As an auto shop owner, you’ve got 99 problems and hiring the perfect store manager is one.
If you’re reading this, you’re probably facing the daunting challenge of hiring the right store manager for your auto shop. It’s tiring, time consuming and expensive hiring someone new, only to have to let them go finding out that they just weren’t the right fit. The store manager position is unique and demanding and you need someone who possesses a diverse set of skills and fits right into your team.
In fact, hiring, promoting and firing are by far one of the biggest problems every auto shop owner seems to have. It can keep you up at night. Hiring the wrong person can hurt your business’s bottom line and can be very costly to correct. So it’s critical to get it right the first time, and that’s where we come in!
We developed this store manager hiring guide checklist. Print it out and use it as your roadmap when you set out to find that perfect fit.
“Maintaining an effective culture is so important that it, in fact, trumps even strategy.”
Part One: Figure Out Your Company Culture
What’s your company culture?
Think of your company culture like your personality. By defining it, it will define the environment in which your employees work. Before searching for the right front office manager, make sure you establish these 6 elements of your company culture:
- Work environment
- Company mission
- Company value
- Ethics
- Expectations
- Goals
Part Two: Identify what makes a ‘good fit’ for your business
It’s time to care about company culture. Having a strong company culture is important for recruiting and retaining the top talent in the auto industry. If your company culture is top notch, you attract top notch employees. Sure, your store manager candidate has the skills, but will they work well with your team? Someone who is skilled and aligns with your company culture checklist is critical to a successful hire.
Put your company culture front and center during the hiring process. Those people who would fit right into your culture become attracted to it like moths to a flame. Company culture affects employee engagement, turnover rates, performance, loyalty and much more. A Rockstar front office manager cultivates company culture. To get you started off on the right foot, Entrepreneur shares 6 steps to building a strong company culture.
Part Three: Create the job description
Now it’s time to create the job description. And not just any ole description, it needs to be compelling. It’s an essential piece in helping you attract the most qualified candidates for your job. Use these 6 tips when creating your perfect job description:
- Choose a crystal clear and concise title for the position
- Paint a picture of the position
- Describe the work environment
- Spell out the skills and qualifications that matter most
- Be transparent about the responsibilities
- Get them excited! Use descriptive adverbbs and capture their interest with your words.
Here’s a good place to start:
Your dream store manager is indispensable, cultivates company culture, steers the company in the right direction and possesses these 3 key traits.
- Communication Skills
- Flexibility
- Organization Skills
Part Four: Promote the Position
Spice up your hiring ad.
Your front office manager hiring ad isn’t just a list of job duties. Yawn. If you’re wanting your ad to attract the best store manager, make sure it’s enticing! You want it to attract the right person so make it fun and something that will grab that right person for the job’s attention. You’re looking for a store manager that is great with people and thrives in a fast-paced environment so include some things that would attract that type of personality. Then, place the ad and reach out to your existing network. A referral can often be your best fit!
Part Five: Evaluate Incoming Resumes: The Lucky 13
Do your research and take your time during the search process. Conduct thorough interviews, check references and always look at each new candidate as someone who needs to fit into the team you’ve already built. The grind of weeding through resumes will be part of your challenge of finding that front office manager. To make your ‘resume reviewing’ job easier, we’ve highlighted the 13 things you need to look for.
Look for these 13 things on their resume
- Someone who can quickly absorb and retain product knowledge
- Multitasking to manage crew, answer phones, oversee quality control
- Takes pride in work and is committed to providing excellent customer service
- Works with team in the day to day operation of the shop
- Passion for leading others
- Experienced, energetic and driven
- Demonstrating true leadership with vision, collaboration, trust, respect and effectiveness while operating an auto repair shop
- Customer focus and high energy in fast-paced auto shop
- Passion for delivering customer care in a strong team environment
- Steering towards continuous improvement in processes and procedures
- Manage automotive technicians, shop attendants, and their training.
- Ensure maximum profitability and customer satisfaction.
- Complete quality checks and documentation of all completed work before delivery to client.
Part Six: The Interview
Here are a few questions to ask to help determine if a candidate’s skills will match the needs of your shop:
- Why do you want to work here?
- What are your strengths?
- Can you tell me about a time when you screwed up?
- What was the most difficult situation you’ve faced at work? How did you overcome it?
- How would you describe the best relationships you’ve had with the people you’ve worked with. The worst?
- How do you define hard work?
- What are 5 words that someone would use to describe you?
- What are the 3 most important skills or attributes that you believe you would bring to our company if we hired you?
Remember that the right store manager knows how to make financial decisions
Think about this: your store manager has access to all the vital information management needs to make the right business decision. They need to be the key person in determining your shop’s overall financial performance. The store manager must monitor important data and effectively reporting the results.
It’s worth the time investment. In the auto industry, hiring the best people for your business is critical to your company’s success, today and long term. Going through this process may seem like a lot of work upfront, but taking the time to develop an effective hiring strategy will pay big dividends in the long run. The seemingly elusive perfect store manager is out there. Use this checklist as a guide to find the best one for you!
You’ve Got the Right People, Now Implement the Right Processes
With your amazing team in place, you can start seeing some serious success. Now that you’ve got the right people, it’s time to implement the right processes. BAYiQ is the solution you have been searching for - or maybe didn’t even realize you needed in the first place. If you’re looking to save precious time on acquiring new customers, increasing customer satisfaction and impacting your bottom line—BAYiQ is the answer. Here’s how to save money with BAYiQ.
References: http://www.snacknation.com/blog/how-to-be-a-good-office-manager/, http://work.chron.com/successful-office-manager-10112.html, https://www.appointment, plus.com/blog/how-to-run-an-auto-repair-shop, http://work.chron.com/job-description-office-manager-automotive-store-26872.html, http://bakertilly.com/insights/an-effective-office-manager-is-an-integral-part-of-the-dealership/, https://blog.kissmetrics.com/great-company-culture/