Joe Marconi

Managing Your Most Important Asset, Your Employees A practical guide for shop owners By Joe Marconi We all know that without customers, your business would not survive. The strength of your customer base insures the success of your business and that success is directly related to the quality of people who work in your company. The only way to insure a great customer base is by building a great team of employees. When Yankee legend Yogi Berra was asked, “What makes a great manager of a baseball team?” Yogi replied, “A great ball club”. His answer may be simplistic in nature, but it speaks volumes. Satisfied customers can never be achieved without happy employees. Perhaps the most difficult part of management is motivating our employees to work toward the common goal of insuring the success of your company. Managers and owners deal with a variety of issues each and every day; from personality differences to generational differences. Workers from the baby boomer generation often have a tough time understanding younger workers which can cause resentment on the part of your older workforce. Speaking for myself, a baby boomer, I understood the unspoken hierarchy that the boss was king. And when the boss spoke, you listened. The boss commanded respect and ruled by the doctrine of, “My way or the highway”. I remember the owner at my first job at a gas station in the Bronx telling me the day I was hired: “You’ll work Monday through Saturday, half days on holidays, pump gas when needed and I’ll start you off at minimum wage”. The owner of that gas station never shut the bays doors unless it rained hard or snowed, never turned on the heat and we had no hot water. No one at that shop complained, we didn’t know any better, we were just happy to be working. Today, we live in a completely different world. I am not here to judge which way was better, only to say that the differences in the generations, gender and cultural must be recognized in order to maintain healthy morale in your workplace. For without a healthy and a cohesive workplace, your business will not thrive. The boss may still be king, but the king needs to earn the respect of the people that work in the company. Priorities and lifestyles have changed too. Past generations viewed their job and their family as their number one priority. Today, people still hold their careers as vital to their survival and future, but also desire a life beyond work. Time off, free time, family and friends are part of their makeup. Motivation becomes the issue. There was a time when just having a job and providing for your family was all the motivation you needed. That may not hold true anymore. People today are more social. They want a balance between work, family and play. So how do we motivate and get our employees to work as a team? How do we express to them the importance that the quality of their work is directly related to the success of the business? Well, the very first way is to tell them. That’s right; let your people know that you appreciate them. Spend time talking with the people in your company. Praise them when they do a good job. I remember when I worked at a Ford dealership in the late 70’s, the only time you would see the boss come out his office was to reprimand someone. You would cringe when you would see him walk toward you; you knew it wasn’t good. Don’t be that boss. Find things to talk about with your people. Become genuinely interested in what interests them. It could be sports, their last vacation, their family, the weather or anything other than work related. This shows your human side and lets people know that you care about them as a person, not just a worker. Get your employees involved in some of the decision making processes. If you are looking to upgrade your tire balancer, hold a meeting and discuss it with your staff. Have them help research the different equipment makers and collectively arrive at a decision. Making your employees feel important enough to help you with a key decision will go a long way in improving morale. That must be you goal. Remember, I can’t say it enough times: Happy employees make happy customers. I must be honest with everyone. I too once followed the doctrine of “My way or the highway”. However, though the years I have learned that you can be more effective when you get the people in your company working and producing because they want to, rather than because you ordered them to. When the people in your company feel the company respects their position and values the work they do, they begin to take ownership and pride in their work. People need to feel that they are making a contribution and that the company they work for recognizes this. Everyone likes to feel important and appreciated. Start today by walking around the shop and talking to your employees. Pat a few people on the back for a job well done. Let your employees see that you are more than just their boss. Trust me; you cannot grow your business by yourself. You need good people around you. Positive employee morale will result in higher productivity, better customer relations and more income to your bottom line. Employees are people first, workers second. Treat them as people and watch your business grow.

I agree with you. When I was at the CARS Convention, I had the chance to speak to New-Car Dealer owners. They are looking at different business models to increase income that is lost with the lack of new car sales. Many are adding more service bays, quick service lanes and collision shops to thier facilities. To think that the dealers are going to accept low car sales as status quo and not react would be a mistake on our part.

I pray this is a true prediction. I think a lot of this is potentially good news, however,we need a huge surplus of new cars to flood the market too. This is vital for the future. The new car dealers that have made thru these tough times will emerge stronger. The will use every tactic in the book to gain market share, OUR market share. Plus with national accounts like Pep Boys increasing their numbers, we need to take a very proactive approach with our business. These are good times for the aftermarket, I still believe that. But, we must not take it for granted. Your thoughts?

My advice is not to come out of the gate too high priced or too low priced. You need to have a balance between being competitive and being profitable. Eventually, after you have been in business for while and track your costs of doing business, you will know what your breakeven is and what you need above breakeven to make a return on investment. With that said, you also need to build a customer base. Sell value, not price. The price is the first thing the customer asks for and should be the last thing you tell them. In other words, don’t tell a customer, “You need a tire rotation”. Instead, tell the customer, “Mr. Customer, your front tires are starting to show wear on the outer edges and to maximize tire life and save you money in the long run, we need to rotate the tires today”. See the difference? I know you asked for help with a matrix, but I want to stress, it’s not all about price. Again, show value in your service. For lower cost items you can charge 60 to 80%, let say under $15.00. So if a part that cost you $3.00, you may be able to get $12.00 list. As the cost price gets higher, let say $50.00, you may want to charge $100.00 for that part. You overall profit should be enough to support your business. If for purchase an engine for $1,500.000, your percentage may only be 15-20%. Shops typically look for anywhere from 45-55% overall on parts. Hope this helps…

I love it!

Let's hope we make a difference this November. Because, the "change" we were promised might just be the change left in our pockets.

Highlights from the NACE/CARS Convention at Las Vegas The convention had more collision industry companies and OE presence than the auto repair sector. The overwhelming majority of people attending were also from the collision side. I did get a chance to speak to many shop owners from all segments of the industry and to many of the companies on the convention floor. The seminars were very worthwhile, both technical and business and overall the Convention was very informative and valuable. Here are some of the highlights: • Key note speaker, Kelly McDonald, spoke about the diversity in not only the work place but our consumers and how we need to change our businesses in order to compete in the future market place. She also touched upon the differences in the generations and how they will differ in the workplace and the challenges we will have with advertising and marketing to the younger generations, which are vastly different from the baby boomers. • There were companies like Elite that presented seminars and business solutions for both collision shops and repairs shops. • Many new car dealer owners I spoke to were at the convention to find out about the collision side of the industry and plan to expand into the collision business and auto repair business. For some, selling cars will no longer be their number one profit center. • May business seminars focused on the customer, the future and the how we need to become customer focused and get the people in our company working toward the common good of the company. • The collision companies dominated the convention from hardware suppliers, to paint, to body structure and glass. Many on-the-floor presentations showed new techniques for collision shops. • The OE manufacture showed their support for not only their dealer franchises, but to the aftermarket collision business. The OE promoted factory approved parts vs. aftermarket parts for collision shops. It appears that the OE, ASA and the collision side of the business are aligning themselves together, from my perspective. • AutoShop Solutions, a company that can help shops with Internet marketing, sales and training. • On the floor, mini technical clinics gave the attendees a brief overview of the complex future we are facing with respect to technology. • Mitchell1 and CARQUEST presented their new features and how they are committed to the aftermarket repair business. • Repair Pal was there with live demonstrations about their online service. There was a lot more, if I remember any other important highlights I will be sure to add them. Working the Elite Booth with Bob Cooper, Karen Cooper, Kirk Gray and Mike Boden was rewarding. It gave me the opportunity to meet many industry leaders and great shop owners from around the country and Canada.

Deliver Consistent Service I think we can all agree that people do not flock to McDonalds because of the delicious, healthy hamburgers, right? But how are franchises like McDonalds successful? Well, one of the reasons is that they deliver consistent service. Notice, I did not say the best service. People are creatures of habit and tend to return to what they are most familiar with. Businesses can create this feeling of familiarity by delivering the same level of customer service by all personnel, same quality repairs and by keeping the process from phone call, to vehicle write-up and car delivery all the same. Obviously we need to strive for outstanding customer service and the very best in terms of repairs, but without a consistent pattern for the customer to latch on to, you may be not be anchoring the customer to your company. Remember, even different people answering the phone with different phone manners and phone skills can cause inconsistency in your customer service. The more consistent your business is in the eyes of the consumer, the more repeat business you will have.

We use Indetifx also and it has saved us countless hours of diag time, it is truly a lifesaver. We also use IATN which is great also. The only plus with Identifix is that they post confirmed fixes and you can ask for one-on-one technical help. Identifix owns IATN too.

Welcome to AutoShopOwner.com! It sounds like you are a "Self Made Man", that's what America is all about. I hope you find ASO informative and has value for you and your business. Looking forward to speaking with you on the forums. Joe Cofounder, ASO

I want to remind everyone that this forum is for the open exchange of ideas and opinions and we need to conduct ourselves as professionals and respect each other as colleagues. We are all passionate about the work we do and that is commendable. However, shop owners may differ how they approach a particular job. We are all business men and must make decisions how we want to run our business. We live a free-enterprise society. We may not agree with someone, but it does not mean they are wrong or right. The thing to remember is that through dialogue we can all learn and benefit through shared knowledge. I greatly appreciate everyone’s input and look forward to continued discussions in a civil and professional manner. Thank you Joe Marconi Cofounder, AutoShopOwner.com

That is a nice positive story! I like the way you are thinking. Put a plan together (on paper) and start working the details. There is never a better time then there is right now...capitalize on your passion and momentum! I was in your position a few years back, I expanded, and I can tell you it was worth it. Don't get me wrong, IT IS A LOT OF WORK, and you will second guess yourself over and over, but if were easy, everyone would be doing it. Keep the fire burning!

Our business too is about 95% retail. The fleet work I have is ok, but many of them are demanding (which is understandable). Contractors are another thing. They want bottom line prices and want it yesterday. By the time a contractor brings in his pickup, it needs a ton of work and it's a hard sell. Any work we get from the local towns has to be approved as part of their budget, so we don't actively seek that work.

So far the event has been ok for the mechanical side, very good for the collision. The Collision vendors are here in full force and there is a lot to see. The seminars are great, from the ones that I took both business and technical. The attendance has been pretty good too. The OE also is also here, and it more dedicated to what they can offer to the collision side. Some of the more well know vendors here are: Elite worldwide Auto Shop Solutions Mitchell 1 Repair Pal Customer Link Jasper Engines and Transmission Identifix Motor Age Body shop Business Ford Chev Chrysler Hunter ...there are a lot more, just can't remember right now Today is the last day, flying home in the morning.

Fantastic information for ASO, I really thank you for sharing this with everyone!

Wow, I need to show this to my wife...or...maybe not....too funny!!

It's 7:30am Las Vegas time, I am checking in. This event is huge! Gonzo I will look for auto body news and I will take pictures too. I wll make notes and give a summary in a few days. Talk to everyone soon...

To answer Gonzo’s question. We don’t do nearly enough reflashes at present time, but we are finding that the number is increasing. We probably do a few per month. We primarily do Toyota’s, GM and Fords. If you run a full service shop and want to compete with the dealer you will need to consider reflashing. We had a suburban the other day with a power seat problem that needed a reflash as the fix. If we did not have the equipment and GM subscription, we would have to send the car back to the dealer. The money is made, however, when you promote reflashes, in other words; checking for vehicles that need updates as a routine service and looking for needed program updates when a car comes in with a driveablity, performance or emissions problem. It’s like anything else, if you invest the time, education and money to equip your shop with the ability for reflash cars and you let the tool sit in your tool box, it will never pay for itself. Hope this helped…

I am flying to Las Vegas Sunday morning and will return on Thurs. As many of you know I will at be the CARS Event with Elite Worldwide. I am working with Bob Cooper and Elite as a business coach and will be workng at the ELite booth, among other things. I will log on from time to time to check in, but keep the forums going for me! Joe Marconi

Do you have any employees now? I think you need to first sit down and begin to write some sort of business plan. It does not have to be a perfect plan, but something that outlines your present position and where you want to go. Take from me, in 1991 after being in business for 11 years I was nearly broke. Why? I built and business around ME and the busier it got, the worse it got for me. Busy is supposed to be a good thing, but when you are doing everything yourself, as you describe, it will only lead to trouble. Your problem cannot be solved easily. It will take time. You need to start hiring people. Find out what a decent pay scale is for your area. Take it slow, but do it. Here’s what I did back in 1991 when I could not work any harder anymore: I outlined on paper all the job titles I held; tech, shop forum, service advisor, bookkeeper, janitor, etc. And, one by one I replaced what I was doing with an employee. I started with a booker keeper, then another tech, then a few more techs, a cleanup crew and finally I hired a few service advisors. I gave myself a 5-year plan to accomplish this. Once I put the plan into motion, my business grew and grew it keeps growing today because I cultivate people around me, good people to help me succeed. I hoped I helped you. I may have given you too much at one time, but you sound like you need the help. Good luck, keep in touch.

Torque Converter Clutch Drop Out, 98 Dodge Pickup 2500 Diesel Yesterday, we had a 98 Dodge pickup 2500 diesel that the torque converter clutch would engage and disengage at 40-45 miles per hour, when warmed up. You could clearly see the converter clutch drop out and engage again on a scanner. The first thing we noticed during our visual inspection was that battery terminals were badly corroded. We cleaned them up, road tested extensivly and all is ok. Hard to believe! Like everyone says, always start with basics.