Joe Marconi

Mr. Benline, how dare you irritate me! And that remark about the Yankees is way out of line too! Only kidding my friend. You make great points, sadly, I agree with you. How's that? I think that as the DIY market becomes spread out over all the stores that carter to the DIY market, it will only water down profits for those businesses. Great to hear from you Keith...and don't become a stranger....I will find you, remember, I'm from the Bronx.

That is a great question. I can answer that by saying, "who stepped in when I was making all the decisions?" It's not that I want him to fail or make mistakes, but sometimes it's better to mentor and coach from the bench, then running onto the field when the there is an issue. Makes sense? Put the right people in the right position, train those people and continuously monitor and measure their performance.

Very Funny!

Wow, what a question. And, great post! This entails so many aspects of business. As with Frank (Xrac), I too started a business from scratch. This was 34 years ago. The first ten years were a blur as I tried to do everything myself. I did have two mechanics, but most of the work was done by me, or I thought so. What happened eventually is that I failed. You cannot be everywhere and be everyone in your company. So, I learned that in order to grow the business I had to step away from the bays, step away from the service counter, find and hire the right people, build the systems and then manage those systems through a process of check and balances. Once I understood this formula, the business grew and it continues to grow. I am not saying it is easy. In fact, being in business can be a financial roller coaster. As Frank (Xrac) stated, and I agree 100%, we all need guidance in areas of business management. Finding the location is key, but more important is finding the right people and understanding that you are the shop owner, and the more you understand business, the better. Oh, one last thing. When it comes to marketing and branding. Don't be a cookie cutter repair shop. Dare to be different and establish your brand identity. We may all do the same thing (repairs and service), but who we are and why we are in business cannot be copied. I hope this helps.

My manager has. It's not that he is not a good tech. It's more that he moves like a snail and is real moody. We have not counted him out yet, but as I mentioned in the original post, he is not the person I thought he was. And not the person his reputation states he is.

Identifix founder Bill Sauer is retiring after 52 years. The auto industry owes a lot to Bill Sauer. He has a great history and has made a wealth of contributions to our industry. I know I can speak for all of by saying we are better off because of his contributions, especially Identifix Below is an article about Bill Sauer. http://www.aftermarketnews.com/Item/130149/identifix_founder_bill_sauer_retires_after_52_years.aspx

One of the toughest things to do as a business owner is to step away and let the people you have put in charge make key decisions and take control of your business. Business becomes part of your life, maybe not your entire life, but a big part of it. You still value family and friends, but for shop owners, business becomes an integral part of one’s life. As a shop owner, your thoughts are never far from family and from your business. This is not the first time I have spoken about how hard it is to let go, and it will not be the last. I have put people in levels of management and built systems to take care of the tasks that should not be done by me anymore. But, in order to have real control and to keep moving the business in the right direction, we need to ignore certain things, and trust not only the people we employee, but the systems that we have put into place. The other day I walked into the shop at 11:50am and saw two techs having lunch, while the other techs were working. Normally lunch is a 12noon. I was annoyed and visibly showing it. My manager made the decision to have these two techs take an early lunch since their ordered lunch had arrived early. I made no comment, just walked away. While I may not be in agreement with his decision, it is his decision. I must not and cannot undermine, prejudge and take away his authority by stepping in and forcing my opinion on this matter. As business owners, we need to build the systems, polices, and the procedures that will allow our businesses to run and grow with or without us. We need to put into place a system of checks and balances to insure success. Most of all, we need to hire the right people, assign them to the right position, train them, mentor them and then leave them alone and let them do their job.

Source: Effective Leadership Sometimes Means Ignoring Certain Things

Yes, but I did not call his employer, for the obvious reasons. To be honest, I have been giving it a lot of thought since my post. He is involved with a women who has a child. He may be feeling the pressure of the relationship and/or has other issues that I am not aware of. We will see how it plays out. I cannot put the puzzle pieces together, not yet anyway.

Just keep in mind that stepping away and not being involved in the day to day operations is a process, a journey. Create a task list of everything that will need to be done on a weekly, monthly, quarterly, etc., basis. Assign people to perform the tasks that you will no longer be doing. And don't expect this to happen over night. Take small steps, reinforce, recognize the accomplishments of others and move on to the next step.

Stepping away from the daily operations is the right thing. Early in my career as a business owner (34 years ago), I thought the world revolved around me. That was wrong. To build a business, and build it right, you need systems, procedures, a system of checks and balances and most of all - great people around you. Once I realized that I needed to work on the business and not work in it, my world changed. And the business grew. But, there is a transition period. Everyone, from customers to employees to vendors, all day long would ask, "Where's Joe, let me speak to Joe". But eventually, with the right people employed, that scenario went from "Where Joe", to "Say hello to Joe when you see him". The key thing is to have the entire business on paper, each step and each procedure. Then make sure you set up a system of monitoring and measuring everything. And lastly, set you goals and constantly work on those goals and review them often. Oh, and don't forget that a leader is a leader when the people around do things not because they are told to, but because they want to. Going "cold turkey" and becoming an offsite owner is a bold move. Do you go in at all? And how often? Do you have meetings with your people? Good luck and keep in touch.

I few months back, I was on the hunt for an A level tech. One of the tool reps informed me that a great tech at another shop is not happy where he is. He went on to tell me that this guys runs the shop and can do anything! He wasn't happy because of all the hours and that the pay did not math what he was doing. So I gave him a call and set up an interview. The moment I met this tech I thought he was amazing: well spoken, clean cut, great credentials and had the energy of Tiger. He told during the interview that he did three T belts today. I hired him. Turns out this guy is the COMPLETE opposite of what I thought. He is slow, no ambition, moody, unfriendly and not the great tech he claimed to be. So, I named him Brad Pitt. Why? What an actor, he fooled me. And I ask you, Ever Hire Brad Pitt?

You know, people who are not in our business don't have a clue what we go through. Nor can they understand the absurdity of some people. Great story. By the way, you are doing a great job at keeping the crazies by you....keep it up!

Great news! Congratulations and best of luck. Remember, we are here for you on ASO!

Simply amazing. No excuses!

Thank you! You know, I draw back on all my experiences. I could probably fill a library with all the stories.

Last week I posted a link to an article about Pep Boys and their plans to close 63 stores. Today it was announced that Mike Odell, Pep Boys President, is resigning. I know many are wondering what is happening behind closed doors. Here's the link: http://www.ratchetandwrench.com/RatchetWrench/September-2014/Pep-Boys-President-and-CEO-Resigns/?utm_source=KnowledgeMarketing&utm_medium=RW%20-%20Newsletter%20Emails&utm_term=RW%20-%20RW%20Insider&utm_content=RW_TheRWInsider_20140926&utm_campaign=Pep%20Boys%20President%20and%20CEO%20Resigns&eid=211700044&bid=935374

Now that's funny!

As I write this post, Derek Jeter just hit a double and drove in Brett Gardner to score. It's the end of an era. Derek Jeter is one of the Yankee's all time greats. As someone who grew up in the Bronx, not far from Yankee Stadium, it's a special night.

RepairPal released the results of the second Car Care Survey, which surveyed over 2,500 consumers to learn their views on getting their cars serviced and repaired. Surveys are subjective in nature and I am not endorsing the survey or RepairPal. I just thought it would interesting to review and would like to share thoughts and comments. We are living in s new age of marketing and advertising. We are seeing an evolution take place before our eyes. Take a look at the survey, here is the link. http://repairpal.com/shop_hub/2nd_Annual_Survey_Landing

This was the customer's auto insurance company, not extended warranty. But, for the most part, they are all the same. Sadly, you have to sometimes play their game, but I really do not want to go down that road. I stood strong and explained the labor charges, and in the end, they paid the bill less the deductible. The customer was happy, and that means a lot. Maybe we should all stay strong?

Thank you. I write a monthly column for Ratchet + Wrench. Glad you liked it.

Gonzo, making a TV commercial is not bad idea. We all know that as an industry, we struggle with image. Perhaps a company like CARQUEST Advance, now that Advance has an interest in gaining the commercial trade, might consider it. Advance could position itself an ally to the professional shop, and distance itself from AutoZone. It would take a company such as Advance to move away from caring about Wall Street and a focus on Main Street...where our shops reside. Interesting, I am going to bring the up at the next TECH NET meeting. Stay tuned on this!

The Atlanta Business Chronicle is reporting that Atlanta-based The Home Depot is seeing success with its pilot program for the automotive Do-It-Yourself (DIY) market. The company currently is running the pilot program in about 50 stores. Home Depot originally launched the pilot program in 10 stores in 2006. The home improvement retailer has dedicated about 500-square-feet of floor space to auto products, including motor oil and fuel additives. It is hard to imagine how Home Depot sees opportunity in the DIY market. I was under the assumption that companies such as Advance and AutoZone are working to form a strong alliance with the commercial trade. What does Home Depot know that others do not? Here is a link to an article and source. http://www.aftermarketnews.com/Item/130070/home_depot_likes_what_it_sees_in_automotive_diy_retail.aspx

Gonzo, this has been my objection to this form of marketing for years. AutoZone features the "Price", not the "Product". It's the Wall Mart strategy- advertising low price to the masses. Bring them in and sell them something. But, where is the Value???? What we do is different, we don't sell price, we sell value. And there is a difference. AutoZone, Advance and other discounters need to realize what we are all about. We have spent too many years not charging what we need to. And to try to compete with parts that the public perceives as the same, based only on price, will only damage the repair and service industry more.