When I was 19 years old and new to the military, I got bored of doing the same tasks over and over again. We’d be tired, the days would be long, and you’d think the officers were never going to let you go back to the dorms. However, there was always some point where everything came together. Everyone knew their role, problems were easily overcome, and what once took hours now took minutes.
When I went through advanced training, it would take 2 hours to pop the powerplant out of an M1 Abrams, and that was in the motor pool. A year later, we could complete that same task in 15 minutes, in the field, in below zero weather. That’s 9000 lb. of metal, with the components often hot enough to take the skin right off your hands. Like many of the lessons I learned in the military, it wasn’t until years down the road that I truly understood how important that training was.
30 years later, working with retail customers in a powersports dealership, the value of training is just as important. While the enemy isn’t shooting back at us, a lapse in judgement can still result in someone losing their life.
One of the things I’ve noticed over the years is that some of the most frustrating times in our dealership occur in that window between winter and spring. Business has been slow, there’s an occasional rush of customers, and when that occurs, it seems like everyone has been on the job for about 3 weeks. All the lessons learned over the last year have been forgotten. As the customer flow begins to increase, the staff gets used to being busy, they quit making so many rookie mistakes, and the level of frustration decreases.
As owners, GMs, and department managers, what can we do to minimize or even eliminate that “window of frustration”? I’ve seen many solutions over the years.
- A process manual that outlines how each department operates
- Running plays and scrimmaging. Present scenarios to the team and then run them through to the point of right before they are processed.
- Team meetings. Sit down with the department employees, discuss issues that you’ve dealt with in the past, and make sure everyone knows how to react to them.
- Cross train employees in other departments, so that they have a better understanding of how their actions can impact other departments.
- Conduct management meetings, making sure that every department is on the same page.
- Work on building and maintaining a strong culture and be sure that every employee know knows and understands what the company values are. Don’t let poor behavior become acceptable just because the dealership is slow.
- When things go wrong, sit down with everyone involved and conduct a forensic review. Determine why things went wrong, identify the changes that need to be made to prevent those issues from happening again. Ensure that everyone is clear on the solutions.
- Refine job descriptions and make sure that all team members are fully aware of what is expected of them and how they stack up.
- Training – it’s almost impossible to overdo it.
For years, a popular phrase has been to discuss muscle-memory. The truth is, there is no such thing. Muscle memory has never existed, it’s not a thing. Memory only exists in the mind, and there’s a specific path to building the type of memory that will result in an excellent customer experience.
- Define the mission. What do you want to accomplish?
- Identify the best way to accomplish the mission. Look at the current and prior processes and choose the one that provides the best outcomes.
- Formalize the process.
- Make sure that all the employees are on the same page about how each task will be done.
- Practice and train to the process.
- Critique and refine.
Once you’ve gotten to this point, then it’s time to start working with customers. As J.W. Marriott once said, “you should never practice on your customers.” Too many dealers make this mistake, and then excessive time and energy is spent picking up the pieces.
Training isn’t easy. It takes energy, it requires focus, and it can be monotonous. However, the dealers who understand how valuable that process is are usually happier, and more successful, than those who fight the same issues over and over again.
