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By Joe Marconi in Joe's Blog5 commentsI recently spoke with a friend of mine who owns a large general repair shop in the Midwest. His father founded the business in 1975. He was telling me that although he’s busy, he’s also very frustrated. When I probed him more about his frustrations, he said that it’s hard to find qualified technicians. My friend employs four technicians and is looking to hire two more. I then asked him, “How long does a technician last working for you.” He looked puzzled and replied, “I never really thought about that, but I can tell that except for one tech, most technicians don’t last working for me longer than a few years.”
Judging from personal experience as a shop owner and from what I know about the auto repair industry, I can tell you that other than a few exceptions, the turnover rate for technicians in our industry is too high. This makes me think, do we have a technician shortage or a retention problem? Have we done the best we can over the decades to provide great pay plans, benefits packages, great work environments, and the right culture to ensure that the techs we have stay with us?
Finding and hiring qualified automotive technicians is not a new phenomenon. This problem has been around for as long as I can remember. While we do need to attract people to our industry and provide the necessary training and mentorship, we also need to focus on retention. Having a revolving door and needing to hire techs every few years or so costs your company money. Big money! And that revolving door may be a sign of an even bigger issue: poor leadership, and poor employee management skills.
Here’s one more thing to consider, for the most part, technicians don’t leave one job to start a new career, they leave one shop as a technician to become a technician at another shop. The reasons why they leave can be debated, but there is one fact that we cannot deny, people don’t quit the company they work for, they usually leave because of the boss or manager they work for.
Put yourselves in the shoes of your employees. Do you have a workplace that communicates, “We appreciate you and want you to stay!”
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By Joe Marconi
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By Joe Marconi
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By carmcapriotto
In this episode of "Diagnosing the Aftermarket," host Matt Fanslow tackles the issue of motivating technicians to attend training. He shares personal experiences and the sacrifices he made to enhance his skills, acknowledging the difficulty of balancing training with work and family life. Matt discusses the intrinsic motivation required for technicians to seek training and the resistance some may have. He stresses the importance of continuous learning in the automotive industry and invites feedback on the topic.
Show Notes
Supporting intrinsically motivated technicians (00:02:18) Challenges of motivating technicians (00:04:23) Exploring potential reasons for technician resistance to training and addressing challenges. (00:05:35) The changing perception of training value over time and the importance of continuous learning. (00:09:09) The impact of training on technician satisfaction, turnover, and shop profitability. (00:10:12) Compensation, travel, and anxiety are factors affecting technician training motivation. (00:14:44) The role of training in career progression and increasing income levels. (00:17:14) Technician's challenges in attending training after work, including family responsibilities and time constraints.
Thanks to our Partner, NAPA Autotech napaautotech.com
Email Matt: [email protected]
Diagnosing the Aftermarket A - Z YouTube Channel HERE
Aftermarket Radio Network: https://aftermarketradionetwork.com/
Click to go to the Podcast on Remarkable Results Radio
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By carmcapriotto
The Weekly Blitz is brought to you by our friends over at Shop Marketing Pros. If you want to take your shop to the next level, you need great marketing. Shop Marketing Pros does top-tier marketing for top-tier shops.
Click here to learn more about Top Tier Marketing by Shop Marketing Pros and schedule a demo:https://shopmarketingpros.com/chris/
Check out their podcast here: https://autorepairmarketing.captivate.fm/
If you would like to join their private facebook group go here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/autorepairmarketingmastermind
In this podcast episode, Coach Chris Cotton from Auto Fix Auto Shop Coaching shares expertise on managing fleet clients for auto repair shops. He underscores the benefits of fleet clients for consistent work but warns against over-reliance, suggesting fleets should be no more than 20% of business. Cotton advises on finding suitable fleet clients through various methods and preparing for meetings with research and tailored service discussions. He emphasizes building trust, understanding client needs, and balancing fleet with retail customers to ensure a stable and growing business.
Finding and Managing Fleet Clients (00:00:07) Discussion on the importance of fleet clients and the need to maintain a balance with retail customers. Guidelines for Fleet Business Percentage (00:01:08) Advice on the percentage of business that should be dedicated to fleets and the potential risks of overreliance on fleet clients. Finding the Right Fleet Clients (00:02:13) Strategies for identifying fleet clients that align with the shop's capabilities and values, and the importance of networking. Negotiating with Fleet Clients (00:04:27) Tips for contract negotiation, avoiding underselling, and the potential issues with servicing used car lots. Marketing and Referrals for Fleet Clients (00:06:29) Discussion on leveraging fleet clients as marketers and the importance of referrals and employee programs. Strategies for Finding Fleet Clients (00:07:39) Insights on using local business research, networking events, referrals, online platforms, direct outreach, and partnerships to find fleet clients. Initial Meetings with Fleet Clients (00:10:55) Steps for preparation, presentation, customized solutions, building trust, listening, follow-up, flexibility, negotiation, and reliability assurance. Billing, Pricing, and Business Model (00:16:21) Advice on billing, pricing, and ensuring the business model fits the shop's needs and financial stability. Summary and Closing (00:18:19) Final thoughts on the importance of strategic decisions, effective management, and continuous learning for success in the auto repair business.
Connect with Chris:
[email protected]
Phone: 940.400.1008
www.autoshopcoaching.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/
AutoFixAutoShopCoachingYoutube: https://bit.ly/3ClX0ae
#autofixautoshopcoaching #autofixbeautofixing #autoshopprofits #autoshopprofit #autoshopprofitsfirst #autoshopleadership #autoshopmanagement #autorepairshopcoaching #autorepairshopconsulting #autorepairshoptraining #autorepairshop #autorepair #serviceadvisor #serviceadvisorefficiency #autorepairshopmarketing #theweeklyblitz #autofix #shopmarketingpros
Click to go to the Podcast on Remarkable Results Radio
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By Gerald Martin
No one loves comebacks. But they are a part of life. They come in all shapes and sizes:
1. Faulty parts. We have more part quality issues than ever before, including (less frequently) OEM parts.
2. Tech error. A tech fails to properly tighten brake caliper frame bolts. A belt is installed with one groove off the edge of a pulley. Some techs rarely make these errors. But mistakes will happen.
3. Warning lights on or new symptoms noted "ever since you worked on it". Always needs to be taken seriously - sometimes issues identified are fall into category 1 or 2. Or further OBD monitors ran since repairs were made and other issues are coming out of the woodwork. And sometimes people will try to pin every new issue on the shop that last worked on the car.
How do we deal with warranty cases?
When tech error is involved, is the employer responsible to pay the tech's time to correct his own mistake? Does it make a difference if there is a pattern of carelessness? If the employer picks up the tab for everything, doesn't this reward the making of mistakes?
It seems reasonable that the tech should not take responsibility for part failures not caused by tech error, doesn't it?
And what about that follow up scan to see why the warning lights are on? Should the tech handle this as a courtesy until determined what area the fault is in? It may be, after all, that he left a vacuum line off the air cleaner box. But it shouldn't take too long to know if the advisor needs to request more testing approval from the client...
And should any of these questions be influenced by whether the shop pays flat rate or hourly?
I know that's a lot of questions. But I hope it starts a conversation, because it's an area we really need to develop an SOP and stick with it.
Gerald
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