I was speaking with one of my dealers about Technician Pay Plans
and he said I have to do something because the one we have rewards those for no
extra effort. Well, I have worked with a lot of different pay plans over the
years and found the only way to pay anyone in any business is pay them on
performance.
I have seen 90% of dealers install a pay plan without thinking
about the consequences. The number one thing I found is the employee has
no clear Job Description of what he's getting paid for and if there is a Job
Description, it hasn't been reviewed in years or updated for current times.
Then I hear this famous quote: "I can't get my employees to
do what I ask!" and not understand that you teach what you allow! What do
I mean? If a Technician walks in late did you address it with him/her?
If an
advisor is late coming back from lunch did you address it right then? If not
your teaching every employee that it's OK to be late to work or lunch because
there will be no consequence to pay.
How can we expect our employees to be productive without a Job
Description? If we’re not Training, Coaching, and Consulting them on what their
expected to do everyday while they’re working for you, what results can we
expect?
I just don't understand the
thinking, or lack of thinking of why anyone would think they would be productive! I also have seen many really good
employees with great attitudes get fired for not knowing what is expected
of them to begin with!
I have seen over and over again where a dealership hires a Service
Advisor, Service Manager, Cashier, Porter, Technician, etc., then handed a pen
and told to go to work because they should know what to do because they have
done this before.
They don't even know were the bathroom is or what stall to
work in, or how to close out the cash box for the night! It's unreal but true!
Here's what I know works every time and you will never fire anyone
again. I always build a Job Description with pay plan first for a position I
want to fill that makes good business sense. I review the Job Description with
the potential new hire.
I have everyone fill out a Behavior Profile and
make sure that Behavior matches the Job Description before I proceed. Then I
have twenty interview questions I use to see if this person fits my Job
Description.
I then have them come back for a third time and let someone else
interview them and make sure we agree on this person for the job. This takes a
lot of the guess work out of the decision making process.
Then of course, after
we make the decision to hire them and it's
off to drug testing, background checks, driver license checks, etc.
When this is completed, I have them come in for the orientation
process. We review the employee handbook,
give them a tour of the dealership to meet everyone, show them where
everything is and review the Job Description with pay plan once again.
Finally,
I get their signature stating that they agree with all the above as well as
their agreement to follow it.
The fun has just begun! This is the time we start the Training Process
on our business model on how we build relationships with our customers,
employees, and vendors through timeless Basic Fundamentals until they prove
they can follow it or not.
If they can, then we can then go into the Daily
Coaching Process until they’re achieving the Objectives and Goals set
for a customer sensitive and profitable business.
That's when the consulting process comes in. This is the fine tuning
needed to have a top performing employee through performance reviews daily.
Remember what is measured can be managed and what we allow, we teach!
The
accountability process is where the tire meets the pavement. If you never want
to fire another employee again then you must hold everyone accountable for
their performance in writing.
I can't tell you how many times a manager went to fire someone
only to find out nothing has been documented and either the dealer was getting
sued, or you were not able to let this employee go due to their union contract!
Don't let this happen to you and document everything you do with each employee.
They will respect you for it more then just talking about what happened!
Now, as I said "Never Fire an Employee Again"…this can
be achieved if you follow these
guidelines and build your own Employee Hire to Fire Process.
When the time
comes to review, if they don’t meet or exceed expectations within a certain
time period they will fire themselves based on the agreement you have with them
on what is good, great, or ugly performance as long as it is written up and
signed.
I always ask them…when continuous performance is not up
to standards, what would you do if you were in my seat? They always say I would
let you go! This Hire to Fire process is the Basic Fundamentals of any business
whether it’s a hamburger stand or a car dealership!
Remember turnover cost is huge and your customer is the one who
suffers for all the confusion they have to go through and usually never come
back because of it.
If you need any assistance putting together your Employee Hire to
Fire business model let me know.
Guy Salkeld is the President and Head Performance Coach of Automotive Consultants Group Inc. The only Low Risk High Return Training, Coaching, and Consulting company in the world! To learn more go to www.smartservicetraining.com Have a question? E-Mail Guy directly at guyacg@aol.com or Call me direct at: 305-331-3373
