Service Article - Taking the First Steps
The following appeared in the January 2003 issue of Dealer World magazine.
 Steve Hudson, always willing and ready to help any of our service clients.
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Hiring well-experienced Service Manager John Henry in January 2000 was a start, but the department still showed little progress in the following months. “We were scratching our heads, really frustrated, but I realized that it didn’t get bad overnight, and it wasn’t going to get good overnight,” Giacchino says. “That’s when FCSD stepped in and offered to help us look at our problem areas.”
The Market Area Team’s approach gave Carman Ford and Carman Lincoln Mercury an objective viewpoint that helped shape future decisions. “Each of our four members became so familiar with how the department conducted its business that even when our dealer operations manager [DOM] was transferred, we were able to fill in until the new DOM got acclimated,” White says.
In studying the department’s activities, the Market Area Team appreciated the potential the staff members showed, but also saw the gaps that were apparent in many of their processes.
“The FCSD team noted how we left the service desk unattended, how loaner cars weren’t always available, and how in general we didn’t involve our staff and, more important, the customers in a variety of vehicle-related decisions,” says Henry.
The department instituted a basic repair process in which service orders fall into three categories: general repair, problem coming back and no-found problem. In each case, Shop Foreman Steve Province and the service advisor who wrote the order are brought in for spot checks. If a problem isn’t found, the customer may be invited to test-drive the vehicle with Province—and sign a sheet—to ensure that all parties are convinced that the concern has at least been addressed.
Customers First The introduction of customer resolution sheets became another way to stay on top of matters. Henry, who is also the department’s customer relations manager, ensures that every employee who has contact with owners is armed with these forms. If a complaint can’t be handled within a single conversation, it is documented and forwarded to Henry, who follows up with the customer within 24 hours. This resolution process unites every service employee—from the shuttle driver to Henry—in a common goal and helps prevent concerns from falling through the cracks.
The department bolstered one particular area—customer transportation—to head off potential complaints. The service shuttle previously ran for only a few hours in the morning and a few more in the afternoon; now it’s motoring all day. Loaner cars are managed more judiciously, with support vehicles coming via agreements with local rental agencies.
 John Henry, service manager and customer relations manager, says Carman Ford and Carman Lincoln Mercury of New Castle have learned to involve staff—and customers—in vehicle-related decisions. |
Tackling customer issues was behind another idea brought forth by the FCSD team: daily shop meetings, featuring a dry-erase “white board” for employees to jot down issues that came up in their day-to-day work. “It was great for bringing a variety of work-related subjects to the surface,” Henry says. “Although we no longer have the board, the shop meetings continue at the beginning of each day. We will never give them up.”
Henry, Province and the service advisors have also been empowered by Giacchino to be proactive in meeting customers’ needs. Each has a virtual checking account, into which $300 in discretionary income is deposited every month. These “goodwill” contributions can be used to cover a repair order, pay for an oil change, or reward longtime customers with a free dinner.
Customers can also defer service payments with the new Carman Ford/ Carman Lincoln Mercury Quality Care credit card, the FCSD-sponsored card that enables dealerships to offer customers same-as-cash, no-interest credit to cover repairs (see Deal Sealer Dealer World, November 2002).
Of all the ideas that the department has introduced, Henry says none has had a greater impact on satisfaction scores than the appointment process. Now, all customers are scheduled for a service visit within 24 hours of their call—and most can be brought in the same day.
A close second may be the technician team system for handling service repairs, instituted in October 2001. “With this kind of lateral support, we not only have better control over the work flow, we also have our technicians working together instead of as 16 individual units,” Henry says.
Proper Support The three-team system has also helped in addressing a situation that once plagued the department: employee turnover. “There used to be a time when every dealership I visited in our market area employed someone who previously worked at Carman,” says FCSD’s White. “In the last two years, the turnover is lower than it’s ever been in the department’s history.”
In fact, it’s pretty well nonexistent: Henry’s most recent hire was two years ago. Along with creating a sense of community and involvement among the staff, Giacchino and Henry recognize the need for offering incentives. Every month, they award a $1,000 bonus based on Fix It Right the First Time scores to the top finisher in each of the department’s technician groups—Light Maintenance and Repair, and the “A” group (technicians who can handle more complex repairs).
The department’s emphasis on training has brought the service team together as well, says Shop Foreman Province, who doubles as training coordinator. “Ford has the best training in the business, and the best support, and we want our people to make use of it,” he says. “It’s quite clear to them that what they can work on in our department is dependent on the type of training they have.”
Besides the obvious by-products that come from ongoing education, technicians and advisors receive compensation for the courses they take; service employees are paid $100 for every CD-ROM or Web-based class they complete. And Province, who is Master certified in Service, and Henry, who is Master certified in Service, Parts and Body Shop, obviously practice what they teach.
Training remains an ongoing pursuit. The department recently completed Ford’s comprehensive On the Lane training for service advisors. “Again, when you do the same thing every day, it’s good to have a fresh pair of eyes to find where things may be going awry,” Province says.
In 2001, Carman Ford became Blue Oval certified, and due to its excellent scores, it will be automatically recertified for the second consecutive year. It’s a just reward for a dealership that has put proper processes in place.
“With Larry’s dedication to getting it right, John’s leadership and our staff’s commitment to customers, there is no reason that we can’t build upon our efforts,” Province says. “I came from a President’s Award winner in Florida, and I recognize the elements to a successful operation. They are definitely here.”
Carman Ford
193 S. Dupont Hwy., New Castle, DE 19720
Phone: 302-323-2300
Fax: 302-328-7001
E-mail: carmanleads@carmanautogroup.com
Web: www.carmanford.com
Carman Lincoln Mercury of New Castle
189 S. Dupont Hwy., New Castle, DE 19720
Phone: 302-324-4440
Fax: 302-324-4411
E-mail: fordsale@delaware.infi.net
Web: www.carmanlincolnmercury.com