DISC & Development: Volie’s Manager Certification Course

Hello, everyone. Welcome back to another volley rally. Today we're joined by a familiar face we are doing. So I really like the work that you're doing. Let's get into a little bit about what it is that you've been going over with these managers and. Yeah, just go ahead and get us started with that.

Yeah, for sure. So, yes. So the course is 12 weeks in. We have some webinars in that time period and some, you know, what I call kind of.

How are those going?

Awesome. Going really, really well. The. The second cohort of our manager course actually had their last session yesterday. Um, I have another in process now and we'll have another one starting in August. The agent training courses are going really well as well. Um, I have those every single week. So four days a week, I have two sessions a day and getting a lot of good feedback there. So it's been really fun.

Busy woman is what we call Katie around here. Um, is it bittersweet when these cohorts end because you've spent so much time individually with these managers and maybe some that, you know, aren't accounts of yours, and so you've like. Or starting to connect with them and you're like, oh, so sad that I don't get to see you.

It really is. It really is. Because we do spend a lot of time. And to your point, I've known some of them beforehand, either have been accounts of mine or have worked with them in other capacities. But some people are, you know, brand new and I wouldn't have had a chance necessarily to get to know them otherwise. So that's been really fun. That's been one of really, the really nice kind of benefits I didn't. I had hoped would happen. Happen, but have been seeing is that they almost kind of become like their own little 20 group for that period of time and. And everybody's really open to collaboration and what works for you and how have you done this and. And so it is. It is. It is bittersweet when it ends because it is fun to. To get together with everybody.

Yeah, absolutely. I think one of the coolest things that Bali does that is so unique to Bali is between this and like, you're. You just mentioned our 20 groups. We create a sense of community that you don't get with other platforms, with other software, with other, you know, tools for your bdc. It's just not a thing. And you and I were just talking about Tanya Rodriguez. She talked about in her Volley rally a couple months ago with the 20 groups. She said, you know, My sales manager gets to go to 20 groups, my GM gets to go to 20 groups, she said. But there was nothing for me. And Bali has done a lot of things in terms of like filling a need that people didn't even realize they had. But in terms of the sense of community, it's really filling a gap that nobody else is doing. So I really love the work that you're doing. Let's get into a little bit about what it is that you've been going over with these managers and yeah, just go ahead and get us started with that.

Yeah, for sure. So, yes. So the, the course is 12 weeks in. We have some webinars in that time period and some, you know, what I call kind of in air quotes, homework, you know, not, not, not too serious. It's about a one to two hour a week commitment for the participants. We have Zoom meetings where we have some. We have six modules that we go through. We talk about items like identifying your leadership stuff, style, kind of where you're starting, where you want to go, the importance of creating a good culture in your BDC and also how you can influence the greater culture at your dealership or dealer group. We talk about KPIs, including some of Volley's recommended benchmarks for metrics, campaign creation. We have a sort of volley branded ChatGPT face that we talk about using for making scripts or ideas for campaigns. So we go through that. We talk about Pulse quite a bit when we look at, you know, evaluating your own operations. They kind of do a self evaluation of their website. They get an anonymous survey they can send to their employees to get some feedback from the team. So that's all included in the modules. And then we rely pretty heavily on the DISC assessments which I think we're going to talk about a little bit more. But we rely pretty heavily on that as well.

Yeah. So let's talk about what DISC is for people who may be unfamiliar and what you guys are doing to apply it not only within CS but also what you're training these managers to be.

Doing with their teams for sure. So DISC is, it's an acronym and it's, we can kind of go through in a minute what, you know, we do have an option for agents to, to take it if managers would like but it's included in, in the manager course and so we're able to, to kind of teach about how a self awareness of your own leadership style can, can help you. Right. What are my natural strengths? What maybe are some blind spots I have? What are things that are a little more difficult for me. What things come easier and then learning about that, what can I pick up in others to. It's not an, you know, as a way. It's not to judge people or put people in a box or label people. It's how do I better communicate with them in the way they best receive it. Yeah. Oh, go ahead. Sorry.

No, that was it.

That was all I was saying as a team. And so we're using it, like I said, in our manager certification. I can talk about a little bit more in a minute. In with customer success with our team, we're using it as well internally. You know, some of some. We have some newer members of our team, which is really exciting. We have some of us who have been around a little bit longer, but it was really good information to see where everybody kind of scored in that. There's four main styles. So I'll just go over it very quickly. We won't. I don't need to take a ton of time going through it and there's. I'm always happy to talk about it if anybody wants to reach out to me. So there's tons of resources out there of what the disc is, but essentially it kind of groups people into four basic sort of categories. And most people have a little bit of each of the four, but one is one or maybe even two are pretty dominant for you. So these are dominant individuals. They're results oriented, very confident, focused, driven, competitive, etc. Our eyes stands for influence. So they're kind of like the social butterflies of the group. They're very enthusiastic, they're very creative, they're very persuasive. Our Cs are our steady folks. Those are our dependable, supportive, collaborative individuals. And then our C's are our conscientious folks. Those are our detail oriented, analytical, precise individuals. And so knowing that, and you know, all of our team has taken an assessment. We actually, when we met for the summer meeting, we each got kind of a report, so to speak, of everybody on our team and kind of where everybody lies within that in that disc profile, which, yes, we know I've worked with some individuals in CS for a number of years now. Um, and obviously we have some members of our team who are newer, but it was really good to get that insight again. You know, how. How can I best communicate with them? Right. How can I best, especially if it's somebody that I haven't worked with before. We're also using it as a way to, you know, kind of highlight people's natural strengths. And abilities. So if for some reason, you know, our Cs as an example, our conscientious detail folks, if you really are, if you're working on something that really needs that detail oriented, precise eye, and you need some tag in a team member who's naturally skilled in that area, you know, they may be able to help you, you know, if you need, if, you know, you need to tag in somebody in that D category, you know, because, you know, we've got something that needs to happen and things that need to move and we need to, you know, focus on our results and come up with a plan, bring in those folks. So that's really, really helped us as a team as well.

Yeah, I think what's cool about disc is it's not like one category is, you know, negative and another category is positive. Like they're, they're all, they all have their, their strengths for different purposes, like you're talking about. And I think it's really beneficial in an environment that we work in where we're remote. A lot of us don't get to meet in person. We just had our summer meeting and there are still members of our team that I've never met in person. So it really helps make sure that everything that you're communicating comes across the way that you mean it to come across and just really helps things flow a lot easier. And, and like you're saying, you know, delegation of tasks, just, you know, making sure that, that you're playing to everybody's strengths. So I think that's really cool. What did you, what did you find in terms of the CS team, how everybody's disproportionately profiles. Kind of landed. Before you answer that though, can you guess what I primarily was? Which of the disc?

I would say you're primarily I. I am, yeah. So, yeah, it's, it's been, it's kind of a fun little game to play to see, you know, where, where people are at or, you know, I kind of people in your life, you might think, oh, you know, my, my husband or my friend or whatever, you know, may be in this category. So what we have found in customer success is a lot of us are either the I or the S types, which is great because there's kind of, you know, in a continuum and a scale, those are the two in the disc that are the most, what we might call people focused. It's not that D's and C's aren't. That's just a strength of the I's and the S's So not surprising in a role where we are customer facing and we work with people a lot that we would naturally be gifted that way. What is kind of interesting is our, our Director of Customer Success Cassie and our VP of Customer Success Liza. One is a D, one is a C, which is also really cool. So that between us we have kind of that well rounded group which is, you know, that's the other thing we talk about with disc is you know, you, you want the, you want that well rounded group, you want people of every different kind of communication style because you need people who are going to be detail focused, you need people who are going to be results driven and moving you towards that goal and moving you towards completion. You're going to, you're going to need people of every different type. So that's been really interesting to see.

Yeah. And I think it's interesting that obviously you guys weren't hired based on your disc assessment to pick like people who are customer oriented to work in customer success. But it just kind of worked out that way that everybody who gravitated towards that department and that position and you know, people that volley thought would thrive there happen to fit into those categories. Tell me a little bit about what you found amongst the BDC managers taking your course, who took the disc assessment and where they fell.

So we found something really similar with the managers. We've had I believe about 40, about 40 managers take, take the disc so far. So it's not a giant sample size I do expect as more and more managers take the, the course and we have that information. I, I expect to see similar results. I don't expect it to change a ton. What we've seen in primarily in the results from, from the certification course for the managers far and away and I just looked this morning before we hopped on. I think it's 60%, maybe 61% are in that S category. Right. Which is really interesting. The next highest is Tip is the sea actually. So again, if you think about it, yes, you know, you want somebody leaving the team. You know, they're, they're, they're detail driven, they're process oriented, they're stable. Team stability is very important. Creating processes is important. So you really want that. Right. And again we have, you know, people who may have strengths in other areas that certainly bring that skill set to their role in BDC as well. We have Is and we have Ds as well. What I have found though in, in, in speaking with people who have taken the course and we have some people for instance who have been. Maybe their entire team has taken DISC previously and just visiting with them and, you know, knowing the research, it is interesting. You, you tend to see, you know, in a dealership environment, you know, people sort of based on their role, kind of gravitating, gravitating towards some of those DISC areas. So our, our GMs are typically that D style, right? A lot of our IT folks and our IT teams are the C, the conscientious. Right. Very important for their job, right. They. So what's been interesting is to see kind of how, you know, again, as we did with our DISC assessments and how kind of in our role we gravitate that there seems to be an overwhelming percentage of people who gravitate towards BDC leadership. Again, not that there are Ds and there are I's. Not that there can't be or shouldn't be, right? You wouldn't, I wouldn't recommend that you keep somebody from that role if they're, if they're not one of those two profiles. But just again, further saying, you know, you need, you need people of every type to make it run smoothly, right? That's really effective. What I also think has been so interesting in, in reading more and digging more into, you know, for, for S's in particular, and I myself am an S as well, digging into that and knowing, you know, these are some things that again, that, that are natural strengths and maybe some barriers or items to work on. What's been really interesting is in our processes, even as we're adjusting in customer success, we've adjusted our onboarding process a little bit. You know, we're kind of, we're adjusting our TMNs as well. Digging into that and knowing, you know, these are some things that again, that, that are natural strengths and maybe some barriers or items to work on. What's been really interesting is in our processes, even as we're adjusting in customer success, we've adjusted our onboarding process a little bit. You know, we're kind of, we're adjusting our teams to where we have coaches and coordinators to better support accounts. A lot of the things we've already been doing really support that S style and type, right? As an example, one of the hallmarks of an S is not that you're resistant to change. It's not that you're, you don't want change or you're going to be on teams to where we have coaches and coordinators to better support accounts. A lot of the things we've already been doing really support that S style and type. Right. As an example, one of the hallmarks of an S is not that you're resistant to change. It's not that you're, you don't want change or you're going to be antagonistic about it. But you know, if, if something happens that's kind of pops up or you don't feel prepared for that can kind of get you off balance, right? So knowing that, antagonistic about it, but you know, if, if something happens that's kind of pops up or you don't feel prepared for that can kind of get you off balance, right? So knowing that. And again, it's, it's kind of been interesting how organically we do have a lot of that in place already in the onboarding process. If we know the majority of our BDC managers are that S type, well, how do we make sure that we do the onboarding process and the continual support process so that they don't feel like there are any surprises or things they weren't prepared for?

Right.

We can also share this information and help other departments in Volley so we can help our sales department. You know, how, how do we better present information of volley to people who are prospects? Our dev team can use it right. When we're, when we're creating new features or adjusting features or creating documentation, how do we do that in a way that the majority of our, our managers best absorb it? And so knowing all of that has been, has been really interesting.

I think that's one of the coolest parts about what you're doing, Katie, is the fact that the more that you're digging into this desk and the more that you learn from doing these courses is that you're not just finding out stuff that relates to you and your department or relates to, you know, our current set of customers. It translates to everybody and you know, like, exactly like what you're saying. I also think what's really cool about these assessments and is it's not a hard and fast rule. Oh, if I am an I, then I'm not detail oriented at all. Or if I am or relates to, you know, our current set of customers, it translates to everybody and you know, like, exactly like what you're saying. I also think what's really cool about these assessments is it's not a hard and fast rule. Oh, if I am an I, then I'm not detail oriented at all. Or if I am an S, then that means that I'm not dominant in some situations in my life, but it's more about recognizing somebody for how they normally ask then that means that I'm not dominant in some situations in my life. But it's more about recognizing somebody for how they normally perceive information and how they convey information, how they ideally operate in their day to day more in tune with perceive information and how they convey information, how they ideally operate in their. The way that someone normally operates, then you can recognize those behaviors and then be able to adjust to them a lot easier. At a previous job, I had a coworker who we worked together for two years. We got hired on at right about the same time and for probably a year and a half of the two years we just could not get it together. She took me as being a very like dominant, overpowering personality. I just think I'm very loud and outgoing. I took some of the things that she did a different way than she meant it. And it was really because we just didn't take the time to get to know one another and how we need to be communicated with. And once we finally figured that out, she's still somebody that I keep in touch with to this day and I haven't worked in six months. She is fantastic person. We just couldn't get that communication piece together. Right. Obviously, you know, see the communication piece is crucial but in any business, I mean within volley communication amongst your team members, amongst departments, amongst you customers, all of that is important. So I don't know, I think, I think everything you're doing is really cool. It's really interesting. Is there any other data that you've gotten from this that you think is like maybe interesting or relevant that you want to share before we wrap up?

Yeah, I think, you know, what we're also learning is, and we'll talk about this more in another rally, you know, probably in a couple months. As I mentioned, we have the option as well for agents to take a disc assessment. You know, if that's something people are interested in their agents doing, they can reach out to me as well and I can give you that information. What we've also found is, you know, some, again some trends among agents that I'm just kind of starting to see little bits of information again. I anticipate that the trend that I'm seeing will continue, but we'll have to look at the data later. But again we're able to absorb that information as well. That's also able to inform the agent training I do, the certification course I do for agents, again knowing if they kind of gravitate towards a certain style, you know, how do I, how do I Keep that in mind to, to present them the information in a way that generally speaking, they're going to best accept it. So that's been really interesting too.

Very cool. Okay, so we've talked about future volley rallies. So to come to tease everybody a little bit, we're going to be going over some of the, you know, results from the agent courses in a few months or so. We're also really hoping to have somebody on who has completed both courses. So someone for the manager course and then someone who has had a lot of agents complete the course come on and talk about how they're applying that to their bdc. So, you know, just something to look out for and be excited about in the future. How can people sign up for this course if they haven't already? Katie?

Yeah, well, I would say probably the, the fastest thing to do is to email me. My email is really easy. It's just Katie k a t I e volley.comv.com so the probably the fastest way is to email me. I'm always happy to hop in, you know, hop in a quick 15, 20 minute meeting and talk to you about it, have a phone call with you, etc, to get you any information you might need. I do have a kind of a flyer or a one sheeter available that I can send you if you know, you need to visit with, with your manager, your leadership to get approval to take the course. But yeah, any, any, any questions, anything you'd like to visit about, you know, just let me know. We do have another cohort starting August 6th and I'll have cohorts, you know, later into the fall as well. So if August doesn't work out for you, you know, that's okay. You can start maybe in September or October. We do have a small charge for that. But yeah, any, any, any questions, anything you'd like to visit about, you know, just let me know. We do have another cohort starting August 6th course. It's $300 for the 12 weeks. That does include again your DISC assessment. It includes that, you know, that collaboration, those, those group meetings, those webinars. And then it culminates in an assessment that you do to kind of relate, you know, here's what I've learned throughout the last 12 weeks and then here are some things that I'm going to, here are three things that I'm going to do in the next 90 days to move my BDC forward. My hope is, and I've asked people to, you know, to kind of clue me in and share that with me if they can. Our hope is that you take that assessment and, you know, format it in whatever way you'd like and share it with, with your manager, your leadership, your boss to kind of, you know, let them know how you've been spending your last 12 weeks with us in the course and, and how you're going to apply that information going forward.

Love that. And this is currently only being offered to customers, so if you're a volley customer, definitely follow those steps. If you're not a volley customer, what in the world are you doing? How are you running your BDC without volley is the question we ask people Time, but highly encourage everybody. Even if you don't get the opportunity to take the course to take a disc assessment, just look it up and, and take it and just find out. Just out of curiosity, if you do, definitely drop it in the comments on this video. We would love to just. It's just a fun thing to see for sure. Katie, thank you so much for being on today. We appreciate all the knowledge that you've shared with us today. It was a pleasure.

Yeah, thanks, Summer. Appreciate it.

All right, everybody else, we hope you have a fantastic day. Bye.