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By Joe Marconi in Joe's BlogTypically, when productivity suffers, the shop owner or manager directs their attention to the technicians. Are they doing all they can do to maintain high billable hours? Are they as efficient as they can be? Is there time being wasted throughout the technician’s day?
All these reasons factor into production problems, but before we point fingers at the technicians, let’s consider a few other factors.
Are estimates being written properly? Are labor testing and inspections being billed out correctly? Are you charging enough for testing and inspecting, especially for highly specialized electrical, on-board computer issues, and other complex drivability work? Is there a clear workflow process everyone follows that details every step from the write-up to vehicle delivery? Do you track comebacks, and is that affecting production? Is the shop layout not conducive to high production? For example, is it unorganized, where shop tools, technical information, and equipment are not easily accessible to every technician? Are you charging the correct labor rate and allowing for variables such as rust, vehicle age, and the fact that most labor guides are wrong? Also, is there effective communication between the tech and the service advisor to ensure that extra labor time is accounted for and billed to the customer? These are a few of the top reasons for low productivity problems. There are others, but the main point is to look at the entire operation. Productivity is a team effort. Blaming the techs or other staff members does not get to the root cause in most cases.
Maintaining adequate production levels is the responsibility of management to create the processes that will lead to high production while holding everyone accountable.
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By Joe Marconi
As we close out 2022, it's time to reflect on the past year. Review your accomplishments, the state of your business, your personal life, and things that could have gone better. The key thing to remember is that it's better to have a plan and goals instead of trying to fly blind.
Establish your goals for 2023 and beyond. Include family time too, and time for yourself. It's not all about business. Having the right balance will actually make your business more successful.
Speak with your employees too. Find out from them what went wrong, what went right, and what they would like to see in the coming year. While you can't always act on what your employees want, getting their perspective will not only help you create the plan moving forward, it will help to build morale, a win/win for all.
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By Joe Marconi
Back in the 1990s, some shop owner's feared that fuel injection, 100 mile spark plugs, the elimination of the Distributor cap, rotor and extended fluid services would be our demise. But, that didn't happen.
Now I hear many in our industry state that "There is no needed work on an electric vehicle, they are problem free."
My opinion, let's not fall into thinking that the EV car will run forever of even for years without needed service. The EV still has tires, suspension, brakes, and a whole new area of opportunities. It will be different, but there will be a need for the Automotive Technicians and for repair shops.
Your thoughts?
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By Joe Marconi
A recent Auto Leap Survey revealed that 64% of shop owners are looking to retire in the next 10 years. (Link below to survey)
So, I want to take an informal survey of our ASO members:
How long have you been a Shop Owner? When do plan on retiring?
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By Joe Marconi
Do you have a formal onboarding, or employee orientation, process? I know that so many shops these days are looking for employees, and many shops have been short-handed for some time now. But, is it wise to throw people into the mix without a formal onboarding process? Many say that the time it takes to prepare a new hire will pay dividends down the road.
Your thoughts and comments...
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