cause-Correction.

The Technician needs the Condition to properly diagnose the Cause which then enables him to make the necessary Correction. It’s no different for the Dealer, the General Manager or the Fixed Operations director when it comes to making money.

So, now that you have studied your financials carefully to determine the conditions that prevented you from attaining your respective financial goals, let’s determine what the cause might have been. I believe the culprits here are Comfort Zones and Accountability.

Everyone in your dealership has a comfort zone just as you do. The issue is not to get rid of them but to simply move them again and again until you achieve the results you’re looking for and then move them again!

This is important because it enables you to focus on the performance
of your employees. Next, you must hold them accountable for their individual performance.

Currently, most of you are doing that in the New Car, Used Car and F&I departments, which of course is where you devote much of your time and energy anyway, but you fail to do so in the Service and Parts departments.

Allow me to give you some examples to clarify what I’m talking about:

  1. If I am a Salesperson and I sold an average of 5
    units per month last year, what are you going to do with me? Answer: Train me how to sell 10 units or more per
    month or replace me with someone who can.
  2. If I am a Service Advisor and I sold an average
    of 1.5 hours per customer pay repair order last year, what are you going to do with me? Answer: I have a job for life!
  3. If I am a Sales Manager and my Sales Team averages 5 units per month and my gross per retail unit is at $700, what are
    you going to do with me? Answer: Train me how to average 10 units per Salesperson and gross $1500 PRU or replace me with
    someone who can.
  4. If I am a Service Manager and my Service Team averages 1.5 HPRO and my Technicians’ productivity is at 80%, what are you
    going to do with me? Answer: Leave me alone because the other dealers in your 20 Group are about the same!
  5. If I am your General Sales Manager and my Sales Team
    averages 5 units per salesperson, $700 gross PRU, $200 F&I gross PRU and loose $600 per wholesale unit, what are you going to do with me? Answer: I wouldn’t have lasted 6 months let alone a
    year!
  6. 6.    If I am a Fixed Operations Director and my Parts and Service Team averages 34% in retail parts gross, 62% in labor gross, averages 1.5 HPRO, shop productivity of 80% with a declining repair order count, what are you going to do with me? Answer: Thank you for being back there because I sure as heck don’t want to fool with that stuff!

 

Are you starting to see my point?

Most Dealers and General Managers will hold their Sales Team accountable
for their performance on a daily, weekly and monthly basis and make any
adjustments (moving their comfort zones) on an as needed basis NOW!

Meanwhile their Parts and Service Team remain in their comfort zones to continue to dwell in the land of “underachievers”.
Why does this happen?

My belief is that most Dealers and GM’s are outside their comfort zone in the “back end” of their dealership since their roots are in the “front end.” What can a dealer do to enable him or her to leave their comfort zone and cross over the demarcation line to the back end of their business?

  • Measure the performance of the people you intend to
    manage.
  • Your people must know that you are measuring their
    performance.
  • Their performance will be compared to industry
    benchmarks.
  • They must understand that they will be held
    accountable for achieving or exceeding those benchmarks.

Simply say what you mean but more importantly mean what you say. Again, most dealers don’t hesitate to do this in their Sales and F&I departments. Start  making it happen in Fixed Operations.

Now I want you to rid yourself of the usual whiny excuses that I here from dealers when I’m speaking to 20 Groups, Dealer Associations, Dealer groups or individual Dealers. It doesn’t matter whether it’s north, south, east, west or rural versus metropolitan. I hear this all across the U.S.,
Canada and theUnited Kingdom:

“Don, you don’t understand,
my market is depressed.”

“Don, you don’t understand,
my Service Manager has been with me for a
long time.”

“Don, you don’t understand, I
can’t find an Advisor that’s any better.”

“Don, I don’t want to run off
my customers by up selling”

Well folks, here is what I do understand.

A depressed market has nothing to do with accountability for performance.

Time on the job does not dictate a good performance on the job.

If you can’t find better people, look harder because they are out there. If you or any of your people are afraid of “running off customers from up selling” then you need to get out of the retail business of selling parts and service. (By the way, the
aftermarket already has 70% of your customers’ maintenance)

Don’t you think it’s time to get out of your comfort zone and make the return on your investment that you deserve? Please, drag your Fixed Operations Team out of their comfort zones and start holding them accountable! Once they stop kicking and screaming they will all make more money, they will be happier and your customers will realize you have the best dealership in town.

“The entrepreneur always searches for change, responds to it, and exploits it as an opportunity.”    -Peter F. Drucker

Don Reed

CEO

DealerPro Training Solutions

“Pro Solutions-Pro Results”

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Posted in Fixed Operations, Guest Poster, Don Reed DealerPro Training Solutions, Dealership

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Do or Do Not

Posted on July 27, 2011 | Leave a comment

Thomas Huxley wrote ”Do what you should do, when you should do it, whether you feel like it or not.”

Manager or Advisor…getting things done requires self discipline.

For Managers this is following through on the Daily Seven. That means every day you need to check on certain things in order to achieve certain results.

For the Advisors this is the 12 Step Service Drive Process. Doing this process every time with every Customer will guarantee consistent results.

The Daily Seven and the 12 Step Service Drive Process are two things that need to get done “whether you feel like it or not.”

Don’t have the 12 Step or the Daily Seven? Send an email to lbuchholz@dealerprotraining.com with the words “Thomas Huxley” in the subject line and I’ll send you a copy of the 12 Step and Daily Seven.

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Posted in Dealership

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Rules for Managers

Posted on July 21, 2011 | Leave a comment

Over the years I have made plenty of mistakes. Rather than keep track of the mistakes, I just made  a list of the things I learned.

If you are an aspiring Manager, print this and keep it handy. You might find a helpful thought in there to use and make a difference.

Here is the list as it stands now. I have made changes as I learned something new. Hope you can use it to do something different or make a change.

Rules for Managers

1. You get all of the blame.

2. You get none of the credit.

3. You are always talking about the future.

4. Your job is to make your boss look good and remind him/her of their
excellent choice in making you a manager.

5. Make it difficult for your people to fail, as long as they stay in the
game.

6. Encourage action.

7. Become what I refer to as “Obnoxiously Optimistic.”

8. Always complain up the chain.

9. Always praise down the chain.

10. Learn all you can and pass it down.

11. Prepare everyone to take over your job.

12. Ask your Customers what they think. They will tell you the truth.

13. Ask your people what they think. They will tell you the truth if they
trust you, and if they don’t, then you know where to start building your new team.

14. Become judicious in your decisions.

15. Become a MBWA practitioner. If you don’t know what MBWA is, find out. Google it.

16. Practice principles you believe in. If you are not sure what your
principles are, start by deciding what you value. Then you can find your
principles.

17. Don’t be afraid to say “I made a mistake.” Everybody already
knows you did.

18. Lavish praise when needed.

19. Find reasons to celebrate. Then announce a celebration.

20. Take an employee to lunch for no reason at all.

21. Practice integrity. It makes things easier.

22. Be an employee advocate when needed. Sometimes you have to speak for
them when they cannot.

23. Challenge old ideas and ask your employees to do the same.

24. Question information from your sources from time to time. You might be
surprised at what they are not telling you.

25. Become curious about everything. Keep asking questions.

26. After asking lots of questions, shut up. Listen.

27. Ask the hard questions no one else is. Like “What are your
expectations” and “What is the reason we are doing ______?” and
“When can I expect ______ to be done?”

28. Use silence as a tool. Sometimes it is just a matter of waiting and
listening.

29. Practice brevity when counseling.

30. Become loquacious when singing the praises of your employee(s) or team
(s).

31. Become improvement driven by seeking small victories. They add up to
large accomplishments.

32. Ask forgiveness rather than permission from time to time. It shows
character, judgment and belief in yourself. Just be prepared to demonstrate the
effectiveness of what you did.

33. Celebrate the diversity in your workplace. It’s what made us great to
begin with.

34. Never let the Customer see how you run your circus. They don’t need to
know.

35. Recognize that Leadership and Management are two different things.

36. Have compassion. Sometimes, you are all the person in front of you has
and they are looking to you for answers.

37. Don’t do workers work. Let them do it. Show them, teach them, coach them
and then, let them.

38. Be conscious of your language. Your employees see and hear everything.

39. Practice consistency in everything you do.

40. Be willing to jump in and lend a hand when needed, just not all of the
time. See #37.

41. Be the first to say Yes to new ideas and new projects.

42. Become resilient.

43. Take care of yourself physically.

44. Have a personal Mission Statement. If you have one, you can ask all of
your employees to have one as well.

45. Make sure everyone knows the company Mission Statement.

46. Counsel with your employees more than once a year.

47. Use Goals to inspire, not punish.

48. Be gracious.

49. Practice Courtesy with everyone. They will remember you for it.

50. Say “Thank You” every chance you get.

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The one word every Advisor needs to hear…

Posted on July 15, 2011 | 1 Comment

There is one word every Service Advisor needs to hear.

This word is the key to their future…whether they become a top-notch superstar a middle of the road average Joe or a washout…they need this word.

It defines greatness as well as highlights deficiencies.

The word is…No.

Since our company trains in Dealerships all over the country, we are exposed to every possible Service Advisor imaginable.

From the greenpea who is day one in a new job to the old dog who knows every customer who has come in for the past 5 years!

And in the Seattle area there is a Service Advisor named Chad who became a believer in the word No!

Chad was new to the Service Advisor business at that time. He did not come from an automotive background, unless you count driving a car, and he had no  special skills. And he does not come to work wearing a cape nor does he possess the ability to see through concrete.

When we first started training in Chad’s store and introduced Professional  Selling Skills, Chad was skeptical just like everybody else.

After being trained on the 12 Step Process and ASR Presentation Skills he went back to work in the service drive. At first, he did some of the 12 Step Write-up processes some of the time and followed the ASR Presentation process sometimes… and just like everybody else, he got what you might expect…some results.

But Chad was a little different.

He understood the value in presenting all of the recommended repairs and maintenance to the customers but didn’t always follow through. Like many other Advisors, he didn’t want to seem “pushy” or “sell them something they didn’t need.”

And he didn’t like the word No.

What changed for Chad is referred to as a paradigm shift. His view of “what it means to be a Service Advisor” became radically different when he realized that his customers were having repairs done someplace else even though he had made the recommendations.

And other customers were coming in with the maintenances on their vehicle up to date because it was being completed by other shops…his competition! He realized he was getting all of the “leftovers” and the “warranty work.”

This is commonly referred to as “someone is eating your lunch.” It means  someone else gets to enjoy the fruits of your work without having to do anything for it.

He asked himself “Why are my customers leaving my Service Department  without having the work their vehicle needs completed right here at my Dealership?”

And then it hit him…it was because he NEVER ASKED! And more importantly, he realized he was afraid to ask!

He made up his mind that his customers were going to be serviced at his Dealership! He started believing that the recommendations he was making were helpful to the customer in maintaining their vehicle and actually saved them money!

And he became a fan of the word No.

He started presenting recommended services…and repair recommendations …and started reminding his customers that “just change my oil” was not really maintaining the vehicle and in the beginning he heard a No a lot. In fact, if you ask him, he will tell you that he almost gave up!

But he had decided that in order to be successful as an Advisor he needed to learn how to sell. And so, he heard even more No’s.

And in his mind he decided that every No was a good thing because that led the next YES!

And because he stuck with it…more and more No’s came his way… and still Chad kept going… and going… until finally one day…he started getting YES.

And soon the amount of YES’es doubled the N0′s.

Can you guess what happened to Chad’s HPRO?

Yep…it doubled… in fact…he became the number one Service Advisor in his store. Can you guess what happened to his income?

Yep…it nearly doubled as well.

Chad is still happily employed at that same Dealership…can you guess how his CSI is? Yep…it’s better too!

All of us like to deal with a Trained Professional…someone who can guide us and help us make the right decision based on our needs and wants. Know what else is true?

We will gladly pay for it…and in some cases pay even more. It’s because we all like to be taken care of.

Want to be succesful as a Service Advisor?

Be like Chad.

Get more No’s!

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Posted in Dealership, Fixed Operations Training, Leadership, Service Advisor Training, Uncategorized

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Hater or Creator?

Posted on June 16, 2011 | Leave a comment

It has been said that “the world is divided into haters and
creators.”

Creators are people who believe in themselves and their ability to find solutions and act on them to Create whatever it is they desire in every aspect of their lives.

The first step to becoming a Creator is embracing the role of being a Creator because you will soon find yourself besieged by Haters.

So, how do we become Creators?

Creators are people who decide which direction they are going and then they take the first step.

This is where the wheat is separated from the chaff. Creators
are different than Haters because they are ”first steppers.” They use this first step as an act of ….Faith.

Faith in themselves and the tools they possess.  (read Attitude, Skills, Knowledge) This Faith comes from the belief that the actions they take will result in a desirable outcome of ther own choosing.

Creators then mold and pull and add and push and turn and
twist to keep moving forward no matter the circumstances.

A Creator in the act of creating rarely questions the material given to him or her.

No doubt, they seek the best material, but in the end, they still accomplish what they set out to do with what they have.

Creators are people who others want to follow. It’s a natural instinct all people have. When someone is in the act of Creating and there is Leadership, Pride and  a Sense of Accomplishment, everyone wants to be close to the person who is responsible.

Who wouldn’t?

Haters.

Haters question everything and everybody. They have little
belief in themselves and thereby want to control an outcome by proxy.

They know that if anything anyone is trying to accomplish turns out bad, they can stand on one side, and point their finger while saying “I told you so, I told you so.”

Haters would rather tell you and everyone in earshot why
it is dangerous to do anything new, when they tried something new something bad happened to them, how many times they had something bad happen to them, how many times they have seen others have something bad happen to them, etc…

They use this to create a feeling of control over themselves and others while never realizing that they gave up control when they decided to stand and watch
instead of Create and Take Action.

Haters are out to prove themselves right and everybody else
is wrong. They spend more time deciding how the world should run if they were
in charge and yet take no charge of their own world. Life is what happens to them.

There is not one spark of Creation anywhere.

So, at the end of it all, will you be remembered as a
Hater or a Creator?

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Disgruntled Service Personnel Need A Take

Posted on April 13, 2011 | Leave a comment

Ever find yourself with “disgruntled” Service Personnel and wondered ”How did it get this bad?” You know people are getting “fed up” when you have top personnel (like a Superstar Service Advisor) give notice from seemingly out of nowhere or Customer complaints suddenly increase overnight or accidents start happening.

These are all signs that something is amiss.

You need to have a “Take.”

Take a Moment and begin by opening the door of two-way communications immediately. Many times we get caught up in the day-to-day of running the shop and forget that we (humans) thrive on being Listened to. Taking a Moment to Listen to Personnel and ask what is on their mind is often all that is needed to get things back on track.

In fact, when you Take that Moment, don’t forget to throw in a “Thank You” as well. Your staff might be overdue for one.

Take a Stand for what you know is Right for your Personnel and your Dealership. If you need to change a policy, get something fixed or get the Owner involved, then do it!

 Taking a Stand means that you decide what Action Steps are needed (after getting appropriate input) and not swaying from your position. 

Take a Direction and then Broadcast it to everyone in your shop. I once read somewhere (in the USMC I think) that it is better to get everyone moving in one direction even if that is the wrong direction than to have everyone standing around wondering what was going to happen next.

At least if your Personnel are actively going in one direction, you can make an adjustment. If they are just “waiting for something to happen” then all of the monsters and alligators in the swamp get to them and kill any forward momentum and feed their heads full of crap, if you get my meaning.

Take all of the Blame for everything that is going wrong. It’s yours anyways, might as well own up to it.

If your Service Advisors are not producing, your fault. If the Customers are not coming in, your fault. If the Profit Margins are out of line, your fault.

Which means, if you are taking all of the Blame, you had better make sure you are putting forth maximum effort to get it turned around and going in the Direction you want it to. Then, when you Take the Blame, you know that you did everything you were supposed to do.

Lastly, Take None of the Credit. If you are doing your job, then that means everyone else is doing theirs. You can bask in the glory of knowing that you got them going in the right direction, but pulling the oar has always been theirs. Tell them how well they pulled, Thank them for pulling and remind them they have more to pull and you will be right there with them.

Have a Take.

Looking for more? Need Leadership, Profit and Accountability? Check out the website at www.dealerprotraining.com or call 888-553-0100.

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Posted in Communications, Fixed Operations, Leadership

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Today is number 56. There are 309 days left in this year.

Posted on February 25, 2011 | Leave a comment

It’s the end of February. Are you happy with the results you achieved this month? Is your year on track to be better than last year? Are you concerned or content? Lets review 3 possible answers and see which one fits you.

For you the month of February in the Service Department was Great! You hit the Goals you set for HPRO, EFL and Profit Margins! Your CSI has never been better! Overall, you could not have done any more. Congrats!  And, March looks like it is going to take off as well! Your overall strategy is to keep that ball rollin’ baby!

Ok, maybe your February was not as good. Maybe you got close to your Goals, HPRO was near the bar you set, and EFL was just a few dollars under what you felt you needed to get to and maybe your Margins were just under standards. Basically, you are not overly concerned, you felt you got everything you could and March is just around the corner and hey, you couldn’t possibly have two so so months in a row, right? It’s got to get better, doesn’t it?

Perhaps you are the Dealer with the worst month ever. Your HPRO is barely above the minimum you need to keep the doors open, your EFL and Profit Margins are just north of “this really sucks”, and your CSI is about as good as the last Customer who said “I wouldn’t come back here if this was the last place on earth.”

3 completely different results requiring 3 completely different Action Plans.

If you are Dealer number 1, your biggest challenge is finding a new set of Goals that are just out of reach for your Team to go after. Maybe you want to focus in HPRO and set a .2 increase as a new benchmark. Or, you want to increase CSI and are doing it by installing a new process to complete a write-up in the service drive. Whatever it is, you will need to make it harder to reach. “Maintaining Success is more  difficult than achieving Success.”

If you are Dealer number 3, it’s all upside for you! Hey, you know you already need a change, Right! Personnel, attitude, training, processes…everything! It’s got to be changed because you cannot hit Profitability Goals and achieve the level of Success with what you have in place right now! Congratulations, this is an exciting and fantastic time to be in your Dealership!

But, if you are number 2, you are in a lot of trouble my friend. Why? Because I left one little “C” word out in the very beginning.

Complacency.

It’s the evil that all Leaders fear more than anything. When you become complacent, you start to die!

If your Management and Leadership strategy sounds like this “Oh, it was just a slow month, and the weather was terrible, and we had some people sick, and the Customers…oh man…the Customers were just mean, nobody wanted to buy anything. They just wanted oil changes. Yep, next month will be better. Don’t worry, because we are not changing anything! All we need to do is just hang on until things get better” then I want you to immediately take out a sheet of paper and write down 3 NEW GOALS for March.

Whatever your HPRO was for February, add .5 to it, whatever your EFL was for February, add $5.00 to it, whatever your Profit Margins for February add 5%.

YOU NEED A JOLT! AN ELECTRIC SHOCK STRAIGHT TO THE HEART OF YOUR DEALERSHIP!

As soon as you have them written down, make a copy for everyone in the Fixed Operations Department, hold a meeting, TODAY!, pass them out and tell them “Failure is not an option!”

Because if you don’t, at the end of March, you will be saying ““Oh, it was just a slow month, and the weather was terrible, and we had some people sick, and the Customers…oh man…the Customers were just mean, nobody wanted to buy anything. They just wanted oil changes. Yep, next month will be better. Don’t worry, because we are not changing anything! All we need to do is just hang on until things get better” and you will be on the road to an entire year of wasted opportunity!

By the way, just to let you know, we are experts here at DealerPro in delivering the shock to jump-start your Dealerships Fixed Operations.

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Posted in Fixed Operations, Training, Don Reed DealerPro Training Solutions, Leadership, Dealership

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