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[Podcast] Giving Back: His Calling to Expose the Automotive to High School Students [RR 565]


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Luke Walker started Luke's Auto in Columbus Ohio in November of 2009 after being a technician for 5 years. The rent was $350 a month for a 1 bay shop and he had zero employees. The first-year Luke's Auto did $260,000 in sales. At the end of 2014, Luke's Auto was up to $750,000 in annual revenue with 10 employees. 

Luke realized that he needed business training and since 2014, he has spent around $150,000 in business consultants and training. This business consulting and training brought his ability as a business owner to a new level and helped to secure Luke's Auto as one of the top shops in Columbus.

10 years into the business there are now 16 bays, 24 employees, and $4MM in projected revenue for 2020. Luke's Auto is the top Yelp and Google rated independent shop in all of Columbus and was voted as one of the "Three Best Car Repair Shops" in Columbus. Luke's has also been features in the Columbus Dispatch newspaper.

Key Talking Points:

  • Started with 1 bay shop, now has 16 bays, 24 employees and on track for almost 4 million  Coaching consultants (Cecil Bullard, Ryan Clo, Aaron Stokes) big key with success- profits had flatlined and more problems arose as the business grew and became bigger 
  • Credits his success to the team as well- finding talented people that fit the culture of the business
  • Inner-city skills-based non-profit program- wanted to give back to the community11-19-year-old students-focused on high school students
  • The program was established for 20 years but recently in the last 6 months it had stopped due to lead person retiring because of health reasons
  • After school program- an actual shop that has different stations, once a week for an hour and a half for 6 weeks. Identify and cultivate students that are gifted with working with their hands
  • Time trials- timing how fast they can complete tasks after teaching them, top 3 receive toolsets and invite to advanced program 
  • Helps separate the students that are gifted and interested in the industry sooner, which will help steer them into the right path for their future 
  • Run by Luke and volunteers
  • Hired student from the programStudent shadowed at the shop after excelling with program 
  • Youngest hire at the shop at 16 years old
  • Wants to go mobile with programMost of the stations they’ve created are on a workbench inside the shop, can easily transport on a trailer and bring to a high school
  • Raised 150K so far for program- first donation was from a woman from church that donated 50K, other donations were from NAPA and other dealerships
  • Is making money evil in your mind? “Love of money is the root of evil”
  • What do you want to look back on? Is it making money or making a difference and help people

Resources:

  • Thanks to Luke Walker for his contribution to the aftermarket’s premier podcast.
  • Link to the ‘BOOKS‘ page highlighting all books discussed in the podcast library HERE. Leaders are readers.
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Gold Certification recognizes top tier NAPA AutoCares with a high level of participation in the AutoCare program. The program was built by AutoCare Centers for AutoCare Centers to provide a consistent consumer experience, maximize technology leverage, and reward NAPA’s most committed partners. In other words, Gold Certified AutoCare Centers are the standard bearers for the AutoCare brand nationwide. Simply put, the Gold Certified NAPA AutoCare program, powered by your local shop brand, will separate you from the rest helping you boost your bay counts and your average repair orders.

Learn more about NAPA AutoCare, Gold Certification, and the hundreds of other benefits the NAPA family has to offer. Talk with your servicing NAPA store or visit, www.NAPAAutoCare.com.

Click to go to the Podcast on Remarkable Results Radio

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  • Have you checked out Joe's Latest Blog?

         1 comment
      Have I got your attention? Great.
      Let me start by saying that I believe in giving praise when deserved and letting employees know when they dropped the ball. However, the truth is that no one enjoys being reprimanded or told they messed up.  
      The question is, what is the appropriate balance between the right amount of praise and the right amount of critical feedback? According to studies done by Harvard Business School, the ratio of praise to critical feedback should be about 6:1 – Six praises for every critical feedback. I am not sure if I agree with that.
      From personal experience, I would recommend a lot more praise. The exact ratio doesn’t matter. What’s important is that before you consider giving critical feedback, ensure you have given that employee a lot of recent praise. If not, whatever you are trying to get through to an employee, will fall on deaf ears.
      When you do have to give critical feedback, remember a few things:
      Focus on the issue or behavior; never attack the person, and remain calm in your actions and words Ask the employee for feedback, their side of the story Speak to the employee in private Address the issue soon after it happens; never wait Don’t rely on second-hand information; it’s always better if you have experienced the situation yourself that you want to correct Have an open discussion and find things that both of you can agree upon Have an action plan moving forward that the employee can take ownership of Use the experience as a learning tool Make sure you bring up positive attributes about them Remember, you don’t want the employee to be angry or upset with you; you want them to reflect on the situation and what can be improved. One last thing. Everyone makes mistakes. We need to be mindful of this.
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