Don’t Assume Everyone Knows Each Other’s Roles.

When I first started serving various dealerships as a VP of RV manufacturing, I discovered that it was very hard over the telephone to determine who exactly was in charge. I could always speak directly to the owner of the RV dealership – he or she knew they were in charge. However, when the owner was absent, everyone from sales staff members to the service manager claimed to be in charge of the dealership. When I went into the retail side of the RV world, it confirmed the reality that dealerships often fail to establish clear-cut lines of authority and responsibility in their dealership. The main reason for this was the management’s fear that certain key people in the organization might be offended if their name were placed on an organizational chart under someone else’s authority (other than the owners). Service managers, parts managers, warranty managers, sales managers, and even accounting managers/controllers often feel that no one other than the owners are over them in authority. This may be a good philosophy when you first start an RV business, but let me tell you here and now, “this dog won’t hunt!”