Alex Bruene Posted March 13, 2011 Share Posted March 13, 2011 So, I've recently made the decision to leave the dealership I'm at to persue a career at another dealership. That would make this (new one) dealership number 5. I wonder how long it will take until I've had enough with this one and go get a job as a Walmart greeter? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Browning Posted March 13, 2011 Share Posted March 13, 2011 You are going to have to beat Jim to it!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Warman Posted March 13, 2011 Share Posted March 13, 2011 Alex.... mind if I ask why the change? Better wages? Better training? Prettier service writers? Microwave in the lunch room was cleaner? Inquiring minds want to know. Moreover.... did you give the old managment the opportunity to address the things that made you want to switch? I've been at my current dealer for nine years (a world record for me). Before a lot of years being self employed, I would get tired after about 3 years... but that was back when we didn't have such a tech shortage. Good luck with the new job... but you need to be careful you don't cut off your nose to spite your face... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Browning Posted March 13, 2011 Share Posted March 13, 2011 Interesting questions Jim. Correct me if I am wrong, our industry tends to see high turnover rates in the dealerships. In my store I have always observed money as the number one reason technicians come and go. Second is the inability to get along with managers. Managers either have their heads up their asses or their hands are tied by upper management preventing them from fine-tuning their service departments and making things work. I would love to hear stories about this from as many members as possible. Since I have worked for the same dealer group for my entire career, I have no personal experience in job bouncing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Amacker Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 In my store I have always observed money as the number one reason technicians come and go. Second is the inability to get along with managers. Managers either have their heads up their asses In studies that I have seen in trade rags that I agree with, money was never the #1 thing a tech wanted, it was always about #3-4 on the list. The first is usually job satisfaction achieved from feeling appreciated. Stability and benefits were up there too. I had several guys take pay cuts to come work at my shop years back. If I was interviewing a tech and he said his #1 primary goal was money, I never hired him. (Yes, I paid going wages with a benefits package that couldn't be beat) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Saunoras Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 My hot button is management and poor scheduling. I am in a SMALL dealership (read 2 senior masters and one uncertified hack + serious parts inavaliability). So whatever drivebility/diesel/trans/warranty work that comes in has to go to 1 of 2 guys. It's common for one of us or sometimes both of us to be BURIED midweek with carryovers, so then who's left to handle the rest of the normal schedule? No one, and we all pay. Parts inavailability/over scheduling has me working 45-50hrs a week without proper compensation. Another issue I foresee is if we get another good tech i'll end up back at the bottom. If i have to go back to doing the majority of the bullshit that'll be the end of me. I need experience to be successful in this business and i don't get paid enough to take a finacial hit by moving. The experience of holding a lead tech position has been invaluable. I care too much about my future to go back to doing bullshit work Oh yeah and if management is stupid enough to hire another diesel guy i'll walk in a heartbeat(it almost happened last week) sometimes we only see 1 truck a week, why would a shop need 3 diesel guys? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Browning Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 Well, I don't like to air my dealer's dirty laundry so I will stick to the basics. Our service manager has been out 5+ months fighting medical problems. The "car/retail" foreman just got de-throned for a variety of reasons. I have watched many excellent technicians quit, largely due to this man. From what I have observed is that techs start out pissed at the lack of hours (regardless of the reason) albeit the economy, lack of customers or vindictive dispatching. Then morale goes down causing the very things Bruce listed - a list I can see as being very much the best description I have read. So, my dealer is about to hire a new service manager, not sure if this is permanent or temporary... but a new person with different ideas and approach may be just what we are in need of most. Having what feels like NO leadership at all is worse than lack of appreciation, stability and low pay combined. For the first time in my career I am scared about my job and career. As bad as things are right now, most of the dealers and service facilities in my area are not in much better shape basically leaving few options even if I were to entertain a move. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Saunoras Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 i have a feeling theres a bit of a tech shortage in our area. we haven't had any luck getting someone out here, our sister store is looking for a guy and the last place i interviewed was down 3 guys. not to mention there may be an offer coming my way from a construction company with a large fleet of 6.0/6.4s. I know they don't have anyone to work on their 6.4s because we've been doing them all. they look at us like we're crazy for working on them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Warman Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 Before this job, it had been a long, long time since I'd worked at a dealership. Truth be known, I didn't know what the pay scale was until they moved my toolboxes (yes, the store picked up the tab and I didn't have to lift a finger). Turns out we were the highest paying shop in town at that time.. Stranger yet is the fact that I never did apply for the job - my wife and I had stopped in to order some parts for my own vehicle and the Sm at that time passed by and said "You should come work for me..". To which my wife replied "When can he start..." - and the die was cast. The largest impetus for the move was the available training, documentation and special tools - pretty much in that order. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mbl35 Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 Jim the samething happened to me 12 years ago. I walked into the old wantaugh ford in long island to pick up a belt tensioner for a ford tempo. The service manager saw me standing there at the shop entrance just being nosey and asked me if i wanted a job, when i told him no thanks he kind of nagged me a bit. Problobly was a mistake, they were swamped with work and it was a pretty large shop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmorris Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 5 years ago I left another dealership that I had been at for 10 years. Management was the big issue. The dealership was sold a large family owned network of automotive franchises. The "Small town dealer in the big city" feel was gone after that. After all the management were replaced or had other offers they couldn't find a service manager that could handle the exceptations of upper management and keep us happy at the same time. Along with service advisor issues, all the good one left also. After 2 years of bullshit I recieved a call from a former co-worker who was working for our old boss. I now work for my old boss again at his new dealership, which is well established and has the small town dealer feel that I was missing. I am home once more. How I got to the previous dealership to begin with is a story for another time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex Bruene Posted March 15, 2011 Author Share Posted March 15, 2011 Jim, sorry it took me so long to respond. There are a number of reasons, the main one being a flip-flop of supervisors. As it turns out, we shut the lights on our heavy-duty truck shop last week. We've been housing the world's most disliked assistant service manager down there for the past 9 months, as he was the main reason for last years (failed) union push in our dealership. Rather than package him out, they've decided to take our advisor/supervisor out of the commercial shop, and send him to the car shop and give us the world's most disliked assistant service manager... likely to avoid another union push in 3 months. This man is not only disliked by techs, but also by customers as he is very power-trippy and lies so much (to techs and customers alike) that he doesn't know when he's telling the truth anymore. In fact, most of our fleet customers that have ever had to deal with him at one time or another have threatened to take their business elsewhere if they had to deal with him again. Another reason is wages. I know the talent pool isn't very deep as far as diesel technicians is concerned, and most of us have jobs and are not actively sending out resumes, and the only way to recruit on of us is by making a pretty solid offer. In the past year or so, dealers are getting more and more aggressive around here as far as wages are concerned when it comes to recruiting. I ended up with an hourly wage that is substantially higher than my current wage, along with guaranteed hours, and more vacation. The final reason is management. Our management does not communicate. They keep people on edge and don't let people know what is going on most of the time. Kind of to keep the upper hand, I think. During a recent salary negotiation, I made my boss (also one of the dealer partners) aware of what other dealers are offering to recruit technicians, to which I was told, "technicians like you are pricing yourselves out of the market". Kind of a kick in the balls, no? They have not (yet?) made any effort to get me to stay. That might interfere with March Break plans. I could go on, but I've gotta leave for work. I don't want to get fired. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex Bruene Posted March 15, 2011 Author Share Posted March 15, 2011 Sorry, I didn't address the question about allowing them to change the things that made me switch... I did air my thoughts. Our management "team" has a saying... "We will not be held hostage by our employees". Nuff said. But there are more reasons. No more working Saturdays or evenings, and about 20 minutes to half an hour less of a drive. Huge factors, especially since we had a baby back in September (hence my hiatus from this forum), and I'd really like to spend more time at home... and my wife was about to divorce me as I was out of the house for up to 15 hours a day. So, all those factors on an individual basis wouldn't have made me make the switch, but when you add them all together I think it was the right move. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cbriggs Posted March 17, 2011 Share Posted March 17, 2011 Sounds like a pretty good move! Good for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmorris Posted March 17, 2011 Share Posted March 17, 2011 So when dealership hopping, who do you use as references when applying at the next dealership? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex Bruene Posted March 17, 2011 Author Share Posted March 17, 2011 Nobody's ever asked. People seem to know who I am. I don't know if that's a good thing or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Warman Posted March 18, 2011 Share Posted March 18, 2011 Nobody's ever asked. People seem to know who I am. I don't know if that's a good thing or not. It doesn't matter so much what they are saying about you as long as they spell your name right.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex Bruene Posted March 18, 2011 Author Share Posted March 18, 2011 It's funny you say that. When the presented me with the job offer, they had spelled my name wrong. Twice. Different both times. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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