Automotive News Canada - April 2022 - F23

New process means happier employees, customers
L
ike a lot of fi xed ops departments
during COVID-19, the staff at Esserman
International Motors in Doral, Fla.,
was stretched thin. Th e Acura and
Volkswagen stores typically employed 21 porters
but cut back to 15 during the pandemic.
Th e porters who remained had been at Esserman
anywhere from four to 20 years, a bit
unusual for a job that historically has a high
turnover rate.
" We treat our employees well, " says Francisco
Mora, service manager at the VW store.
" Since they have been with me a long time,
they're earning more. "
But as the months went by, Mora could tell
his porters were a stressed-out group. Th ey
told him they felt overworked. Dealership traffi
c was increasing, but with the number of staff
decreasing, the porters were busier than ever .
" Th ey weren't just busy, they were being
encounters when dropping off a vehicle for
service and the last they see when picking up
their vehicle. While Citrin or DealerFlex employees,
the porters still wear the dealership
uniforms.
'We cover all of that'
Having an interest in cars is a plus; porters
sometimes do minor jobs such as oil and fl uid
fi ll-ups, interior cleaning, organizational tasks
and more. Neatness counts. So does knowing
how to drive a stick shift.
Companies such as Citrin and DealerFlex,
of Philadelphia , do the hiring, perform background
checks, conduct training and handle
payroll for porters, valets, auto lot technicians,
shuttle drivers and more.
" Hiring is tough, " Blair says. " Getting applications,
interviewing candidates, performing
background and drug tests. We cover all of that. "
DealerFlex CEO Daniel Bell says his company
off ers options for dealerships of varying
sizes.
For larger dealerships, " we would handle
everything from interviewing, onboarding
and payroll, treating it as a managed service, "
he says. " In a smaller-volume dealer, with only
one valet or porter, we use our recruitment infrastructure,
but the dealer would be responsible
for interviewing and hiring the employee.
We will pre-screen for you and deliver candidates
to extend the off ers directly. "
Some human resources departments " just
aren't designed for this type of labor, " Bell says.
Citrin says it takes a scientifi c approach to its
From left, porters Juan Rodriguez and Carlos Marino and Service Manager Francisco Mora
operations, watching trends in the market,
following frequent search terms and taking
note of the perks that candidates want. Th e
key takeaway is that people are looking for
continued growth opportunities.
Career development
Bailey says one of the dealership's valets
hired by Citrin is now a Loyalty Program consultant
in the sales department, and a Citrin
account manager is now a service adviser.
Francisco Mora, service manager at Esserman
International Volkswagen in Doral, Fla.,
employs 15 porters (see story, above) and
knows fi rsthand the benefi ts of grooming service
staff for bigger jobs. He started at Esserman
in 2008 as a cashier. One of his former porters
is now a six-fi gure VW master technician.
" We defi nitely encourage upward movement
and hire from within, " he says. Being a
porter " is a steppingstone for many of our employees.
We have many success stories here,
and we are very proud of them. "
Hiring, training and retaining are the three
most challenging parts for companies such as
Citrin and DealerFlex. Th e " job fl ight " because
of the pandemic isn't helping matters.
" It's a challenging hiring climate, " Blair says,
" and I think that won't change for the next few
years. " 
APRIL 2022 PAGE 23
pulled in every direction. I was really riding
them, " Mora says. " Th e porters were saying,
'We need help.' "
Mora looked at the department's work process
and discovered a fl aw.
" It turns out my service technicians were
driving the cars through the automated car
wash when the work was completed and taking
them upstairs to the porters to be handdried
and vacuumed, " Mora says. " Th e technicians
were sitting in line waiting to get a car
washed for anywhere from fi ve to 20 minutes
when they could be turning wrenches instead.
" It was a process that had been in place for a
very long time. "
Th e process was changed, and the porters
took the vehicles from the techs to wash and
dry them and deliver them back to the customers.
" I
eliminated what was holding them back, "
Mora says. " I eliminated vacuuming, which
we had been doing for many years. I anticipated
surveys saying the customer wasn't happy
because of that. Instead, I am now getting surveys
that say they are happier because the service
is quicker. "
Th e revised schedule allowed the 15 porters
to do the work of 21.
And now, the techs are more productive and
the porters more effi cient.
" A technician can now get to the next car in
minutes because they are not wasting 20 or so
minutes in the wash line, " Mora says. " I have
happier customers because the service is faster
and happier employees because they are
not pulled in every direction.
" I believe in organization - in step one, step
two, step three processes where everyone is
doing their part. It's working very, very well. "
- Mark Elias
Automotive News Canada - April 2022

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