Building Connections

A wide variety of personalities make up any organization, and the Automotive Industries Association of Canada is no different.

The national association’s past few chairmen have demonstrated this well. Larry Jefferies, chairman in 2004, was diplomatic but forceful in his own way. Malcolm Sissmore, who held the post in an extended term from April 2005 through November 2006, has always been a highly focused, highly motivated, and motivating individual. Ken Coulter brought unbridled enthusiasm for the industry, combined with a touch of rebellion in his unrelenting push to involve the service provider. John Cochrane, even more than his predecessors, can be seen as a bit of a firebrand on the issue of access to repair information, and brought a unique brand of technical understanding and pragmatic reasoning in keeping with his background as both a technician and a successful jobber.

Together, they have helped set the stage for Larry Raymond, who takes on the role at a time when building connections within the many segments of the industry is at a premium.

On the verge of making significant progress on the right to repair issue as well as forging increasingly important links with the automotive service provider community through the ASP Council, Raymond may well be the best fit for the times.

Raymond, who hails from St. John’s, Newfoundland, has an unmistakable easygoing Atlantic Canada nature. A veteran road warrior for the past 25 years with aftermarket manufacturer Blue Streak-Hygrade Motor Products, he has made his home in Barrie, Ont. for some 17 years. Through his experience, he understands the value of relationships and is looking for ways to build those connections.

He can talk for quite some time about industry issues, but ask him why he thinks he is well-suited for the role of chairman, or why he was first asked to join the association’s executive committee that put him in line for the chairman’s role, and he’ll tell you he doesn’t know.

“I have asked a few guys, mainly the guys on the executive committee, and they all say, ‘Well, why wouldn’t we ask you?’ I’d like to know why they did,” he says with a wry smile.

Ask executive vice-president Marc Brazeau, who will take over the role of president from Ray Datt in January, and he is far more definitive.

“He has been a long-time volunteer for the association”–Raymond will mark his 25th year working with the association this year–“and he has a real passion for the industry. That’s what he brings.”

Ask others, and they will also tell you not to be fooled by Raymond’s easygoing approach: his desire to get the job done is as unrelenting as his enthusiasm for the industry.

“I just go about my business,” says Raymond mildly, “and enjoy it.”

Even though he does not officially take over the role of chairman until November 23, 2007, it could be said that his work has already begun.

Fresh from the Western Regional Conference in Regina, Sask., his attentions are focused not only on the conference, but also on the events surrounding it. One example is the car check lane conducted as part of the Be Care Aware program at a local shopping mall that was held on the Saturday after the conference.

“When we went out to set out the cones to mark off the area, there were probably already 15 cars lined up. It was a lot of fun. We had a great day.

“We need to do more of those. It was good for consumer awareness, and we want to take some of the data from that and make some use of it.”

Raymond says that virtually every car had some part of maintenance that had been neglected, but beyond that, what he saw was how well jobbers and service providers can work together.

“We had a car check lane in Regina after the conference. Jobbers and service providers both see the benefits. It was truly a fun event, and we felt like we were doing something useful.”

Having grassroots industry members planning and implementing the car check event was evidence of the type of commitment that exists in the industry, but sitting in the coffee shop together prior to its start provided real proof of how much common ground exists among the various segments of the aftermarket.

“It helped build relationships between the jobbers and shops, but also the technicians who largely do the work at these events.”

Armed with that recent experience, Raymond says that events like the Be Car Care Aware car check lane, and the program at large, need to be emphasized.

“Down the road it is something we need to promote more. It builds a bond between the jobber and his customers.

“Progressive service providers can drive the business the same way the jobbers can.”

Raymond also sees that, much as there has been good progress in getting service provider representatives involved in the association–a connection unheard-of only a few short years ago–more progress needs to be made. With an Automotive Service Provider (ASP) Council made up of more than a dozen representatives of regional service provider associations, the representation is strong but far from total.

“I think we have made good progress with the associations we do have on the council. But the association representatives are individuals, so it is those people who are going to make it work.”

He points out that there are a number of individuals involved who have really understood the importance of participating in order to move the industry forward as a group.

“It furthers all of our interests–the ASP’s as well as the jobbers’ and the manufacturers’. I know we will continue to move forward and expand on the services we offer the [service provider] associations. “The more we can have involvement from every step of the chain, the better we can go to government. That’s the key. We need to go with one voice and prove that we speak for every level of our business.

“I have always been in favour of having the service providers as part of the AIA, going back to the days when Ken [Coulter] started the ball rolling on it, before I was on the executive committee. To me it is a no-brainer. They are the grassroots of the industry and we just didn’t have a connection with them.

“Any way we can increase our connection with the service provider, whether they see value in it in getting closer to their jobber or whatever, it is value to the association and to the industry.”

Probably the most pointed issue on that front is the fight for greater access to repair tools and information. The association and the industry have made significant inroads, from being nowhere on the radar only three years ago to having not only the ear of members of parliament, but even having the then-minister of industry Maxime Bernier make a written request to the automakers for the reasons why they feel they need to restrict access.

The recent cabinet shuffle is seen as a minor setback; but the association, and the issue, still has traction in Ottawa.

Furthermore, Raymond says that connecting with the service providers has provided an indispensable element to the association’s efforts.

“I think it has helped give us focus from the guys who are running into the problem every day. We don’t see much of that at the jobber, WD, or manufacturer level.

“We see it as a company because we are involved in vehicle electronics, but the jobbers won’t see it until the sales are eroding. The guys who are trying to fix the vehicle will see it right away.”

Issues with tire pressure monitoring systems, he says by way of example, can arise an hour after the car leaves the dealer’s lot. “They can blow a tire and yes, we can fix the tire, but we can’t make the light go away. You have to push them back to the dealer.”

He’d like to see even greater participation by service providers in letting their associations and the AIA know when they have a problem. “They are facing issues and they are not letting us know. It is always difficult to get them to take the time; it’s tough for them.” But lacking that information does not help move
the issue forward with government.

Despite the fact that he might be seen to some as purely a manufacturer’s rep, focused on head-office dealings, possibly isolated from the day-to-day comings and goings that drive the industry, Raymond is quick to emphasize the need for communication throughout the industry.

“I don’t know that I have a single mandate that I am going to work on as I go through this. At AIA, we have a strategic plan. We take our direction from the membership. We bring those key players into the strategic planning session. Bringing the service providers into that gets us a view from a different level.

“Some of our new initiatives came from the service providers. It just makes sense. We are taking it to the street. They play an important role and we have them involved in increasingly growing numbers. The AIA is supposed to be the voice of the industry, and the AIA now speaks for a group of the service providers. Maybe not everyone, but then we don’t speak for every jobber either.

“Like the divisions of the association, service providers bring issues at the local level. We get input from the senior CEO level, but you also need it from the three-bay shop that is a great shop, and has a great customer base that relies on him to take care of their vehicle. The more broadly we can get our information, the better. And the ASP is key.

“As I said when we started this process, if they weren’t involved we’d be missing a key component.

“We don’t have it perfect yet, but I think we are on the right track.”