Implementing a process and holding your service personnel accountable to follow the process is a common practice at most dealerships across North America. The challenge is to keep the process from being so “transaction” driven that you miss reven

Regularly I encounter owners, managers and factory folk wondering how much total service department payout is available, and for how many support people. The reality is that the need for additional support staffing has been constantly building on dea

Ever heard this, “Cause I said so,” an offshoot of the infamous “Do as I say” mantra? Of course, we all have experienced this mini-diatribe usually focused on some type of quasi-instructional act – usually from a parental (or like) unit –

There are a few things in our business that everybody talks about, but no one seems to be able to do anything about them. They are: lost sales and walkarounds. Both are things that we know we should be doing every day in order to be profitable, yet w

Dear Dealer & General Manager: All the economic indicators and the automotive industry analysts are optimistic about the remainder of 2012. I even saw one prediction that said new car sales will flirt with a figure near 14 million units. Used car

Almost every dealership deals with warranty coverage issues of some kind. Whether it is a manufacturer’s warranty, a parts warranty or an aftermarket or extended warranty, all warranties have excluding coverage of certain repairs. Common exclusions

I just attended a meeting with the Minnesota Auto Dealers Association. The dealers were upbeat and enthusiastic after a tremendous month. Profits are up and the biggest concern is whether the good days will last. Similar reports have been reported by

The future of the automotive maintenance and repair business is coming into sharper focus now that the economic challenges of the past three years have begun to diminish. Almost all of the consultants, analysts, columnists, pundits and professional a

So what is training? Why is it necessary? When does it begin? When does it end? Is it true your face can get stuck that way? All these important questions and more will be answered in the following personal soliloquy to training – long past due and