From the Magazine: From exit to re-entry

Even the best laid plans can go awry when something unexpected happens in your shop

I believe that my role as a leader is to continually learn, adapt and grow, inspiring my team to do the same in an ever-changing industry. This year, I learned that you can prepare your business for success, have everything fall apart, adapt to uncomfortable situations and come out even stronger on the other side. 

In March of this year, I moved to Nova Scotia, five provinces away from my business in Saskatchewan. I made this move for personal reasons. I didn’t have to move; I was drawn back to the place I was born and where I have aging family members that I would like to spend more time with.

If you have been reading my articles for a while, you know that I have set up my business to run without me. I have hired great people, built systems for them to follow and then repeatedly tested them to ensure I could make a smooth exit. I thought I had it all figured out, but the universe had more lessons for me to learn.

I thought I had it all figured out, but the universe had more lessons for me to learn.

In May, my main R&R (remove and replace) technician decided that he could no longer perform the job. His body was worn out, and he was ready to change careers — immediately.

The problem, however, was that I didn’t have a replacement for him. He had been training a second-year apprentice, but she was not able to perform at the level he had been for me. I had no other choice but to hop on a plane and pull wrenches until I could find a replacement.

I posted the job and waited for the resumes to pour in. And what did I get? First- and second-year apprentices. I had a diagnostician and a second-year apprentice already. Who was going to do all the R&R?

I consulted with my team and chose to hire an apprentice right out of Saskatchewan Polytechnic. She had excellent marks and the instructors told me she just needed some experience. From there, we created an apprentice training program with increased quality control checks, ensuring the work quality was up to our standards.

We tweaked our advertising to focus on the services that could be successfully accomplished with the technician team we had. I replaced a service advisor, who was not on board with selling the value of preventative maintenance, and I worked with the apprentices, giving them as much knowledge as I could in a short period of time.

There are young apprentices out there who need us to help them grow into the technicians they dream of being.

At the end of May, I went back home with the realization that I would be splitting my time by working on the business part-time and in the business part-time until my team was in a position to be independent again. 

Throughout the year, I have spent my time at home monitoring the team’s progress, coaching my managers and improving our marketing systems. When I’m in the shop, I find every opportunity to educate the apprentices, teaching them tips and tricks for efficiency, assigning them complicated repairs and supervising them and setting up sessions to train them specific skills (extracting bolts, repairing threads, welding, torching). 

It hasn’t been an easy year, personally or professionally. However, I am grateful for the support I’ve received from my spouse and my team, who have helped me develop a strategy to combat our technician shortage.

There are young apprentices out there who need us to help them grow into the technicians they dream of being. It takes patience, time and money to invest in their futures. But long term, it’s also an investment in the future of our industry. 

Erin Vaughan is the owner of Kinetic Auto Service in Regina

This article originally appeared in the December issue of CARS magazine