Four Reasons Why Consultants Can't Save Your Service Drive (Service Drive Revolution)

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Welcome, everybody to Service Drive Revolution. The show for anyone with a service drive that loves and cares about customers, that wants to be a part of the revolution in this fast and ever changing industry. Please say hello to Christian Lafferty.

Hello, everyone.

I'm Christopher Collins and we have a fun show for you today because we're going to talk about consultants. I personally hate consultants. I know people might think that we're consultants, but we are not consultants. And we're going to go through the four reasons consultants can't and won't save you. It's a fun list. It's going to be informative. We're going to tell you some inside industry secrets for sure, but maybe a laugh or two they might have.

I would hope so. I expected. It's the holiday season, you know that, right?

Yes. And we also are going to answer your questions. Remember, if you want a question answered on the show, you want our professional advice, our insight, our years and years of wisdom and knowledge at your disposal, all you have to do is call 8333, ask SDR. That's 8, 3, 3 times 3, 3. Ask SDR. Leave a message. And if we play your question on the show, we will send you some swag. But more importantly, the advice is priceless.

Yeah, priceless. The swag is just the cherry.

Doesn't just have to be about the service drive.

That's our area of expertise. But also, frankly, you know, Christian's gone through a couple divorces. He can give some relationship advice. I used to always think that was funny with Tom Lycus. Do you ever listen to him? I think Tom Lycus was more of a California phenomenon. Phenomenon.

Well said. Phenomenon.

But he would give relationship advice on the radio and he'd been divorced like six times.

Nice.

Had no money left. Like just a disaster. He's like, who else would give better advice than somebody who's been divorced six times?

Everything not to do trial, trial by fire. For sure.

It's funny. Okay, let's talk about the five reasons consultants can't and won't save you. Four reasons.

I think four is going to be good. There will be. There's sub reasons within the reasons, too. Like, this is a good list.

This is a good conversation.

I can't wait. It's going to be great. No holds barred.

Number one, if they fixed you, they'd be out of work.

Whoopsies.

Right?

Talk about having a conflict of interest. Right? So the better that they make the client do, the better their chance of unemployment. Yeah, yeah, that's A problem.

So for, for us as a company, like we don't have contracts because that's what our competition would do. And people had.

You know, an apprehension to getting help because they'd be like, well, what happens is I'm locked into this contract, there's no value and I can't get out of it. And so if they have a long term contract, if they're trying to tie you up for a year or two, but they're probably not any good.

If we aren't earning your business, we don't want your business.

That's right.

We're not providing value. You could walk away.

I think that's a great reason I would really hesitate trying to get into a consulting contract with someone that wanted anything other than that. My results speak for themselves.

Yeah.

It's funny, but I worked for a consulting company.

Really early on and that was their whole thing is they would spin plates. They called it spinning plates, but they would, they would try to spin as many plates as they could to always keep you feeling like you were never good enough or never, you know, never fixed, that you always needed more. And then they, they would also bring up these subjects that they would make a huge deal out of, like proficiency. Like I remember, like proficiency was like all they would talk about, which it never made any sense to me because it didn't help anybody. I was just like with the technicians, right. So I know in the, in the truck world proficiency means efficiency. So let's just define the difference between proficiency and efficiency. So efficiency is if there's eight hours in a day and the technician flags eight hours, he's 100% efficient. They would get into this whole thing about efficiency versus proficiency. And proficiency was how long the technician was clocked on in RO because that showed how long they were standing at parts, how long they were taking a break, how long it took them to pull a car in and out. But none of that really made sense. And I don't know how many times after I left that consulting company and I went back into their clients on my own and the shop would be like, I remember this once. I'm not joking, Christian. The place was losing money and the shop was 120something% proficient and it was 80% efficient.

Right.

Because the technicians were really good at managing the.

There's a line at the clock.

Yeah. Because they were all bonused on it. So they had a bonus for the tax. They all made like so many dollars more if they were proficient, but they weren't efficient. And as soon as I Switched it. You know, they were over 100% efficient and they weren't managing the clocking on and off of an ro. They were managing the production and getting cars fixed.

Right. Even clocking on and off a job by definition is inefficient because they're not working.

We used to argue about that because I would tell them like, that's not, that's not the best thing for the client. And they were like, yeah, but you know, it's a new thing. And they thought it was like a, you know, there were a couple things like that. Like they would try to get rid of the back parts counter.

Which I thought was funny. Also something you and I were talking about earlier about putting a kiosk.

Yeah.

So they would, they would spend months like planning out putting a parts kiosk in the shop. So they would have a parts person in the shop.

And I did it three times. So in three different service departments, I put a parts person in a kiosk. It's funny because the dealers would go to their 20 group and they'd be bragging to everybody like, oh yeah, we got, we closed our back parts counter and we have a parts person actually in the shop.

I don't know why, but for me, like I always go to this weird place where I'm like, well I'm just curious like what's, what has happened to our efficiency? And the efficiency, every time I did it went down about 5%.

It's weird, right?

It's not weird though. It makes total sense because like I kind of looked into it. It's just like when those guys that started MPI less and all that, like his son called me and he's like, you know, I mean they had, they had problems because I would tell them like every time we put your inspection software in, our hours per hour go down. And I figured out why and I told him, I go, if you want to pay me, I'll fix it for you. But there's glitches in your system in the process. You don't understand really what's, you know, what's going on. But having a parts person in a kiosk, they don't have parts. And so when you have a back parts counter, a lot of times techs walk up, they can hand them the filter, the thing, the fast moving stuff when they have to type it in and then a parts runner goes and gets it. It isn't any quicker, it's not any quicker than the tech just ordering it from install. And most of the time what Those parts guys would end up doing is just BSing with the text and talking. It doesn't, it doesn't really. Them walking a little bit further to a back parts counter doesn't help. And in every situation where they've eliminated the back parts counter, I've put in at least one. Even in big shops with 70 techs, they gotta have a place to ask a question or actually interact with a parts person.

So, you know, if you can get a shop to 80, 90% ordered through the computer, that's pretty good. But there is a 10 or 15% anomaly that you're hurting the efficiency in the shop if you don't have some sort of parts counter that they can go to.

I will say that I think that the technology is getting better in terms of what the techs can request from the parts department. So there is a little bit less face to face. It just isn't completely eliminated, I don't think. And I just think that there's a lot to the parts department supporting the shop productivity.

I just think the lesson in that is I was actually looking at the results and they were so caught up in this new thing that everybody consultors, like, we'll come in and we'll set up this thing and people are like, oh, it's, it makes sense that if you had parts people in the shop, then there would be better interaction between. And you make this weird connection like, oh, that would work. But nobody tests it out to see if it actually works. They're just paying consultants. Just like they pay consultants to come out and do these quick lubes. Consultants come out. They, you know, we want two techs to a stall. These kids are going to do oil changes in 15 minutes. It's like, well, the, the cost doesn't outweigh the investment. Like you can do an oil change in 17 minutes or in, you know, 12 minutes with two. But it doesn't really add up.

Plate though. Oh, that's something to talk about for a long time.

Oh, people love it. But the numbers don't work and it's not, it's not effective. And you have your least talented people touching the most cars.

Right. And two at a time.

Yeah.

So then there's an accountability issue within the actual car that's being worked on and who did what. Right. It's, it's a much bigger thing. But consult away.

Okay. Number two is most of the time consultants are between jobs. So I always have this joke like, what's a consultant and somebody in between jobs? And they've never really Accomplished anything professionally themselves.

Yeah. So. And we're in the process of growing. Right. So I'm doing a lot of interviews and stuff like that. And I would say that's the most common thing that I get for applicants. I don't interview those people. But the most common thing I see is people between jobs.

Oh, yeah. Like the team we have, like, everybody's a rock star.

Yeah. It's hard to get on it, but.

Yeah. No, they've accomplished amazing things. So they don't have the idealized version of things. Cause I think when you have never accomplished something yourself, you. Your mode of communicating is to communicate an idealized version of something because you've never actually done it.

Yeah.

And you have a different respect for things when you've actually done it. Because it's harder than you think.

Yeah. And our coaches are looking.

It's not easy.

Yeah. Our coaches are looking for something different than a lot of consultants. Right. Like they're heavily vested in the results of the client is what I would say. Well, that one's ahead of myself. Sorry.

Coming up.

Yeah. But I would say that it's a big difference. They're not between jobs.

Yeah. I think the other one with consultants, this is what I had for number three, is the consultant leaves and you do the work.

And so.

One thing that I think that we are very aware of is that we're teachers and we're coaches. We call ourselves coaches. Like, we want to be your personal coach and we want to coach you, but we don't have any false premonition that we're doing the work. You're doing the work, you're emotionally committing to it. Just the emotional work. It's not easy to change. Like, if you're doing things this way today and you're getting a less than amazing result and you want a better result, you're going to have to change. We understand that coaching you through that change isn't easy and that it's emotional as much as anything. It's mental.

So I think that that's one thing is consultants want the credit because then it's them and they're important. Where a coach wants to see the person they're coaching or the player be successful.

Yeah. The better. I think that that's a big thing is speaking for us as the coaching team, our high is when someone actually exceeds what we did when we were in that job. Oh, yeah.

We're rooting for them.

Yeah. I love to see people crash numbers and records and stuff like that. It's so fun.

And Then the last one I had and I kind of have it a couple different ways. But they're not attached to the results.

Right.

And they're compensated for their time, not the results.

Like you're paying. Like I don't know how many times we've paid a consultant for something and you pay them this big dollar amount and then they're not. Whether you get the result or not, they're not giving you your money back.

Nope.

Like they're not attached to the result whatsoever. They're trading. They're trading their time for money or their knowledge for money. But the connection to the result does not exist. It's on you to get the results or figure it out. Where.

You know, our coaches are actually compensated and bonused on the results of. And the important measurables too. That's the other thing is your proficiency doesn't matter. What matters is your net and your customer experience and customer satisfaction. Those two things matter. Efficiency in the shop will end up having an effect on your net.

So.

So it's a measurable.

Right.

But it's not the most important measurable. And I think consultants like to hide in the early numbers. Right?

Yeah.

But not the final number and the final result, which is your net and the customer experience is where what really matters. And then all the little things. That's the thing we're coaching you through and the puzzle pieces and helping you navigate and fix your systems. But I think most consultants are very, very scared of the net conversation. In fact, when you interview consultants that have worked for other places and you ask them, well, what was the average net to gross of your clients? They're like, never saw a financial. I'm like, what? We wouldn't even take a client if we didn't see their financial. Like it's all about your financial. That's all we care about is you, your roi.

Right, Right. Absolutely. And they don't even know how to.

Read a financial sometimes.

Nope. I've had times where they don't know how to calculate effective labor.

Yeah.

It's as simple as that. It doesn't make sense how you can guide someone to success without knowing those basic things. Right. I think the other thing too is that as a consultant I don't always feel like and I don't know if I'm saying this right, but I think about. You started to hit on it a little while ago is that. And I don't know exactly what the percentage is, but so much of it is self care and fixing the self which ends up making the department Successful. Right. So I think the thing is that I've never viewed consultants as actually giving a crap about me. Like people have come in and that my employers have hired or whatever. I just never felt like they, they that my success or my well being mattered to them. And I think that that's another difference is that like you have to care first about the people as individuals and then the rest of the stuff kind of comes back to you.

Yeah, let's read our little thing that we'll read in our morning meeting sometimes about what we stand for as a company. I think that's great and I know this is kind of turning into a commercial, but you're coming up on the end of the year and if you want to do better in 2021 and be effective, you're going to need a coach. And we want to be that coach. So you know the, the best thing that can happen is you raise your hand and we help you and we go some amazing places that you didn't think were possible on your own. But here's kind of the, the manifesto I wrote for us. Like I don't know, it's probably over a year ago now and I called it training. And what I wrote is training. It only exists while the person is taking it. But just like someone will enjoy a specific piece of art at a gallery, most of the time when they leave the art, it becomes past tense. It only was real when present and is hard to recreate in its entirety in one's memory. Art training will have the opposite effect. When someone is taking it, ingesting it, it should be delivered in a way that, that has a lasting effect. It should inspire ambitions. It should make the impossible obtainable. Pull off the veil and reveal the recipe for the desired outcome. It should leave with them. It should change them. It should anoint them and empower them. Hence every tool available should be used appropriately. Manipulation at the highest level. Psychological magic. And that's where you come into. It's more about changing the person, right. Weaponize the ones. The self made underdogs that wear the disguise of the entitled.

Understanding that life changing empower. Empowering knowledge is contagious to other aspects of life. When someone takes a new tool, implements it and gets positive results, they gain confidence and believe. We have all witnessed a manager have success then become a better father, a better husband, a better citizen. No longer feeling left behind or irrelevant. It's not just training. It's Rol and Roc return on learning and return on community.

So that's, that's the Part that I think matters the most, and what you were kind of saying is when someone takes these tools and they implement it and they get positive results, they gain confidence, and then they start to believe in themselves. And then when you start to believe in yourself, you start to attract more positive things. You start to win more, and then winning becomes more of a habit. And we've all witnessed somebody who comes in and they become a better father, mother, husband, a better citizen because they have confidence, and then they're spreading that positivity around with everybody else around him, right? So all ships rise. And so that's.

Our motto that we live by or our manifesto. And it's not about consulting. It's not about us. It's not about you needing us. It's about us providing you with tools that makes you better. And so going into 2021, you know, let's do some great things. Let's change the industry. Let's hit some big numbers and some big goals. And, you know, we'd be so lucky if you'd allow us to be your coach and to help you through that journey. And for everybody that's already in our coaching group and that we're coaching, you know, we're hitting some amazing numbers and having a lot of fun. But I will tell you, hands down, you know, coming up to the end of the year and the holidays and everything, I think the thing that we're all the most grateful for is, you know, seeing. Seeing people become better. Better citizens. Right? Better. Watching them gain confidence.

And if it's one thing that we need right now, is that we all need to see people becoming better citizens.

There's been a lot of.

Yeah, there's been a lot of negativity over the last couple of months. I think that really, this focus on committing to becoming better citizens is. It'll. It'll transform the world is what I believe. I know that I'm kind of going off on a little bit of a tangent as far as that goes, but I really, really mean that. I think that that's. There's a huge opportunity. I was gonna ask you a question. I couldn't remember if I'd asked you this before, but what kind of music do Christmas elves Like, I don't know.

Rap music?

That's funny.

I have another one.

We should end there. But I think we have a question.

We do.

Let's take the question. Remember, if you have a question and you would like some help, the number is 8, 3, 3, 3, ask STR. That's 8, 3, 3, 3. 327-5737. Hi. I'm a shop foreman in a small import dealership in rural New York. Customer service scores are constantly in the 85 to 88% range. And the service manager doesn't seem to care about anything. He' and never makes any attempts. Trying to improve customer service scores, profits.

Bad leadership is making good employees want to leave. I want our service department to thrive. So how can I improve our department with a manager who doesn't care? Thanks.

Wow.

You go first.

So there's a couple of things going on there that I thought of when. When I heard this question. One is that if the CSE is consistently bad, be patient. Because typically, what happens after a long time of CSE being bad, that it comes back to haunt the manager after a while. That's one of the things you've got to be either really good at, work itself out. Yeah, you either got to be really, really good at profitability, or you got to be really, really good at taking care of customers. My guess is that person's not good at either, so that part of it will work himself out. The thing that I always say, and I don't know, like, if you're going to complain about leadership, your other option is to raise your hand. Like, I don't know. To me, if you don't like the way that it's done, your options are to either, you know, become part of the solution or shut up. But if you don't like the way it's done, you're already a shop foreman. I mean, maybe you need to hop in the chair or at least volunteer and let somebody know that you're interested in making it better.

Yeah. How would you let them know that you're interested?

So I would probably start off by.

And I don't know, maybe this is manipulation a little bit, but I would try to start to learn as much as I could about the job. I would want somebody to tell me and teach me, teach me about financials, teach me about what the ins and outs of the department are, maybe start to game plan with a team on how we can make CSE better, those kinds of things. I would become a student, and then when the time came, I would probably go to ownership and be like, I think I've got an opportunity to try and take this department to the next level.

I would. I would go to ownership right out of the gate, and I would say, hey, my aspirations are to become a manager. I'm doing my goals for the next couple of years, and I have a five year Plan and what do I need to do to become a manager? And then shut up.

Yeah. I'd be so interested in someone coming to me and saying, yeah, no, then.

They'Re going to tell you. And if they don't tell you, then go somewhere else where they will. But if you ask somebody to mentor you and teach you what they know.

It'S rare that somebody won't want to help you.

Yeah.

Especially if you do it with the, with, you know, humility and real intention to learn and be good at it. People are going to root for you.

Yeah, I think that that is. It's definitely one of those things too. When departments are underperforming, whether you know it or not, conversations are being had.

Yeah.

Like, don't think that someone's, you know, for the most part, there's not a lot of sacred cows. Right. That, that it becomes good cows make the best hamburgers. That's a Dave Anderson one hamburger sounds really good. Right? Are you hungry? I am hungry. It's not. So I did, I was going to tell you too. I did.

Parts hold.

Yeah, parts hold. This is shirt number three.

Wait, is this a segue into a joke?

Probably.

So I was. Because you always do that. You're like, oh, so I was walking, so I was driving. So.

So do you like to camping or whatever? You think I should try and disguise it a little bit more?

What?

Do you think I should disguise my segways a little bit? Cause I kind of like it. It sets.

I like it for sure. I think it's funny.

So I was interviewing this guy a couple of weeks back and his resume looked really, really good and he had some good experience. Ask him all the right questions, everything like that. He's got some really good answers. And I said, can you explain this four year gap in your employment? He says, yeah, of course.

You're laughing already. This is great. So.

I was at Yale for those four years and I'm like, wow. I don't think I've ever had anybody put in an application that actually went to Yale.

Ivy League, right.

So I'm like, come on, come on down. When can you start? And he's like, you know, I'll start as soon as possible. I really need a job.

So he meant jail.

So he had a little bit of a speech impediment. And his, his J's were wise.

Yeah, it's a little bit of a speech impediment.

Yeah. But boy, he's a loyalty. He's great. And if you need a car broken into.

He wasn't in an artistic school. He was in jail.

That's right.

Pretty funny. I like it. Well, good stuff. We hope everybody makes some big goals for 2021. Let us be a part of that and help you achieve those and be your coach and have a happy holiday. And we will see you again next week on Service Drive Revolution.

Thanks so much for watching this episode of Service Job Revolution. We're uploading new stuff every day, so make sure you subscribe and click the bell icon so you don't miss out. If you have a question you'd like us to answer on the show, call 8333-ASK SDR and we'll answer your question on the show. That's 8333-ASK SDR. For special deals on our books and training, head over to offers.chriscollinsinc.com now that's offers.chriscollinsInc.com hi, I'm Chris Collins, and I'll see you in the next video.