Joe Marconi

Thank you for your post. This should hit home with every shop owner. It's not always about money, as we think too often. It's about the workplace and having an effective leader. 

People want to have a purpose, be respected, and feel that their hard work and contributions are recognized by management. 

Let's hope, and work hard, that we continue to understand the business from the employee's view and also work to become better leaders. 

1 hour ago, DUFRESNES said:

My flat rate technicians make 35-38 per flagged hour.  We also have a bonus plan ( which I see may be wrong)  Everybody in the shop gets the bonus if met.  It is up to $500.00 with 250 on their check and 250 goes into their 401k.  There is a dealer offering $55 flag hour but they also do warranty work at a lower rate.  My question to them is what is their labor rate, what is the average hour after warranty work and how does it work for them if they need to leave early 3 times a week for kids.

You bring up great points! 

And to your point, that's why I believe shop owners need to sit down with each employee and review their ENTIRE pay package. A shop paying $35 per hour, plus all the benefits, retirement plan, etc., may add up to another flat-rate paying $40 per hour that has little to no benefits. 

One of the things that came out of COVID was the expansion of virtual training. Before I sold my business we started a monthly virtual training session. We held it in the middle of the day from one hour to an hour and a half. There is so much available to us these days, like CTI Training, World Pac, NAPA, and a lot more.

There are pros and cons to virtual training, but with the amount of information that is needed today, I feel virtual has a place in today's repair shops.

Thoughts and comments? 

The traditional vacation season is almost here. It's also when many repair shops are the busiest.

How do you balance employee vacation time with the need to have a full staff during the busiest time? 

The life of a shop owner is often filled with a never-ending list of tasks and responsibilities. This can lead to burnout if we are not careful.

What do you do, or should do, in order to have the right balance between business and life? 

Larry, this is a well-done video. And a great tip for everyone!  I didn't know that a TV station would do this. Video is a great way to promote a business.

Was the video available to you to use on your website, or social media, etc.? 

39 minutes ago, WillieB said:

I'm speechless. I need to research ADAS more! 

HA!  This is the power of Auto Shop Owner. We all share and exchange ideas, opinions, and knowledge. Everyone has something to contribute.

I respect your honesty!  

Keep posting! 

2 hours ago, WillieB said:

It will be interesting to see what happens when these systems wear out in ten years. If a faulty ADAS will stop your car from driving it becomes as important as a transmission. But if it's just an add on people might live without it. I've heard of some ADAS needing calibrated with every alignment, is that accurate?

ADAS will be incorporated within the safety systems in every car. I don't know where we are headed,  but right now on many cars, you have to recalibrate ADAS for bumper cover replacements, rearview mirrors, alignments, and a lot more. Technically, wherever ADAS has sensors, you need to check to see if an ADAS recalibrate needs to be done if the sensors were affected by a particular repair. 

So, I don't think it's the same if your cruise control fails or your CD player fails, and you opted not to repair it. 

20 minutes ago, DUFRESNES said:

Today we got a google 1 star review.  As owner, I answer all Google reviews.  We have 386.  This person said this place (our shop) doesn't even know how to change oil in a Prius.  I looked him up.  He hasn't been in since 2009 with a Subaru never his Prius.  How to stop Bad reviews that aren't ours?    I wrote this on the review, plus we have on file 130 Toyota Prius.

 

This has happened to nearly everyone and has happened to me. Contact Google ASAP. If that person was truly not in your shop, Google knows. And always reply, as you did, in a professional manner. 

People understand, don't go nuts about this.  Start asking some of your great customers to post good reviews, and get that pushed down the list. And contact Google.

Good luck! And relax! I have been there too. 

43 minutes ago, DUFRESNES said:

I have been in Auto Repair Business going on 54 years.  There are always ups and downs with employees.  Right now I have 4 technicians, 2 are hourly with commission  (B Techs)  and 1 fully certified in everything and the other one is a diag technician very good with no certs.  All employees have been here 5 years or more.  I am interested in what are you paying per labor hour.  They are asking for 45-60.  We now pay 35 for the diag tech (with no certs) and 38 for the ASE cert Tech.  I feel this is a good wage, but they feel that the Service writer makes a lot more due to labor rate changes.  We did a million and half last year in our small location.

That is a tough question to answer without being too general in nature. However, here's my opinion.  I am in New York, and it's not uncommon for top techs to ask for 40 to 50 an hour.

BUT, the bigger question is how to pay that salary. A lot goes into it: Production, the type of work you sell, your labor rate, are you charging more for labor with jobs that don't include parts; such as complicated computer-related problems?

I am going to state a disclaimer before I continue: THE FOLLOWING IS GENERIC IN NATURE, AND YOU MUST DO YOUR OWN MATH TO DETERMINE YOUR LABOR RATE.

Now with that said, to pay a tech $45.00 your labor rate for that tech (at 100% productive) needs to be around $180.00 per hour. 

17 hours ago, vbtoytech said:

I am concerned about the liability when a car comes in for calibration.  We are using a printed paper target at the dealership.  Would like to have something like the Bosch setup, but they will never buy it.

The liability issue is a big one. Training and the right equipment are key. 

16 hours ago, Transmission Repair said:

Depending on how many hours a tech is flagging, $40/hr. can be tough with the rampant inflation.  My question would be, "why didn't the shop offer to at least match the dealership?"  It may well be there's more to the story than just pay.  How about working conditions?

I should have asked that question, and wanted to.  And, I agree. Most of the time, the heart is gone long before the toolbox is.  Shop owners need to become more engaging, sit down with their employees, find out what's important to them, are there any issues, and do all they can to retain the people they have now. 

Yesterday, I spoke to a fellow shop owner, who wants to remain anonymous, but wants to share this story.  In the past few months, he lost two top techs to a local dealership. This shop owner runs a EURO shop, and these two techs are highly trained and well-known for their expertise. 

The dealer was willing to pay them each $10.00 more per hour than they were earning, around $40.00 per hour. 

NOW, there are many factors with why employees leave, and it's not only for money. HOWEVER, we need to be very careful and stay engaged with our employees now more than ever.

It's hard enough finding good people these days, we don't want to lose the ones we have! 

Thoughts? Comments?  

ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) is the buzz these days, and many shop owners are uncertain about investing in this technology. 

There is a lot to consider: The space required, the liability concern, the cost, the training, and will this technology change dramatically in the next few years.

Are you considering investing in an ADAS system?  If you have an ADAS system, can you share the pros and cons? 

I am honored to announce that I will be the keynote speaker at the Ratchet + Wrench Conference in September 2022. If you are planning to go to the conference, please reach out to me. It would be great to get together.  Below is more information on the conference. 

Joe Marconi 

Doctors do it, dentists do it, hairdressers do it, nail salons do it, oil burner service companies do it, veterinarians do it, Chiropractors do it, and chimney cleaning companies do it...Why is it that so many shops don't book the next appointment for their customer? 

The biggest argument I hear is that the customer does not know if they will be available on the future date set in the calendar. Well, no one can be sure that the date set 6 months from today is good. 

Here's my opinion. Every customer in your shop today will need another future service. And those customers in your shop today are right in front of you when they pay today's bill. Why not book their next appointment?  If they can't make that future date, rebook it. 

Let me hear from you. Pros, cons, excuses, etc. 

On 5/3/2022 at 5:07 PM, bantar said:

I walked to the front counter to help a customer as my manager was out running an errand.    Shortly after stepping up, a new customer, David, maybe in his late 20's, a transplant from Georgia, came up to the counter and asked my receptionist for her name, Ericka.  He then asked if he could say a prayer for her.    She said, "Definitely!".   He prayed over her and our shop.   It was a touching moment.   They continued talking and I continued helping the lady I was talking to, Cynthia, who had in tow, her 2 yr old daughter.

I was explaining to Cynthia about her repairs and was giving her a few options.  She was upset that she had just spent about $1000 on a long delayed cooling problem in March.   Then, she's back for engine problems due to exceeding her 100K maintenance.   This invoice was about $2000.   She was frustrated with her car and said that she was going to take it to the dealer to trade it in.    The recommended repair was going to fix this problem for sure.   I was trying to provide confidence for her to make the best decision. 

While we were wrapping up, our friend David stepped up and said that Jesus was calling on him to pay for her repair bill!   She was astounded and started crying.  At first she did not believe him and I too questioned whether this was prudent.  I gave him an opportunity to back off, but he insisted.   He took no credit for his deed and proclaimed that Jesus loves her and need for her to be helped.     Shortly thereafter, Ericka and Cynthia were hugging and crying in the parking lot.

I was more touched by his original action, praying for Ericka.    I'm happy for the 2nd action, but now, I'm worried about his ability to really afford his own action.  I would hate for this to hurt him. I really think that he will be feeling the pinch of his very kind gesture.  

Sadly, after his service was complete, his own car would not start as it needed a new battery, which we did not stock.   So, we got him started and pointed him in the direction of a parts store with the battery in stock.

 

EDIT:  Wait, he was also here a few weeks back, when another customer offered to pay for a half of one of my employees prosthetic leg, that was due for refit.    And I remember seeing him before this even.

Wow, what a story. It's hard to imagine these days, any acts of kindness. Any update on this story? 

19 hours ago, Mike DelaCruz said:

Following!  Great topic, Joe!  

Thanks, Mike, great to see you on Auto Shop Owner!  Hope all is well my friend! 

When was the last time you sat down, one-on-one, with your employees?  Let me clarify one thing, I was never a proponent of the traditional yearly review. For me, I would make time to sit down with my employees every few months. We would discuss their goals, how they view the company and how they view me as their leader and boss.  I would also try to talk to everyone each week, very informal, and not about business. 

For me, this strategy helped with employee engagement and morale.  

What's your process for employee reviews? 

Are other shop owners seeing an increase in customer financing?  Are more and more customers in debt, or not adjusting their income to the increasing costs around them?  

This is a great conversation, and very relevant to today's economy.  There are pockets of the country that are not affected by inflation and other areas that are deeply affected. 

The key here is to be open to new ideas and programs that can help our customers, while still looking out for their best interests overall. And also, never forgetting the value we bring. We all know that there are times when spending money on a particular repair or service will save money in the long run, but may get push back from the customer. 

Too often when shops do offer to finance, it's a last-ditch attempt. And all too often, the customer gets declined. 

Another factor is that we don't want customers to go into more debt. This may lead to the customer not returning while paying off the bill. 

Again, this is a great conversation. Looking forward to different points of view. 

19 hours ago, Beep said:

I just joined as a sponsoring member to inquire the same. We're suddenly in a different world today after decades of low inflation. Things became way more expensive overnight. Even those of us with good financial discipline are finding it harder to cover unexpected expenses. 

What kind of interest/demand are shops seeing from customers for financing, installment loans, etc? If you offer financing, what have you liked/disliked about the process and experience?

Our profile is not setup yet, but in short, my company Beep offers "Buy Now, Pay Later" (BNPL) Point-of-Sale financing. Kind of like what has become very popular for e-commerce but we focus on brick-and-mortar businesses. 
 

First, welcome to Auto Shop Owner!  Looking forward to your contributions and helping shop owners. 

2 hours ago, JimO said:

I can’t agree more that networking is beneficial. I have a great relationship with a shop 15 minutes from my location. We help each other with odd things like receipt paper, dispenser filters and car seat covers. More importantly we discuss business and the problems we are both facing and how we are addressing them. As Joe said, It’s great to know that your neighbor is struggling with the same challenges that you have. I only wish I had a better relationship with other shops that are near me. 

Agree, there are so many things you can share and learn from networking! 

19 hours ago, Theta said:

I have been trying to decide between Shop Boss and Tekmetric.

Anyone have insight on either? 

From what I have learned from speaking to shop owners, they are both very good products. The only thing I know about Shop Boss is that it's a little easier to learn and operate and targeted to smaller shops?

18 hours ago, bantar said:

I recently saw a sign at a KFC that read:  "Now Hiring People Who Show Up for Work!"    We hired a new employee to start yesterday.   Didn't show up, called and he said I'll be there in 20 minutes.  Never showed.   Never answered the phone again, nor responded to text messages.    I can respect "Hey, I changed my mind", but no communications??

Our criteria is "a servant's heart" along with either experience or aptitude to be trained.    Sometimes, our criteria is a combination of aptitude and the mirror test with the intention to keep looking for our real criteria. 

I hear your story all too often, and it greatly bothers me about today's workforce. It comes down to a matter of respect too.

The key point is your last point, "Keep looking for our real criteria."