ACtion Magazine - April 2013 - (Page 33)
Old-Timers, team players, slackers
and kids: do your employees ‘play’
well together?
by Angie Kilbourne
D
uring the session “Can’t We All Get Along - Working
with Gen X and Y (and Everyone Else),” Bill Haas,
AAM, president of Haas Performance Consulting
LLC, Tyler, Texas, asked attendees to consider how
well their teams at work get along and how well they
(attendees) got along with their teams. Those answers are key to
good employee relations, and Haas spent the morning showing
how the workplace has been impacted by the tech-savvy
Generations X and Y.
Haas Performance Consulting Illustration
After a review of the four generations in today’s work
environment — a first in our history — Haas pointed out
that a multigenerational workforce does offer some unique
opportunities for your business. For instance, reverse mentoring
allows you to use your youngest employees to mentor older
employees on new technologies, such as smartphones and apps.
What is key, however, in getting your team to “play well”
together during work hours is to understand each generation’s
needs, wants and expectations — and then deliver your business
management style appropriately to them in the best way they
will understand it. For example, your 30-something Gen-Xer
tech may have grown up coming home to an empty house,
learning to do things for himself alone. He may now resent your
constant checking in on his progress. Understanding that point,
and leaving him to finish his work without interruption will
Generational differences play a major role in the working
environment.
likely improve your employer-employee relationship
immensely.
We may not always understand the people we
work with. But if we have an understanding of what
motivates them, as well as what actions will alienate
them, your business could just turn into a place your
employees enjoy.
“If what we are doing isn’t working, we have to
understand them before we can change,” notes Haas.
Think of what that could do for your bottom line.
Building your bottom line with exceptional
customer service
“The longer we’re in this business, the more jaded we
become,” says Greg Marchand, president of Automotive
Aftermarket Training, Forestdale, Mass. “We tend to forget what
it’s like to be a customer.” And until you are reminded how
good — or bad — a customer’s experience can be, he adds, the
tenets of customer service can be forgotten by a repair shop.
Using real-world experiences as examples, Marchand
led MACS 2013 convention attendees through a full-day’s
examination of “Exceptional Customer Handling Skills.”
“Do you know what a customer means to your shop?”
Marchand asked. “Have you ever figured out what dollar
amount is attached to an average customer? When I ask you,
‘What’s a customer mean to you,’ what comes to mind?”
Dollars? Advertising? The reason you are in business? All
good answers, and attendees were challenged to define what a
customer means to each person’s business.
Marchand also asked attendees what an additional 30 minutes
of labor on average on each repair order might mean to their
businesses’ bottom lines. He countered, “You could earn another
$100,000 in revenue each year.”
How? That’s what attendees learned in this intensive six-hour
session. From listening skills and body language to overcoming
the bad reputation of the repair industry, Marchand illustrated
how to identify the four typical categories of customers you’ll see
in your waiting room and engage each based on personality type
and level of desired interaction.
Demonstrated techniques, such as follow through (rather
than follow-up) and Fixed Right First Time, build trust with
customers — the key to turning a challenging customer into a
great customer. “Trust is fragile. It can take virtually nothing to
wipe it out,” reminds Marchand. “[Trust] is cultural. It has to be
the way you do business.” ❆
ACTION • April 2013
33
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of ACtion Magazine - April 2013
ACtion Magazine - April 2013
Contents
Outlook
Freeze Frame
Virtual View
Under the Southern Cross
Leonard’s Law
News & Updates
State of the Industry
R-1234YF Design and Service Considerations
Heavy Duty/Off Road Technical Session
Hybrid Evolution Continues
Modern Automotive HVAC Systems
Old-Timers, Team Players, Slackers and Kids: Do Your Employees ‘play’ Well Together?
Cheap Isn’t Always Best
A/C Season Check List: Is Your Shop Ready?
MACS 2013 Training Event Social Wrap-Up
Wallace Talks Up Big Brother
Association News
Quick Check
New Products & Services
Last Watch
ACtion Magazine - April 2013
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