There are 3 Strategies for Failure that many Service Managers and Fixed Operations Directors use (with little Success) to facilitate changes in their daily operations and the behaviors of Service Department Personnel.

Yet, these 3 Strategies are the most common response many otherwise capable Managers (and Dealer Principals) use over and over again with little to no results. This in turn leads to a downward spiral of resentment followed by anger followed by the inevitable angry confrontation which in turn is followed by more resentment followed by more anger...you get the picture.

I'm talking about the 3 W's.

Wanting.

Waiting.

Wishing.

Wanting Sad Sack Sam the Service Advisor to change his behavior is the first step to resentment, especially when it is not followed by an Action Plan.

As a Leader and Manager you want Sad Sack to make better Sales presentations. You want additional Gross Profit. You want CSI. You want Service Sales Success.

And if you don't do anything, expecting Sad Sack to do it on his own merely because you want it, well there is an old saying..."want in one hand and S*&T in the other and see which one fills up first."

And then this "want" begins to build. Everyday Sad Sack does nothing to improve and continues to perform at the same level, the "want" gets bigger.

Which leads to the next stage, waiting. Which of course, never works.

A want followed by a wait leads to a "WAAAAAAA!"

Sad Sack still has no idea that the Manager wants him to change his behavior and become better in Sales and CSI and is waiting for him to come to this realization.

Does this ever happen? Does Sad Sack ever figure out through osmosis or the magic 8-ball that his Sales and CSI need to get better?

And because nothing happens, it leads to the last step in the 3 Strategies for Failure, Wishing. The other two obviously did not work and now the Manager begins to wish there was a change in Sad Sacks behavior and in most cases, feverishly Hopes something happens.

Does it happen?

Nope.

What does work?

Check back next week.

Are you practicing the 3 W's? Do you want to make a change and you find yourself waiting and wishing something will happen? Send an email to lbuchholz@dealerprotraining.com with "Success" in the subject line and we will build you an Action Plan for Success in 2011.