New P&S director needs suggestions

[jagman]

I recently got promoted. I have been a parts
manager for 8 years with good success. My new endeavor has many challenges.
Shop is mostly low skilled technicians.
Some tech's just have the "I don't get paid for that" The factory does not pay etc. We have high warranty costs in most every category. Our CSI is not bad but not consistent. We have some good guys though just not enough. Motivation and caring is not there.I don't want to lose tech's. I don't want to be held hostage either.
I am sure someone reading this has been there. I want to do what's right for the company,the manufacturer, and of course the employees. We also suffer from repeat repair itus. We do have a shop foreman who is new to his position as well.

[Old Irish]

Hoo-boy. Where to begin? A couple questions.

Is this a flat rate shop? How many techs? What kind of cars? (From your tagline I'm assuming Jaguar)

Is your new shop foreman highly skilled? Any leadership ability? Is he a true foreman or a technician/foreman? You see where I am headed here: if he's a good man, lean on him to help whip things into shape----but he'll need some horsepower to do so. Give it to him.


High warranty expense: almost always due to changing parts rather than diagnosing the problem. Be prepared to cough up a few hours here and there on the "shop ticket" to cover some of their time so they'll be more likely to do a PROPER diag. A few hours on the shop ticket is cheaper than an audit, believe me.
And NO extra time unless it is proven that all resources have been utilized properly (bulletin searches, shop manuals, tech assist lines, etc).

Is training up to date ? Is tech pay where it should be? Benefits?

"Held hostage" ?? Ha, we've all been there I think....I know I have.

Motivation? Its very hard to get everyone equally motivated but establish some standard operating procedures so that differences in personal motivation won't hurt so much.

Your job is to set up structures and procedures that will allow the right things to happen. You can't do it alone. Do you have strong advisors? They can help.

What stumbling blocks are in your way? What are your goals? Have you met with the entire crew to ensure that THEY know where things are headed and what you want to accomplish?

How strong is the support from the dealer principal ?

Sorry for rambling.....and I'm asking waaaaay more questions than I am answering. I've just been thinking out loud but maybe even that will hep you a little.

You can find lots of help here but we really need to narrow things down a bit and break them up into individual topics so we can get into details. I think we've all been in your shoes before, haven't we ???

Post back !!

Cheers
DD

[This message has been edited by Old Irish (edited 09-23-2005).]

[jazdale]

You might like this thread from April
http://www.dealersedge.com/forums/noncg ... 00739.html

[jagman]

We are a flat rate workshop with 13 technicians. Our shop foreman is high skilled and a true foreman. I believe he does have leadership qualites that will develop. Training as required by the factory is at 90% completion for most of the tech's. We may have a pay issue perhaps with our lower/newer tech's, they can increase their pay with certifications and years of service with the company.
We have three writers,two of them I feel require more direction and guideance.
My stumbling blocks. Having to be a self starter in this position,learning the service side of our dms. Micromanagement,something I have not had to do for the most part in parts dept.
What do I want to accomplish?
Consistent good CSI. Warranty costs that are inline to the national average.Fix cars in a timley manner right, better that we are now.Closing repair orders in timely manner,it seems we always have more open repair orders than vehicles in our shop. I get a myriad of reasons and excuses which for the life of me makes no sense.I feel there is a across the board problem that is difficult for me to get my arms around. I have been able to have meetings at least every two weeks to discuss issues and where we are at. I want to have a weekly meeting to improve communication.Support from upper management? Well,it depends on alot of things which will be even more long winded.
Yes,your thinking out loud did make me think a little bit and I appreciate that. As far as the second post from the April thread. Thanks for that(LOL) It's a big step. I don't want to look back and say I could have made a difference. I have been in parts for twenty years and like to think I can contribute to make things better.

[pjpeery]

jagman

just 1 question who is responsible for fixing the car right the first time?

and they must be held responsible

if this question is answered and your efforts are diredted in this direction most of your questions wil fall into place

paul

[Old Irish]

Right. Accountability. You are buying labor for them; you have a right to some bang for your buck.

A few ideas (not magic wands, though) that helped us:

Repair quality: Develop a chart of "minimum standards" for the techs. Work with them for a couple months to get everyone on the same page then start bearing down where needed. This can be helpful in reducing old fashion workmanship errors. I can send you a sample.

CSI: Ninety percent of this comes from the serice desk. They'll try to blame everything on the techs---don't let them. Make sure a good chunk of their pay is CSI based. Not on the overall departmental score but on their indvidual score....and not related to "fix it right". Good customer handling skills can make up for a dozen sins. They need minimum standards, too. I call it the "Ten Commandments for Advisors". I can send you a sample...its all back-to-basics stuff.

More later

Good luck

DD

[pjpeery]

old irish

i knew someone would lay csi at the feet of the advisor

does the advisor control the shop? does the advisor control the parts dept ?

is the advisor authorized to make shop policy?

can the advisor write off charges on a repair order?

if as a saleman you have a bad product no matter how you present it to the customer you will have a hard time selling it ..

i know that the advisor can set the tone for the service visit and must keep updated on the repair of the vehicle .. and keep the owner advised thru out the day but at the end of the day if no parts or not repaied correctly .. csi falls on it's face

sorry i don't buy that the advisor is responsible for 90% of csi

the advisor is important but he needs help

paul

[jagman]

Hi Old irish.
I think alot starts at the write up with customer. Good,bad,or indifferent. Clear and consise write up of a complaint and follow through can make a bad situation salvageable when things don't go right.
I would like your "back to basics" and tech's minimum standards e-mailed to me. Thanks for everyone's input! My e-mail is wmarston@sbcglobal.net.
I'll keep you all informed of my progress as time goes on.

[Old Irish]

Paul, with respect, "fiddlesticks"

I used to feel the same way until I started really looking at the scores. Too many times were the "fix it right" scores below averge YET the overall CSI (or even top box) was quite good. Too many times did customers indicate the reason for a second visit was "parts not in stock" but STILL gave the dealership and the advisor a good store. Too often have we been able to increase our scores by making no other change other than having the advisor simply *ask* that the survey be returned with a favorbale score.

Sorry, I have to maintain that the quality of the relationship between the advisor and the customer is the primary driving force behind "CSI".

Of course that isn't carved in granite as a 100% assurance. Nothing is that certain or foolproof. But, look at it this way: have you ever been to a restaurant where the food wasn't all that spectacular and your fork was dirty....but you still gave the waitress a very good tip because she did *her* job so well? I'll bet you have....I'll bet we all have. The same theory applies.

Note, too, that when it comes to actual CSI pay, I hold advisors accountable only for their own score in they areas they specifically have control over and not the overall score from that customer. Seems fair to me.

Of course, some things vary from shop to shop. Our advisors DO have authority to make policy decisions (that is, "write off" charges). They DO have control over the shop (to a fair degree) by their relationship with their group leader in the shop. Being an advisor carries a lot of responsibility....they need some horsepower to go along with it. No question about that.

However, just like a waitress who has to compensate for an overdone steak or a dirty glass, part of the advisors job is to see to it that the customer is happy even when other employees fall down on the job. Not always easy, but it can be done....at least most of the time.

When certain basic "must do" habits are developed I can all but promise an increase in scores. I've seen it work too many times to deny it. When I monitor the advisors to make sure the "10 commandments" are followed, the scores go up. When I stop monitoring and allow slack, the scores go down. What other conclusion can a person draw ?

If you don't think the advisor is the key player in CSI scores then....who is ?

Just my 2-cents

Cheers
DD

[This message has been edited by Old Irish (edited 09-28-2005).]

[This message has been edited by Old Irish (edited 09-28-2005).]

[Gerry Laughlin]

Old Irish,
I have decided that since Jagman was brave enough to try the Parts and Service Director thing I would try it too. I was wondering if you might be kind enough to email me a copy of the "minimum standards" and "10 Commandments" you offered to him. My email is gerry@donet.com. Thank you in advance.
Gerry