Changing Careers from Home Financing to Auto Financing...
I have been in the mortgage industry for almost 16 years and am considering moving over to automotive F&I. I had always been an outside originator which was, and still is, mostly male dominated (I am a woman, by the way.) I think being a woman made my job much easier.
What is it going to take for me to make this transition into the auto industry and is being a woman a plus?
What is it going to take for me to make this transition into the auto industry and is being a woman a plus?
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by John Spreeman on
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Hi, Charmaine.
The most important ingredient for your successful transition into the auto industry would be your ability to find an organizational culture in which you would prosper. If persons are leading you to make a choice because you are a woman and that would be a plus, well you are not as smart as I thought from your questions. If you are dynamite, with a great smile, and good foundational skills, then you will be dynamite! Find the right company.
John
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Permalink Reply by MANNY LUNA on -
You will Be Great!!!
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Permalink Reply by Gail Sproul on
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Hi I was in Automotive Sales for over 20 years and went into the Mortgage Industry for the last 10 years. Now I am back in Automotive, I believe being a woman was definetly an asset. I always outsold the men. Hours traditionally is the only hinderence but the money can be great. You should go for it!
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Permalink Reply by Charmaine M Hammel on
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Hi John,
No one is leading me into this. I have a personality that seems to need to feel used hard and put away wet. The "outside" origination field of the mortgage business requires a thick skin and an ability to keep going no matter what. You also need the ability to "read" people and think fast on your feet. I don't think it is too much of a stretch to change fields. My own bias does lead me to believe that being a woman makes sales and finance easier because i don't have the typical stereotypes to have to overcome. More emotional doors are left unguarded for me. If you are good with people and trustworthy, people gravitate towards you naturally. The software is even similar. I guess what I need to know is what does the car industry want from me?
John Spreeman said:Hi, Charmaine.
The most important ingredient for your successful transition into the auto industry would be your ability to find an organizational culture in which you would prosper. If persons are leading you to make a choice because you are a woman and that would be a plus, well you are not as smart as I thought from your questions. If you are dynamite, with a great smile, and good foundational skills, then you will be dynamite! Find the right company.
John
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Permalink Reply by MANNY LUNA on
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The best F&I Mgrs I know of are woman, Two are GM's of dealerships now!
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Hi Gail,
Sales come easier for us and people treat us better :-) I really think we are an untapped resource!!
Gail Sproul said:Hi I was in Automotive Sales for over 20 years and went into the Mortgage Industry for the last 10 years. Now I am back in Automotive, I believe being a woman was definetly an asset. I always outsold the men. Hours traditionally is the only hinderence but the money can be great. You should go for it!
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Thanks Manny!
MANNY LUNA said:You will Be Great!!!
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Permalink Reply by Christine Nolden on
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It is ok to ask questions...and this is change ,I understand being unsure.
I am a women successfull in the automotive Industry. Being a women is an advantage if you can overcome the "boys club"mentality. Took long hours and hard work to become top of the board 5 Star winner in both markets plus F &I certified - some Corporations like to promote from within.I have just seen a women come from the Mortgage industry into the Auto Industry- she went back after 3 month.. Your plus is you are used to having things roll of your back and can read people. My suggestion is to get in and show them rather then contemplate too long. If you can handle the hours it is a good move . Nothing has to be forever?If it is not for you there is always an option to switch back.I truly believe women have a hughe advantage and a plus if you are smart and follow up - reading people is a must- you will need to follow directions for a while - can you handle that? Then you are a Winner!
Do not confuse F &I with just hanging paper and getting approvals , it has become typing deals and product sales- try E-com - you will make more money.
See how it goes and work yourself into a F &I position if you like what you see- so far I have not seen them jet hire outside non Auto experienced F& I Managers-you have to proove yourself into this position. Plus there are many great F& I Mangers looking for work as well.Just have a great additude and go for it ..
Good luck!
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Permalink Reply by Sue Brief on
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Being a woman always helped me. As I have said in other posts, I am not sure why but I would guess the key is; women naturally trust women more than men, view us as less threatening and men cannot allow themselves to believe that they can be upsold, oversold or generally be out negotiated by a woman. Other than that your experience should serve you well, but I would suggest that you spend, atleast a little time as a sales person. The experience you would gain by negotiating the sale itself, dealing with the customer on a personal level, is invaluable. I dont think I could have been half as good a finance manager if I had not spent the years I did in sales. It gives you a unique perspective into the psychology of the buyer. Remember, by the time a buyer sees the Finance Manger, they feel pretty beaten up, usually having spent hours negotiating a price and payment they can live with and now there you are, trying to justify why spending more money is in their best interest. It is not an easy task. Just a note, I attempted to make the jump a couple of years ago from auto finance to mortgage lending, I was not crazy about the mortgage business and found myself back in the car business in less than 6 months. I hope you find the transition easier. The car business has a way of getting in a person's blood as I am sure other members will tell you. I hope this career change is everything you hope it will be. Good Luck
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Very good advise! Would it be impossible to handle the entire transaction? Does it need to be such a traumatic experience? Can a person walk into a dealership and work with one person (and one person only) from test drive to financing? Is that a strange concept? I would like to be able to do both. Doing just the finance or doing just sales (all the time) uses only half of what I have.
Sue Brief said:Being a woman always helped me. As I have said in other posts, I am not sure why but I would guess the key is; women naturally trust women more than men, view us as less threatening and men cannot allow themselves to believe that they can be upsold, oversold or generally be out negotiated by a woman. Other than that your experience should serve you well, but I would suggest that you spend, atleast a little time as a sales person. The experience you would gain by negotiating the sale itself, dealing with the customer on a personal level, is invaluable. I dont think I could have been half as good a finance manager if I had not spent the years I did in sales. It gives you a unique perspective into the psychology of the buyer. Remember, by the time a buyer sees the Finance Manger, they feel pretty beaten up, usually having spent hours negotiating a price and payment they can live with and now there you are, trying to justify why spending more money is in their best interest. It is not an easy task. Just a note, I attempted to make the jump a couple of years ago from auto finance to mortgage lending, I was not crazy about the mortgage business and found myself back in the car business in less than 6 months. I hope you find the transition easier. The car business has a way of getting in a person's blood as I am sure other members will tell you. I hope this career change is everything you hope it will be. Good Luck
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Thank You Christine! The outside mortgage business is mostly men as well. I am a tom-boy and have mostly boy's toys...guns, atvs...etc..so i never really noticed the boy's club attitude after the intial meeting. I have "a pair" as well and have always been able hold my own, so that never concerns me ;-) Just never been into sports...that was always something that got the guys out of the house and gave me peace and quiet!
As far as e-com...I will check this out!
One of the reasons for my interest in changing careers is that I am tired of always having to be the new kid on the block. mortgage companies are folding up left and right. I want to find ONE place to call home and grow from with in. Starting over with new companies is very tiring! And, while I have this opportunity I am checking out where F&I can take me. I have always been lucky enough to have been too stupid to know that I can't do something! I just go for it. What's the worst that can happen...nothing..that's where I am already--lol.
I am really appreciating all the help, advice and support you all are giving me! You are great!!!
Christine M. Nolden said:It is ok to ask questions...and this is change ,I understand being unsure.
I am a women successfull in the automotive Industry. Being a women is an advantage if you can overcome the "boys club"mentality. Took long hours and hard work to become top of the board 5 Star winner in both markets plus F &I certified - some Corporations like to promote from within.I have just seen a women come from the Mortgage industry into the Auto Industry- she went back after 3 month.. Your plus is you are used to having things roll of your back and can read people. My suggestion is to get in and show them rather then contemplate too long. If you can handle the hours it is a good move . Nothing has to be forever?If it is not for you there is always an option to switch back.I truly believe women have a hughe advantage and a plus if you are smart and follow up - reading people is a must- you will need to follow directions for a while - can you handle that? Then you are a Winner!
Do not confuse F &I with just hanging paper and getting approvals , it has become typing deals and product sales- try E-com - you will make more money.
See how it goes and work yourself into a F &I position if you like what you see- so far I have not seen them jet hire outside non Auto experienced F& I Managers-you have to proove yourself into this position. Plus there are many great F& I Mangers looking for work as well.Just have a great additude and go for it ..
Good luck!
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Oh.. If I had a dime for every person who suggested that! I had the unique experience of doing just that, many years ago, when Internet sales were just gaining traction. You would not believe how easy it was to take a customer all the way through the process. It is the natural progression of things. The customer already has your trust, you are the one who spent hours building a relationship with the customer. Unfortuately, I am not aware of any dealers who allow this to happen. It is not just the sales end, but dealing with banks, drawing up contracts and 100 other things a finance manager does on a daily basis. If you are unaware of the way the process works, a finance manager is really just a sales person, they are just selling something other than the cars; service contracts, financing, gap insurance, in some dealerships they also sell accessories, security products etc. So, to answer your question, no in 99.9% of dealerships a person does not handle the entire transaction. You are right, in most cases the transition is awkward, but the idea is to have the customer change thinking mid stream and view the F&I person as "just the person who is going to handle to legal end, the paperwork", not as a salesperson. It sometimes amazes me that after all these years people or at least most people still do not put two and two together or that dealers have not taken steps toward streamlining the process and sell it all at once.
But F&I is a promotion from sales and I made the suggestion in my earlier post because I think you will be hard pressed to find a dealer that will hire you and jump you right into the F&I office with no prior auto sales experience, regardless of how much experience you have had in other industries. Again, I wish you luck and please feel free to contact me with any other questions.
Charmaine M Hammel said:Very good advise! Would it be impossible to handle the entire transaction? Does it need to be such a traumatic experience? Can a person walk into a dealership and work with one person (and one person only) from test drive to financing? Is that a strange concept? I would like to be able to do both. Doing just the finance or doing just sales (all the time) uses only half of what I have.
Sue Brief said:Being a woman always helped me. As I have said in other posts, I am not sure why but I would guess the key is; women naturally trust women more than men, view us as less threatening and men cannot allow themselves to believe that they can be upsold, oversold or generally be out negotiated by a woman. Other than that your experience should serve you well, but I would suggest that you spend, atleast a little time as a sales person. The experience you would gain by negotiating the sale itself, dealing with the customer on a personal level, is invaluable. I dont think I could have been half as good a finance manager if I had not spent the years I did in sales. It gives you a unique perspective into the psychology of the buyer. Remember, by the time a buyer sees the Finance Manger, they feel pretty beaten up, usually having spent hours negotiating a price and payment they can live with and now there you are, trying to justify why spending more money is in their best interest. It is not an easy task. Just a note, I attempted to make the jump a couple of years ago from auto finance to mortgage lending, I was not crazy about the mortgage business and found myself back in the car business in less than 6 months. I hope you find the transition easier. The car business has a way of getting in a person's blood as I am sure other members will tell you. I hope this career change is everything you hope it will be. Good Luck
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