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SERVICE PAGE 13 CONTINUED FROM One of Team Winnebagoland's goals for 2014 is putting up a "big board" in the service department that tracks technician efficiency, total service dollars and service specials promotions to see if, like several trainers have suggested, merely tracking and posting the numbers will lead to increased efficiency by harnessing his staff's natural competitive spirit. "I play pickup basketball two to three times a week, and the intensity turns up when the score is getting closer," Van Zeeland said. "If Service Department FOCUS PSB 14 • January 27, 2014 • Powersports Business you're putting a number up there, people want to do better than their number." For stores that are newer to the game, or haven't been exposed to as much industry training, Van Zeeland recommends focusing on general organization and cleanliness to begin improving the service department. Beyond that, he said, the focus should be on hiring people that genuinely care about the department, the overall business and building customer loyalty. "It's not selling the unit; it's what happens after the sale," he said. "If your service department is good and approachable with a 'yes' mentality, you'll do well, but you have to have the support system to do that." KENT POWERSPORTS Three locations Austin and San Antonio, Texas Ron Roemer is a former technician and now the service manager at Kent Powersports in Selma, Texas, a suburb of San Antonio. Kent is a two-store operation, with the other located 40 minutes northeast of Selma on the outskirts of Austin. As part of a large, 40,000 square-foot facility built five years ago, Roemer's service shop has 12 employees, with six full-time technicians and two lifts for every tech on the floor. Service accounts for approximately 30 percent of the overall business at the Selma store. Roemer said the biggest challenge in service www.PowersportsBusiness.com is staying competitive with other dealers, developing creative ideas to draw new customers and attracting and maintaining quality employees, particularly technicians. "We just don't have techs RON ROEMER banging the door down here," he said. "Everybody comes in and says they're a technician, but when you put them on the line they end up screwing something up or you find out that they've got some baggage that they brought along with them that's not so desirable." As an example of keeping up with the competition, with a recent tire special, Kent offered half-priced tires when customers paid retail for labor. A nearby competitor, in turn, offered labor for $30 when customers paid full retail price for the tires. "It sounds good to half a dozen people, and the other half dozen go there," he said. "So we're trying to find something that attracts everyone." Recognizing that its shop rate was below average for the area, Roemer recently raised it to $99.50 per hour for everything except watercraft, which is $119.50. Kent's rate is still below most competitors, which helps attract new customers and brings more money into the service department's coffers. When it comes to making basic improvements in service, Roemer advocates thinking w is m sta goo im def tur Ke wi fle un for pla the ple see cal bu pro ver "D inf tha dia wh clu wh an Kent Powersports in Selma, Texas, monitors competitors' rates in the service departments. simply by focusing on setting up an efficient floor layout, providing techs with specialty tools and lots of teardown space, and maintaining a clean environment. By providing two lifts per technician and individual workspaces, the staff can work on multiple projects at a time with plenty of space to spare. Roemer added that, if the time comes, they could likely accommodate two technicians in each stall. For large-scale future expansion, he has studied adding a second floor to the department. By adding an additional support column with connecting I-beams, Kent could significantly free up warehouse space with all of the boxes and crates that are currently stored there. An elevator would bring units down when they were sold, speeding delivery time, and customers could be brought there to show specific vehicles if they didn't have a similar model on the floor. He estimates the project would cost $100,000, and is not in the current plans. The dealership tracks its service team member efficiency and productivity through its ADP Lightspeed NXT software. Roemer doesn't post the numbers on a leaderboard, as some of his techs are dedicated to solving the most challenging problems and he's worried about fostering animosity among the staff. Instead of broadcasting the numbers, the information P13x17-PSB2-Focus.indd 14 1/15/14 12:01 PM to ou ing tra Le enc du cu Ser to les sis to bre the cap TH Gr eri we den Ma ow me im