Successful Communication Leads to Profitability

We can learn a great deal about making our dealerships run efficiently by considering how we communicate our goals, visions, and strategies with all levels of management. When you watch a football game, you will find both offense and defense in a huddle prior to the snap. Why waste so much time in a huddle when you could be halfway down the field? Well, the football world realizes that it is absolutely essential to meet regularly in order for all team members to understand what the game plan is for the specific moment. The huddle helps each member to prepare for the upcoming play; it is used for brainstorming, for encouragement, and for correcting mistakes. The huddle only takes a matter of seconds, but it is so valuable to a winning team. What about RV/Marine/Auto dealerships? Oftentimes departments such as the Service Department or Sales Department will have their own departmental meetings, but rarely does the dealership have all departments meet on a regular basis (Sales, Parts, Service, Accounting, F & I, and upper management). What ends up happening in this situation is utter disorganization, confusion, and departmental competition. Each department acts as if they are in charge of the dealership, and the departments often try to figure out ways to promote the best interests of their own department. Salespeople tell technicians what, how, and when they should be doing something on a customer’s sold unit. The Service Department figures out ways to charge more internals to the Sales Department. The Accounting Department is flooded with phone calls and visitors from other departments demanding reports, checks, vehicle information, commission checks, and they even expect Accounting to give them change for a dollar to purchase a soda from the vending machine. The Parts Department manager doesn’t place special order requests for the technicians because they can’t stand each other. Why is there so much confusion, disorganization, and division within a dealership? It can be summed up in two words: leadership and communication.

Leadership is badly needed in many RV/Marine/Auto dealerships. Owners/GMs must recognize that people have a tendency to want to do their own thing. Leadership must guide and direct the people, not vice versa. A good owner/GM should conduct a weekly meeting that includes all levels of management from all departments. If you’re a small dealership, it may mean that only two people get together because that is the sum total of management – you still need to huddle together.