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Personality clashes can be deadly!

Joe Marconi
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Gonzo Grand Master

Gonzo

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Have you ever had two techs that can't stand each other? This can be serious and spread through your shop like a deadly virus. Other techs naturally will take sides and before you know you could a feud like the Hatfield's and McCoy's.

 

How would handle a situation like this?

 

 

Impact wrenches at 20 paces... all Queensberry rules apply...

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Gonzo Grand Master

Gonzo

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You know, that works with our generation fine, but people today are sensitive and emotional. I tell my people to look past personalities and just get along with your fellow workers. It's a challenge and sometimes I feel I am running a nursery school for kids, instead of a company with adults.

 

Another good point Joe, I hate sound like my parents but.... these kids today. ! ... !! I try to keep things light hearted.. it doesn't always work. Call it emotional call it EGO call it what you want, but you're right in the fact that it's like a couple of kids in a sand box fighting over the same toy.

 

I try to make a point of telling them... when you cross the threshold park your EGO there... picked it up when you go home. Gonzo

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Mark Apprentice

Mark

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Have you ever had two techs that can’t stand each other? This can be serious and spread through your shop like a deadly virus. Other techs naturally will take sides and before you know you could a feud like the Hatfield’s and McCoy’s.

 

How would handle a situation like this?

 

My general rule of thumb and policy is "You don't have to like each other to work together, but you do have to work together"

 

In my experience these situations generally arise from one of two reasons (sometimes both).

Work and Personal

Work : Generally if there is an issue it's either an employee isn't doing their job or someone "thinks" another employee isn't doing their job.

Both are fairly easy to handle if addressed. Shop policy and procedures will eliminate most of these. If you don't have one...make one!

 

Personal: This where it gets sticky. I genuinely want all of my employees to be successful, from the "greenhorn" to the manager so I will spend

a little more time addressing these. And the infamous "sit down" can help but I have taken it a step further because I think it sinks in a little better.

I will sit down with both employee's and mediate the issues (the best you can) and I will write down the issues and how they are going to be addressed

from this point on. I will make a copy for both and have both of them sign them. Something about writing it down and signing it makes it more real.

I will explain that ANY further disruptions will result in serious consequences because after all we have job to do and...

"You don't have to like each other to work together".

This process will weed out the person who genuinely wants their job and as unfortunate as it is you may lose the better of the two.

But at least you know who wants to work and is able to put their differences aside. It's better to have one and it be productive than two and

the whole shop going down with it.

With that being said, all issues need to be addressed as soon as possible. I apply the same policy as I do customer issues...immediately!

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Mark Apprentice

Mark

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You know, that works with our generation fine, but people today are sensitive and emotional. I tell my people to look past personalities and just get along with your fellow workers. It's a challenge and sometimes I feel I am running a nursery school for kids, instead of a company with adults.

By the way my wife laughs everytime I call it "Adult Daycare".

It REALLY feels like it some days...REALLY FEELS LIKE IT!

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  • Have you checked out Joe's Latest Blog?

    • Joe Marconi
      Want to End Your Technician Shortage? Focus on Retention!
      By Joe Marconi in Joe's Blog
         5 comments
      I 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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