As it pertains to Getting, Keeping and Training the right people, I believe it all starts with the ad you place to attract those people.  Where you place the ad is important, but I do not believe that is as important as what the ad says.  For instance, I have witnessed many times where a dealership feels that advertising in the local newspaper for employees doesn’t work.  Change an ads look or contents, and bingo!: they have more applicants than they can handle.

Here are examples of what I am talking about.  Try replacing the tired “TECHNICIANS NEEDED” with “AUTOMOTIVE TECHNICIANS: OUR SERVICE ADVISORS AVERAGE 3.0 HOURS PER R.O..  WHAT DO YOURS AVERAGE?”  Or instead of “SERVICE ADVISORS NEEDED, NO EXPERIENCE NECESARRY” how about “$50,000 A YEAR! THAT IS WHAT WE TRAINED ARE LAST NON-EXPERIENCED SERVICE ADVISOR TO EARN IN THEIR FIRST YEAR!”

Something that I feel is often forgotten, is that an employment ad is an advertisement.  And just like any other ad, you have to first determine what you are looking for, or in this case, who you are looking for then determine what is going to draw that person in and advertise and lead off with that in your ad.  Go to your best employees working in those positions you are trying to fill and ask them what they feel is the best part of working in your dealership and they will give you the answer.

Once your ad is answered it is time go to the next phase of the process, the interview.  Over the years I have been involved in countless interviews.  The most effective I have ever been apart of are those that start out with a brief personal introduction  from the interviewer, followed by a detailed description of what the job is that is being applied for and a list of the job’s requirements.  A lot of time can be saved because of this phase of the interview. 

A perfect example would be a recent Service Advisor interview I participated in.  At our recommendation, the interviewer had prepared a list of what the job entailed and handed a copy of the list to the interviewee and they reviewed it together.  The following is a sample of what was on the list;

• You are required to arrive 15 minutes prior to the beginning of your shift and be prepared to stay 15 minutes past your shift.
• You are to be ready and begin working at the start of your shift.
• You will have minimum job performance standards that must be met.
• Training will be provided on an ongoing basis no matter how long you are employed by the dealership and how proficient you become in your position.  Some training will be provided by us and some you will be required to provide for yourself at your cost.
• We have exact processes that have been developed and continue to be developed that you will be required to adhere to during your employment with us.
• Most days you will be 10 hour days where you will be on your feet on concrete.
• We inspect every vehicle that comes in to our shop at the initial write-up.  This will include inspecting tires, lifting hoods and the like.  You will get dirty.

Again, this is a partial list of what was discussed, but you can see from this list the amount of detail that was given and how bluntly it was presented.  This is key since the more blunt you are and open you are when describing the position, the more likely it is that you will get a person who is truly excited and prepared for what lies ahead.  Being this blunt and open may run off a few good contenders, but you are not looking for good, you are looking for the best!  Too many times I see jobs being presented way to rosy and dreamy.  This will only lead to a bad hire.  Be upfront about what you are looking for and what you expect.

The first day and week for the new hire will set the tone for the entire time they spend in your employ. How professional and prepared you are will tell the new person what they have signed on for.  There are two steps that will help you set the tone.  Step one is to personally greet the new hire and spend at least an hour reviewing what they were hired for and have them sign a contract that clearly states what their responsibilities are and what company policy is.  This contract should cover everything that was discussed during the interview, including what was presented on the “list” with the difference being that exact details and expectations are clearly explained and outlined to the minutest detail. 

The final step is training. Having done many exit interviews after an employee has left a dealership the number one reason people leave can be summed up in this one statement that I have heard countless times; “Jeff, they told me what they wanted me to do and they told what numbers I was expected to get and I wanted to get them, but they never showed me how to get them. I don’t have another six months to waste.  I have a family to feed.”  Lack of training is the number one reason I have been given consistently throughout the years for people leaving dealerships.

The length of training that is to be given will depend on what the person has been hired to do, but I can think of no position in the dealership were at least two to three days of training is not warranted.  Most will need considerably more.

 I think the Getting, Keeping and Training people issue can best be summed up by something a former employer told me once when I was selling furniture.  I had questioned the amount of money they spent on finding and training their new hires. “It cost us $600 in advertising just to get one person to walk through the front door.  Spending $500 to $3,000 on each new hire to get them hired and trained is nothing when you consider each customer could be worth thousands of dollars in sales.  We are not going to loose a customer or an opportunity simply because we are not prepared or have the wrong people.”  Made sense then, makes sense now.

Jeff Cowan is President of Jeff Cowan's PRO TALK®, Inc. a company that specializes in training Service Advisors through their world class workshops, in-house on-the-drive training and through the use of their highly praised DVD training sets.  He may be reached at 800-248-2931 or by email at jeff@jcowansprotalk.com 

Fixed Ops Magazine, June 2006