Where have all the good managers gone?

A lot of dealerships think they are saving money by taking a good sales rep and making him/her a manager and not training them . The pay plans have shrunk for managers over the past year as well . The idea of paying people less and expecting more is a bad choice ranging from managers to internet people . 

 A planed sales training meeting  should be done every day . Very few meetings have the hooting , clapping and hollering any more compared to years ago . 

 

With poor managers the longevity has shrunk as well . It was nothing 10 years ago to see sales reps with 10 to 15 years on the job . Now it is hard to find sales reps with this much time at one dealership .

 

 Some of the old ways will never be surpassed by the new ones . A hand written Birthday or Holiday card with a follow up call will never be beat . Computers are great but the lick em stick em envelope with a sheet of paper wishing someone Happy Birthday was outdated the day it started . 

 All is not lost . I work with dealers that have not gotten away from the meat and potatoes training and making sales reps accountable the right way . There sales meetings are fun because everyone knows what is expected . There are great managers that lead by example but we need more of them . I believe in time the dealers will go back to basics and invest in there sales force and not just advertising .

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Comment by Fran Taylor on June 21, 2012 at 1:33pm

Good point Candace . Thanks for your comment . Much appreciated .

Comment by Tony Sutton on June 21, 2012 at 1:23pm

You are spot on Fran, I haven't been very active on here for a while as I got to a point where I just thought everything was too pleasant and nobody on this forum ever did anything wrong. I have been in this industry for 25 years and have worked in 5 countries but I still learn something every day... so I guess that means I have room for more improvement which I am happy about. Training has turned into a computer based system where as long as the manufacturers website says you are certified...your ok. I have seen so many ways to circumnavigate the whole process, mainly revolving around one expert doing everyone's courses, mostly for some mutual benefit. I hope you're right and we see a return to investing in people who take ownership of their time and ability to be able to help build a business.

Comment by Fran Taylor on June 21, 2012 at 11:58am

Stan the people you are talking about shouldn't be in the auto business and is a rare case to say the least . Best of luck to you guy working with them .

Comment by CANDACE BENNETT MCRAE on June 21, 2012 at 10:35am

Well said Mr. Taylor. 

I marvel at the low quality of sales management pervasive in the retail auto industry. Unfortunately most dealers do not realize that sales and sales management require different skills and talent.  Sales floor promotions are traditional but not necessarily the smartest option for sales management. 

 

Comment by Stan Sher on June 21, 2012 at 3:23am

I know a dealership that had a sales person that averaged 30 cars per month. He barely spoke English.  He lied to customers and by himself made the dealership the worst in the country for CSI.  He got away with murder because he was covered by the GM who was (and is currently) stealing from the dealer.  The dealer is a very nice guy but is oblivious to what is really going on in the store despite being there everyday.  So this sales person was disciplined by the BDC Manager for all of the beef calls that were being made.  Well the GM, who is a snake decides to talk to the owner and fire the BDC Manager (who is one of the best in country).  They then take this sales person and place him as the BDC Manager.  As the BDC Manager he continues to lie to customers, create a negative work environment, fire innocent people for no reason, and cause chaos by replacing good people with bad people.  Meanwhile business is still at a standstill.  So when the crap hits the fan, the GM all of a sudden decides to fire one of his better sales managers and move this new unqualified BDC Manager and make him a sales manager.  At the same time they hire a new BDC Manager that supposedly has good skills into a very poor environment letting him think he will make big changes in this messed up store.  Meanwhile, this sales person turned BDC Manager who turned into a GSM (that's right a GSM) who can't manage people, TO customers, and creates a bad image for the store gets put in charge.  The guy should be on the unemployment line yet he is a sales manager.  What do you think of that?

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