Fixed Ops Journal - October 2022 - F13

" It looks great on paper, but the execution
doesn't work, " Foy says. " Customers may like
talking to the techs, but that takes the techs
away from working on cars. "
Talking to customers is an opportunity for
technicians to get more details on what may
be wrong with their vehicle and it does build
trust. " But they can't spend too much time
away from the service bays because production
in the service department has to keep
moving, " Foy says.
The Walser Way
One aspect of the pilot
retained. My
has been
Tech's concept of a small
team is being incorporated
in a new program called
the Walser Way being tested
in three stores this year
for introduction across the
entire dealership group
starting in 2023.
Th e Walser Way seeks to rewrite the fl ow of
Trett: Small
team concept
customer interaction in the service department
- from scheduling the appointment
time in the business development center to
assigning a qualifi ed technician to perform
and complete the repair order to returning the
keys to the customer.
Service advisers now interact with the cusnicians
they could contact directly. Meanwhile,
service advisers shifted into a support
role for the technicians.
Th e program was rolled out at Walser BuickGMC
in Bloomington, Minn., because customer
satisfaction scores there were below the
national average for GM stores, Trett says. But
it was a slow start.
" It had taken time for the employees and customers
to get comfortable with the new business
model of My Tech, " Trett says. " Th at resulted
in a slow rollout to other dealers in the Walser
chain. We had the basics in place to support
the journey with metrics and technology. "
After seven months, Walser made the decision
not to launch My Tech to its other stores.
" We discovered there was too much pressure
on the techs in the My Tech pilot, " Trett
says. " My Tech inadvertently created silos and
that's not good for what we're trying to do with
a customer service philosophy. "
Dave Foy, vice president of fi xed operations
at dealership training company Quantum5,
says My Tech as a program has merit. But it
took technicians away from their work in the
service bays.
OCTOBER 2022 PAGE 13
"
" It looks great on paper,
but the execution
doesn't work.
Customers may like
talking to the techs, but
that takes the techs
away from working on
cars. "
Dave Foy, vice president of fi xed
operations, Quantum5
tomer and work with Automotive Service Excellence-certifi
ed team leads who manage
four to fi ve techs with support from a parts
person and parts runner. Th e adviser provides
repair updates to the customer, serving as liaison
between customer and tech team.
" By the end of the year each store in the
Twin Cities market will be operating under
the standards of the Walser Way, " Trett says.
" It's the philosophy of what we will deliver in
sales and service in terms of structure, people,
support and technology. " 
"
Fixed Ops Journal - October 2022

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