"Queen of Cars" Auto Jobs & Auto Careers - Ask Answer Comment

SWITCHING THE BATTING ORDER

I recently received this email from Larry Hawkins, Director of Training for the Metro Atlanta Auto Dealers Association. This topic evoked a lot of interest in me…”Switching the Batting Order” as he calls it. It’s sort of like recycling your human resources. Makes great sense and I will share more of my thoughts in terms of how it can actually help boost your Automotive Career! More on these thoughts following Larry’s email…

Larry Hawkins, Director of Training, MAADA

SWITCHING THE BATTING ORDER

Hello Diane

Just got an idea that I want to run past you; do any of your Dealerships have Salespeople that should be selling “SERVICE”?  Or maybe they have Service Advisors who should be selling cars? Rather than lose a good employee who may not be happy or is less effective than they should be in their current position, why not consider salvaging all that time and attention that you have lavished upon them by switching them from their current slot to one that is more suited for them? What I am referring to is quality individual that may be unhappy due to the hours required of them to be successful in sales. Due to family and scheduling conflicts they may be better off with the daily routine offered in a Service Advisor capacity. The compensation is often comparable and you’ve avoided having to go through the entire recruiting, selection, training process, grooming them to fit into your corporate culture and hoping that you have made the right decision! You hired them in their current capacity but they are just not performing as expected or required to keep their job.  As we tell entry level salespeople, the secret to selling more cars is “switch ‘em,” switch them to a different vehicle before you let them leave to go shop somewhere else if the first one selected is too much money!  Same principle applies to personnel. If they are not going to make it but are good people, switch them to another slot before you send them packing.  If you don’t, someone else certainly will recognize their potential and will put them in the right job.  Then, you will be competing against them! Ralph King and James Parker are two examples in my experience that went from sales to service and excelled!  People liked them as salespeople, and loved them as service writers! Every one of you can name service personnel who went on to become outstanding sales people, managers, even dealers!

Please mention our 2 Day Service Advisor Training to your Dealerships. Our training will help them to make the transition Sales to Service smooth. Please give me a call if you have questions or people to register.

Best regards,

Larry Hawkins, Director of Training, MAADA

Here’s my take. I think it’s a no brainer. The catch phrase really makes it. ”Switching the Batting Order”… It paints the word picture. This is an excellent strategy from the Candidates angle as well as the Employers. If you take the time to learn all the facets of the Automotive Industry and make lateral moves throughout your career, you are increasing your skill set and marketability as a Candidate for upper Automotive Management positions, particularly General Manager. Let’s face it an Automotive General Manager must have a good knowledge of Fixed Ops. Either that or they’ll be faking it till they make it which is no fun dealing with the day to day repercussions of your own mistakes. Take the time to invest in yourself. If you’re looking for a promotion and your boss offers you a position which you feel is not a promotion but lateral, I’d think twice. Knowledge is your greatest asset. You can achieve more by giving yourself an edge and taking advantage of the training and resources your Dealership has available. The Automotive Industry is one of the highest paid professions without the requirements of a formal education. Why not try to get to the top? Take advantage of the opportunities. Invest learn and grow. You may be surprised!

Auto Resume Advice

Let's talk resumes! With our recent influx of Auto Job Candidates requesting Auto Career advice I find myself making the same recommendations to Candidates regularly. Therefore, I wanted to share my insights with you in the hopes it will help you find either the perfect automotive job, or the perfect employee. The result is this blog, where we provide an open forum to ASK-ANSWER-COMMENT on the challenges of finding the right Automotive Positions.

Let's face it...with the introduction of the "World Wide Web" the 'human touch' has rapidly diminished from the recruiting process in literally every industry. The Automotive Industry is no exception.

Over the last decade we have seen an onslaught of large publicly held conglomurates or Dealer Groups. As a result we've witnessed more dedicated Human Resource Departments being established. These departments help implement systems which will assist in EEOC Compliance, track applicants and will offer the dealer more accountability throughout the hiring and recruiting processes. These Automotive Recruiters receive hundreds of resumes weekly and utilize high-speed searchable applicant tracking systems such as DealerClassified.com to manage the volume effectively.
Resumes received by the employer are generally stored in a relational database (like the one contained in our auto career website) where the auto dealer or hiring authority can search for Candidates by Title, Keyword, City, State, or even zip code radius. The Employer can actually widen or narrow their search criteria based on their initial search results. Recruiting in the Automotive Industry has gone High Tech! If you're a seasoned automotive professional who would like a competitive edge - you must learn how to market yourself in the "New Millenium"! If you don't you may be left in the dust!

Pre-screening and recruiting is now executed using high speed search engines by using relevant industry specific skills & keywords. Everyday the recruiters here at DealerClassified.com speak to seasoned Automotive Professionals who question the importance of a professional resume. I cannot drive home the importance enough! A professionally prepared resume wmay or may not get you the job , but it could definitely get you the interview... Not having a professionally well written, properly formatted resume with relevant keywords, could cost you the job and eliminate you from the Dealer and/or Employers search completely!

For example, if you are a Finance Manager with AFIP Certification, put AFIP in your resume! If you are a bodyshop/paint tech and you have ICAR certification, put it in there! Service Manager with ATCON Certification? Put it in there! Certified Toyota Sales Pro??? Well you get the idea...
The Dealer Management Sytems (aka DMS, or Computer Operating Systems) ADP, Reynolds, UCS, DCS, and EDS are all relevant keywords for the Retail Automotive Industry. If you are proficient in one, two or all of these  systems than it needs to be contained in your resume. Dealers and Employers like to recruit "turn-key" employees. The less training the Auto Dealer has to provide you the better! In order for an Automotive Employer to notice you... list all of your "Automotive Industry" specific education, whether it is an F&I Training Course, Sales Skills, Dealer Academy or other Auto Industry Specific Training. I have over the years experienced very qualified candidates being denied interviews with large Automotive corporations because they did not have or refused to provide a resume. What about you?Have you ever been denied an interview because you did not have a resume. What did you do? Did you accomodate the prospective employers request or did you tell them you never needed one before and let the opportunity go? If you have a related story or comment feel free to post it here. We value your opinion. Please keep all comments professional