Repair shop owners struggling with staff resistance or inconsistent performance may be creating the problem themselves by failing to set clear expectations during hiring, an industry expert suggested.
Many shops bring on new service advisors without clearly defining the role, explained Mike Delacruz, founder and CEO of Overdryve Marketing. They then feel frustrated when those employees resist tasks such as calling customers or discussing recommended work.
“Setting the right expectation for new hires is absolutely critical,” he said at the MWACA Hi‑Tech Training and Vision Expo.
Job descriptions often focus on administrative duties while ignoring the consultative and sales responsibilities that come with the service advisor role, Delacruz said at the event in Kansas City.
“When I look at job descriptions from advisors, I’m like, ‘What in this is about sales?” he said. “Nothing about [being a] sales consultant, sales professional.”
That gap, Delacruz said, creates conflict once a new hire is on the job. When owners later introduce scripts or outreach tasks, advisors may push back because they do not see those duties as part of what they were hired to do.
“So what happens is, when I give an advisor a script, they look at me like I’m crazy,” he said. “They’re like, ‘Hey, I’m not doing it.’”
Those conversations are far easier when expectations are established before the first day of work, Delacruz pointed out. Calling customers during slow periods should never come as a surprise.
“When we’re slow, we’re going to have to make some phone calls,” he said. “Outline it in the job description.”
He also stressed the importance of tying expectations back to a shop’s mission. New hires are easier to train and manage when they understand why certain processes exist.
“If your team is bought into the mission, you’ll get little to no pushback,” Delacruz said.
That clarity allows owners to “groom them from the very start,” rather than trying to change behaviour months later.
Delacruz added that new hires should be trained to focus on relationships rather than transactions, starting with basic customer interaction.
Without clear expectations, he warned, shops risk repeating the same hiring cycle.
“You’re still paying payroll,” Delacruz said. “So what are we doing during the slow times?”
Image credit: Depositphotos.com
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