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Discover the Hard Truths. Fix Your Attitude. [RR 613]


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Carl Hutchinson has been in the car industry since 1982, but has worked on vehicles long before that time. He has a passion for engineering, for understanding how vehicles operate, and how to repair a customer’s concern. Earlier in his career, Carl started working at a GM Dealership, then went to work at independent repair facilities as a technician and eventually became a service advisor. Carl’s experience in the automotive industry led him to his current position as co- owner with Maureen Hutchinson of Complete Automotive in Springfield MO., where he works every day to provide high quality, valuable service to all customers.

Carl is an Alumni with Ozarks Technical Community College, Springfield MO Campus. He currently sits on the Automotive Advisory Board with Ozark Technical Community College, member of South East Rotary, and a member of the Springfield Midwest Auto Care Alliance chapter.

Carl has his Master ASE Certification, L1 and Service Advisor certification and is an AMI Graduate.

After over 32 years in the automotive business, giving back the knowledge and experience to those of the next generation that are coming into the industry is an honor. It’s exciting to see the culture of the industry change to a more positive, cleaner, technical atmosphere, with an emphasis on great customer service.

Changing the culture of the industry is exciting to move into the next generation of automotive technicians, service advisors, and owners.

Key Talking Points:

  • Founding member of Midwest AutoCare Alliance
  • ASC Master Certification L1, Service Advisor Certification, AMI GraduateLead by example with continuous training 
  • Involved with automotive technology education with local community college80% of board members and influence are from dealerships
  • Independent shop owners MUST get involved- incite for students on real world perspectives on the automotive industry (soft skills required)
  • Attitude changeWasn’t known as the “nice guy” 10 years ago- pessimistic, saw negative in everything 
  • Surround yourself with the right people that will tell you the hard truths- will be hard to hear, when you don’t know what’s wrong you also don’t know how to change. You are the average of the 5 people you are with most. 
  • Carrying baggage- alters how you treat peopleCarl came from a fatherless background. He began to see his negative outlook on that situation weigh on his children. Reconnected with his father and baggage was lifted. Didn't realize how much that situation affected him emotionally until it was addressed.
  • Start by getting small wins- create list and focus on what you can do each day
  • Read “Emotional Intelligence” by Daniel Goleman  instilled the knowledge he needed to address as a person.
  • Starting writing 1 thank you card every week for 1 year- thanked the people around him and acknowledged what was impactful to him. Lifted burden and was pivotal point in life- became grateful for the small things in life
  • Positive change is infectious
  • Started getting involved with community- church and youth groups
  • We are what we tell ourselves we are
  • Business cultureOpen, friendly, family environment- employees want to come to work and be apart of the team 
  • Taking care of internal employees and external customers
  • Identify the attitude and culture of business prior to hiring  
  • Easy to get a bad reputation within industry, takes longer to develop positive reputation 
  • Entrepreneurial operating system- how many jobs do you do?“What is EOS,” “Traction,” and “How to be a great boss” by Gino Wickman
  • Having people obtain ownership in their position- giving your ‘seats’ away, divide and conquer   

Resources:

  • Thanks to Carl Hutchinson 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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  • Have you checked out Joe's Latest Blog?

         3 comments
      Got your attention? Good. The truth is, there is no such thing as the perfect technician pay plan. There are countless ways to create any pay plan. I’ve heard all the claims and opinions, and to be honest, it’s getting a little frustrating. Claims that an hourly paid pay plan cannot motivate. That flat rate is the only way to truly get the most production from your technicians. And then there’s the hybrid performance-based pay plan that many claim is the best.
      At a recent industry event, a shop owner from the Midwest boasted about his flat-rate techs and insisted that this pay plan should be adopted by all shops across the country. When I informed him that in states like New York, you cannot pay flat-rate, he was shocked. “Then how do you motivate your techs” he asked me.
      I remember the day in 1986 when I hired the best technician who ever worked for me in my 41 years as an automotive shop owner. We’ll call him Hal. When Hal reviewed my pay plan for him, and the incentive bonus document, he stared at it for a minute, looked up, and said, “Joe, this looks good, but here’s what I want.” He then wrote on top of the document the weekly salary he wanted. It was a BIG number. He went on to say, “Joe, I need to take home a certain amount of money. I have a home, a wife, two kids, and my Harly Davidson. I will work hard and produce for you. I don’t need an incentive bonus to do my work.” And he did, for the next 30 years, until the day he retired.
      Everyone is entitled to their opinion. So, here’s mine. Money is a motivator, but not the only motivator, and not the best motivator either. We have all heard this scenario, “She quit ABC Auto Center, to get a job at XYZ Auto Repair, and she’s making less money now at XYZ!” We all know that people don’t leave companies, they leave the people they work for or work with.
      With all this said, I do believe that an incentive-based pay plan can work. However, I also believe that a technician must be paid a very good base wage that is commensurate with their ability, experience, and certifications. I also believe that in addition to money, there needs to be a great benefits package. But the icing on the cake in any pay plan is the culture, mission, and vision of the company, which takes strong leadership. And let’s not forget that motivation also comes from praise, recognition, respect, and when technicians know that their work matters.
      Rather than looking for that elusive perfect pay plan, sit down with your technician. Find out what motivates them. What their goals are. Why do they get out of bed in the morning? When you tie their goals with your goals, you will have one powerful pay plan.
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