By Jordan Arseneault
Toronto, Ontario — October 2, 2018 — In late September, repairers from across Canada came together in Vancouver for the latest Canadian Collision Industry Forum.
With an array of presentations covering every aspect of the collision industry today, even the most controversial topics were up for debate—especially during the two-part panel discussion on accreditation and certification programs.
Panelists discussed the question of whether they believed accreditation and certification to be important and, if so, what the appropriate costs for becoming involved in such programs should be. Presenter Tony Mammone, zone director operations, CARSTAR Canada, felt the frank and fearless discussion was something the industry would benefit from having more often.
“My perspective on it is simple. I ask ‘what is the cost of us not investing, versus the other way around?’” said Mammone. “The costs [of not investing] are putting other people at risk with their lives, the safety of the occupants and the crash worthlessness of vehicles. We must make these investments because it’s the right thing to do for our customer, but it’s also the right thing to do for our business.”
The second portion of the accreditation and certification panel revolved around the insurer perspective.
“The insurance industry is undergoing seismic changes driven by a multitude of macroeconomic influences,” said Rocco Neglia of the AIA. “These include technology driven consumer behaviors, investments into digital platforms, automation of commodity lines of business, artificial intelligence and the struggle for profitability in personal auto. Accreditation and certification influence efficiency and cost effective repairs.”
The position of women in the industry was also highlighted during another panel discussion that included Teresa Jachnycky, Collision Repair columnist and director of Gateway Autobody. The panelists shared stories of their experiences in the industry and provided insight into how they achieved success in collision repair.
“You have all these different insights, but the one thing that remained the same was that no one got to where they are on their own. We all obtained assistance from others whether it is women, men or spouses, they all contributed to the success,” Jachnycky said.
The next CCIF meeting will be held in Toronto on January 24 and 25, for more information visit ccif.ca.
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