Multi-Unit Franchisee Magazine Issue II, 2014 | Page 38

MULTI-BR A N D 50

“Engage, delight, and thank your customer—always.”
MANAGEMENT
Business philosophy: Business is all about execution. The best plans are
worthless if you cannot effectively implement them. What gets measured
gets managed; metrics matter. All small business is marketing; the absolute
key to small business is differentiation and distinctiveness. The best team
wins. Hire the best and train for success. Provide honest, balanced feedback
to employees on a daily basis. Share rewards fairly and generously to build
loyalty and commitment. Always operate honestly and ethically—there are
no shortcuts, really. Engage, delight, and thank your customer—always.
Give back to others in a meaningful way. Business profits are earned, but
they are also a privilege. Recognize your social responsibility to community
and humanity.
Management method or style: Focused, flexible, situational. I keep
perspective and have patience when appropriate. I’m impatient and demanding when necessary. I encourage and support, but require accountability and
responsibility. I manage for results and use facts to make judgments. I believe
in always knowing your competition and battling fiercely and in a smart way
for your value proposition.
Greatest challenge: Small-business ownership is a battle every day.
How do others describe you? Driven, demanding but fair, a little offkilter, family oriented, plugged in, competitive.
One thing I’m looking to do better: Take my current business to scale.
How I give my team room to innovate and experiment: We work
from established procedures and agreed-upon goals. Compensation is directly
tied to specific metrics that are discussed weekly. Creativity and risk-taking is
encouraged, but we always return to the basic ques tion: Are we achieving our
agreed-upon goals?
How close are you to operations? I am on the premises daily and interact continuously with customers and employees.
What are the two most important things you rely on from your
franchisor? A fully functioning business system, an effective positioning of
the brand names, scale economies in select areas of purchasing such as paint
and car parts, and leading expertise in all phases of the automotive repair
industry. These purchasing programs do create real competitive advantage. In
our paint and body shop, we are the clear price leader because of a unique
production process geared to high volume and very low cost of materials. In our
mechanic and lube shop, we feature earth-friendly oil products and are in the
process of rolling out a nationally branded tire program with Cooper Tires. I am
very satisfied with Driven Brands, the parent company, and the brands I have
selected. I know and trust their leadership team. They have delivered on their
commitments to me, and where there have been the inevitable problem situations, they have always made things right.
What I need from vendors: Quality products, expertise and training where
necessary, highly competitive pricing (but they don’t always have to be the lowest), timely delivery, a fair returns policy, national branding, and co-marketing
where appropriate and helpful. I regard vendors as business partners and strive to

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MULTI-UNIT FRANCHISEE IS S UE II, 2014

develop long-term relationships. This benefits both parties in most cases.
Have you changed your marketing strategy in response to the
economy? How? Yes. Money is tight, but in one sense, the downturn has
been good for our business. Consumers are keeping their vehicles much longer
because they are paid for. An inexpensive paint service can do a lot to create
a better look, or as we call it, “Do a “Maacover.” Additionally, the more miles
that are put on a vehicle, the greater and more extensive are maintenance and
repair needs. We inspect any vehicle free, and we provide free estimates. We
offer a wide range of choices for all services and allow the consumer to make
intelligent trade-off decisions between cost and longevity. We offer a variety of
financing solutions, and we survey our customers on the spot to determine if
we are meeting their expectations and call later for follow-up feedback.
How is social media affecting your business? Dramatically. About 20­
to 25 percent of our leads originate digitally. Our marketing costs in digital are
increasing and our print spend is decreasing. New tools to manage and monitor
leads, interact with social media to effectively position our brand and actively
market to grow share are business imperatives.
How do you hire and fire? We first ask existing employees for leads.
We source through networking (often the best people are working somewhere
else). We interview a candidate with two managers separately and compare
notes, and we don’t put much stock in references. We occasionally create a
“tryout,” where we will pay a wage for a day to see if someone can perform
at our expected level. We have an Employee Handbook that we review and distribute to every employee. These are the “Rules of the Road.” There are some
serious violations for which an employee will be released immediately. There
are other violations for which an employee will be documented and counseled,
with an opportunity to straighten up and fly right. Our counseling system is
progressive; three strikes and you are out.
How do you train and retain? The franchisor does a good job providing
training films, materials, and support staff in the shop on most of our core processes. We use a buddy system, placing an experienced employee in a position
to train a new employee. Some training is very short term. Other training, such
as movement into another job class at a higher skill is planned and developed
over a longer term. We really try to encourage skill development and internal
mobility.
How do you deal with problem employees? Swiftly and directly. In
a small business, we all need to pull our weight every day. There is no room
to hide, so problem situations are immediately identified and discussed. We
encourage and require total honest communication in a respectful, professional
manner. We all make mistakes—but do we learn from them? Repeat problems are documented and discussed. We look for immediate improvement. If
so, onward and upward! If not, after three strikes we give you an opportunity
to be successful somewhere else.
Fastest way into my doghouse: Show me that you are not accountable
for your actions.