Toronto, Ontario — From employee retention to managing ADAS-equipped vehicles, we have seen a slew of tips and predictions throughout the years after keeping our finger on the pulse of the industry. Taking a look back on past insights can be an effective way to distinguish what works and what does not in a collision repair facet.
LEADERSHIP:
Jay Perry, founder of Ally Business Coaching, recommending new leadership techniques:
“The new generation needs a different type of engaged leadership that automatically happens when you work on having fun at work. I particularly love it when I see customers interacting with employees in fun ways, getting caught up in the wave of fun! Fun at work has proven conclusively that the better the experience an employee has while at work, the higher the profitability of the business. This is a fact, not an anecdote.”
Caroline Lacasse, the director of CCIF, reminding owners of the most vital instrument in their inventory:
“Shop owners now have no choice but to invest time and money in their most important tools: their human resources. Employees stay loyal to an employer when they feel useful, get proper skills and are part of the team. Therefore recognizing employees by facilitating training access or consulting them before making some decisions are a big part of the solution. Shops will struggle if they do not find a way to adapt to this fast-evolving environment. Change management is the only option here because everybody reacts differently to change. Shop owners and managers need to be aware of their own reactions to changes. Developing skills in conflict resolution, communication and active listening or strategic thinking can only facilitate the adaptation.”
Both sentiments still readily applicable to today’s collision repair centres. The very last thing you should want a loyal employee to feel is that they no longer care. As one of our former associate editors Jordan Arseneault puts it, “finding the time to let someone know they’re doing a great job, and that you’re appreciative of their efforts, is such a minor task, but something that has the power to completely turn someone’s day around.”
TECHNOLOGY:
Fred Iantorno, the vice president of VeriFacts Automotive, looks towards the impact of 5G infrastructure on the industry:
“The tech is here. The number of connected devices already exceeds the number of humans on Earth. In the next few years, it is estimated that there will be 1,000 devices per person, and this new network infrastructure is going to cut the amount of time in our industry wasted with bad connections.”
Nick Dominato, a business development representative for asTech, stresses the importance of not shying away from ADAS systems:
“There is no excuse for neglecting this important area. The major players in the auto glass repair industry have been on board with ADAS recalibrations for years. We cannot stick our heads in the sand and cross our fingers when it comes to delivering an ADAS equipped car back to the customer.”
While we are still on the cusp of feeling the impact 5G infrastructure will have on the industry, the number of benefits we will be seeing is becoming increasingly apparent. It can no longer be considered an emerging technology. As for delivering quality work on ADAS-equipped vehicles, it is uplifting to note the vast quantity of big-name manufacturers that have hit the ground running when it comes to developing intuitive solutions to this growing challenge.
IMPROVEMENT:
Gabriel Merino, founder of Motivated Painters, on keeping painters motivated:
“Shops should be providing self-development courses for their employees to keep them motivated and focused, teaching them to have goals and personal targets to aim for. Happy painters produce better results, care more for the people around them, are always willing to learn and, of course, earn more money because they focus and double down on the positive aspect of the job at hand and give it their 187 percent.”
Mohammad Abdoli-Eramaki, an associate professor at Ryerson University, on the topic of industrial hygiene in shops:
“A good shop is equipped with ventilation systems where right after chemicals are released, they are captured and controlled in the spot. Everyone in the facility should use proper protective equipment for everything—the heat, the noise—and are well prepared.”
Patrice Marcil, the chairman of CCIF, offers ideas to increase new talent:
“A good place to start would be a much bigger grant at the end of the school year for tools. Buying tools is crazy expensive and a huge reason why people would not even bother with it. A full set of tools is around $5,000-$8,000.”
Health, recruitment and continuing education–three pillars that any shop worth its salt should be constantly seeking to improve as well as three key factors into retaining the industry’s best and brightest workers. With recent outcries of labour shortages in the collision repair industry, improving facility conditions, from knowledge to safety, is one giant leap towards circumventing this challenge.
