The Blueprint for Success
(The Perfect Shop Series)

BY MIKE LEE

Most of the owners in the automotive industry have a pretty good idea of what a perfect shop would be like for them. If we were to list the key features of the perfect shop, it would include most of the following:

1. Very profitable and expanding business.
2. Produces a high-quality service for the customers.
3. The employees treat the customer with the same care factor as the owner does.
4. The shop runs well without the owner having to be there.

While the above list covers most of the major points that most owners would say was their vision of a perfect business, there is another piece that, oftentimes, the owners will fail to put on the list of the perfect business.

The Self-Fixing Business

To me, this is the most important feature of a perfect shop or business. The employees of the business are able to run the business successfully and profitably. But also, they must be able to handle and fix any problems that come up.

A self-fixing business means that when the owner is on vacation in Scotland playing golf or is scuba diving in Australia or at a bass fishing tournament, and the Manager, Service Writer or the Lead technician quits suddenly, the owner does not have to come back to handle the problem or, worse, become the manager again or the Service Writer or help out in the back.

In the perfect shop, when the great manager who handles everything right quits over the weekend, that does not mean that the problems all end up on the owner again. In fact, in the perfect business, the shop or shops do not miss a beat.

It has a replacement manager all ready to handle the operation or it finds and replaces any key personnel without having to bother the owner at all. Now, to me, that is a perfect shop or business.  It is one that allows me the freedom to come and go as I please. I am able to do what I want to do, when I want to do it.

The Blueprint for Success

Unfortunately, although most shop owners have a vision of having the perfect shop, they lack the blueprints and the plans to build it. They build their business without having some key pieces in place and the right people. These missing pieces keep their business from expanding and becoming totally successful, and sometimes they even cause the business to fail.

It’s like trying to win a long-distance, cross-country race. You need several key things in order to win.

A Good Race Car

In order to win a long-distance, cross-country race, it starts with a really good car (the Business). The key characteristics of a winning race car are that it is reliable and stable. It must be able to handle anything that comes up.

In terms of the business, it must be good at handling customers and fixing cars right the first time. If a business can’t handle customers well and fix the customers' cars correctly the first time, it will become hard to steer and eventually end up crashing and losing the race.

A Good Race Team

Every consistent winning race team has good, trained personnel who can handle any problem quickly and efficiently.  It is the race team’s responsibility to handle the customers and fix the cars. The car will only be as reliable and stable as the members of the race team.

If one guy is not trained and is not doing his job, the chances of the team winning the race are slim. It is really important that the Team Owner knows how to select and train the right people to be on his team.

Oftentimes, some race teams have members that are good at their job, but create problems for the rest of the team, so instead of the group concentrating on winning the race, they end up fighting and arguing with each other and everyone loses.

A Good Driver

Even when you have the fastest car and the best support team, if you don’t have a good driver (the Manager) you are never going to win the race. It is important to know that the Manager is not the Service Writer.

A good driver knows how to drive the car without crashing and wearing out the tires early. He is able to detect when the car (business) is not firing on all cylinders and communicates it effectively to his support team to make the necessary adjustments to the car.

A Good Navigator

In a long-distance race, it is important to have someone who knows where the car (the business) is at all times and can steer the Manager correctly to take the quickest and safest route to the finish line.

It is not the job of the navigator (the General Manager/Owner) to drive the car, but keep track of the business and make sure it is on the correct route to the finish line. It is the navigator’s job to tell the driver which route to take. It is the driver’s job to drive the car and use all of his skills to drive and steer the car on the correct course, as quickly and safely as possible.

A Good Team Owner

The most successful race teams are owned by the best team owner (the Business Owner). It is his responsibility to put together the best team possible and provide the team with whatever they need to win the race.  It is not his job to race the car or manage the team.

The winning formula for any team sport is an owner who has the ability to hire the right people for the right job and then provide the team with whatever it needs (equipment & training) to succeed. In most cases, the Team Owner sits in a luxury box watching his team perform. If he has done his job right, the team wins. If he has not done it right, the team loses.

Which Job Are You Doing?

The key to expansion is knowing what you are suppose to be doing, rather than what you are doing. The perfect business is always the result of an owner who knows how to build a winning race car and a winning team.

It doesn’t matter that he is a bright mechanic, a great service writer or a great manager. The true test of an owner is, can he get others to do the job the way he wants it done. Can he build the perfect business?

I will be writing a series of articles to address many of the issues that face Shop Owners in this day and age.