You Can’t Afford a Poor Shop Culture!

by Chasidy Rae Sisk

Good employees are hard to find and expensive to keep…but replacing them can also be costly in more ways than the financial aspect, since you never know exactly who you’re getting until you’ve already hired them. 

Once you’ve built a successful team, it is imperative that you keep them. Yet, employee retention is one of the industry’s largest struggles these days, as owners contend with other fields seeking to “steal” valuable workers. To compete with these entities, shop owners must find ways to keep employees engaged and motivated in their jobs, an effort that largely relates to the culture that has been developed in their shops.

What is “shop culture,” exactly?

“Culture in a business is like the climate we experience when we walk outside: Is it hot, cold, storming, calm?” asks Tony Adams (AkzoNobel). “Every business has a culture, and it’s a living, breathing, fragile thing. Owners and leaders should be focused on the culture climate of their business, as it drives profitability. Culture impacts everything!”

“Shop culture is the reputation you built among your employees,” adds Maylan Newton (Educational Seminars Institute [ESi]). “We want to develop a positive reputation because when you create a work culture that is viewed favorably, people look forward to going to work. Never forget who your competition is when it comes to attracting quality employees. Every large corporation in the world attempts to recruit these same people we want to hire as automotive repair techs or service advisors – NASA needs them, Google wants to hire them, and Apple offers them positions…Our shops must become great places to work if we stand any chance of competing with those types of organizations. Improving work culture begins with owners and managers updating their thought processes and attitudes about attaining and retaining long-term employees.”

Unfortunately, many shops are failing to do that, clinging to outdated practices and ideas about what matters most to employees.

“When you look at the Gallup surveys across America regarding employee engagement, 70 percent of the workforce is self-admittedly disengaged with almost 20 percent of that group classified as actively disengaged, meaning they’ve mentally quit but still come to work every day, which is causing most of your problems,” Adams shares. “I fear those disengagement numbers are much worse in the collision industry from my experience talking to people on the floor in lots of different shops. While studies indicate businesses with more engaged employees enjoy higher profitability, the converse is also true. In toxic organizations – where employees are treated poorly by management – disengagement leads to reduced productivity, decreased employee satisfaction and higher turnover, inhibiting profits. When it comes to the war for talent, do you want to be known as the shop with a revolving door or the one where people are lined up wanting to come work for you?”

Of course, retaining employees is expensive with the increasing cost of labor being a major barrier for many shop owners seeking to recruit and retain skilled workers. In fact, CRASH Network recently reported that the average weekly wage for auto body workers in the first quarter of 2024 had risen by eight percent compared to the first quarter of 2023, and according to data released by the Department of Labor based on May 2023 data, Minnesota paint technicians were the highest paid in their field. But Newton insists this is not the most important factor in retaining employees.

“As an owner or manager, never think that the paycheck is the only thing that motivates employees – that’s typically the last thing on their minds, because they can find high-paid employment with lots of companies. Surveys and studies frequently indicate that work culture matters more to employees than pay or advancement opportunities. You still need to pay them well, but you must also focus on creating an environment that is well-structured, provides training opportunities and considers work/life balance.”

Offering competitive benefits, such as health insurance and a 401(k), can make a difference, though these expenses may seem daunting to a small business owner. Fortunately, because AASPMN is an affiliate of the Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS), association members have access to discounts on these programs through the national organization (details at scrs.com/healthcare and scrs.com/401k).

But the most important factor that impacts how most workers perceive a shop’s culture boils down to whether they feel valued. 

“Are we treating people like people?” Adams queries. “Simple things like ‘thank you’ go a long way. We spend a lot of time catching people doing things wrong and correcting behaviors, but we need to spend more time recognizing people when they do something right. Culture isn’t something we work on once a month; we have to be aware of the culture we’re building in everything we do and say in the shop because that directly affects how people feel about the business.”

“Understand how important your technical employees are, and find a way to keep them working, producing and moving forward by making them aware that they are a valuable, integrated part of our business and helping them think differently about the business,” Newton offers. “Technicians receive a sense of satisfaction from fixing a car, especially when their boss or a customer praises their efforts. So, give them that atta-boy and show your appreciation. You’ll be amazed by how much your business improves when your employees are personally satisfied and feel like they’re contributing to the shop’s success. When you create a work environment where qualified automotive professionals feel appreciated, those employees add a lot of value to your business.”

Providing ongoing training is an important aspect of shops with good culture, and part of that requires recognizing people’s strengths. “We have to invest in our employees,” Newton insists. “That investment pays dividends by enhancing morale and creating a more favorable work culture which leads to employee retention and loyalty.”

Luckily, Minnesotans can rely on the state’s Department of Labor to lend a helping hand in this area. The Minnesota Dual-Training Pipeline program offers an “earn-while-you-learn approach where the employer invests in their employee by providing training in competency standards to equip the employee with the specific knowledge and skills necessary for a particular occupation.”

AASPMN Executive Director Linden Wicklund explains, “Basically, if you’re hiring someone who is going to tech school or if you have an employee interested in pursuing continuing education through an industry-recognized program, you can apply for these grants. The company pays for it, and the state reimburses them. Auto service was added last year, and we’re hoping to get collision repair added in the next year.” (More information on the program is available at dli.mn.gov/pipeline.)

A multitude of other factors, such as communication style and the physical environment play a role in developing the right culture. Is the shop heated and well-ventilated? Is the music too loud, or do you always play what the owner likes to hear without consideration for other employees? Something as simple as offering flexibility in someone’s schedule can be incredibly meaningful, whether that’s allowing someone to leave early for their child’s school play or promoting a four-day workweek.

How your culture is viewed truly depends on the shop’s existing workforce and those they hope to attract. “We need to understand that each generation is different – not right or wrong, just different,” Adams suggests. “The baby boomer generation has a different point of view and expectations for work than Generation Z. We have to shift our point of view sometimes and not be so locked into our own way of thinking. If we don’t, it gets in the way of creating a healthy culture, creating friction because our expectations don’t match theirs.”

Newton agrees. “Employing the right team, especially the right leaders, helps you create a shop culture where they’ll be happy to work. Developing a team mentality is vital to building a positive work culture.”

It may seem like a daunting task, but developing the right culture creates benefits that make it worth the effort. It doesn’t just impact employee retention; it also impacts how employees treat your customers, which directly affects profitability. 

“The customer experience will never rise higher than the level of the employee experience,” Adams shares a quote from famed restaurateur Danny Meyer. He adds his thoughts, “If a shop has customer service index (CSI) issues, I can guarantee they have employee service index (ESI) issues. At the end of the day, if I can achieve something with two people when it takes another shop four people to do the exact same job, you can’t compete against me. This goes back to employee engagement. People will show up and give you their hands, but are you getting their hearts and minds? The path to profit is really pretty simple: ESI + CSI = Profit. And it must come in that order, with employees first.”

Businesses with a positive work culture also tend to perform better in terms of productivity and profitability,” Newton shares. “Enhancing employee morale increases the success of your business. You can’t afford to ignore culture.”

Want more? Check out the December 2024 issue of AASP-MN News!