The average attrition rate for HR in the automotive industry is 70%, which means that there is constant turnover. There is a revolving door, and part of it is because there is no recruiting strategy. When dealers do recruit, it is out of pure desperation versus strategic choice. Consider sports teams. They make it their mission to scope out and discover top-notch talent, even before the position becomes available. They start recruiting from college, and even in high school. Car dealership recruitment should be no different. Each position at the dealership should be looked at as a spot on the team that collectively helps the dealership win games, or in our case, sell more cars. Below you will find the most common HR and recruiting challenges that exist in the automotive sales industry today, and if applicable to you and your dealership, we can assist in solving the challenges:
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The Top 5 Challenges Plaguing Automotive Sales Recruitment Agencies
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Dealership Goals & Projections
No Dealership Recruiting Strategy for Automotive HR Solutions
Dealerships have a hard time finding the right candidates because they do not have a recruiting strategy. As positions come available they are suddenly on the hunt and unfortunately have no time to recruit the best person for the position, but are left scrambling and the result is a wrong hire.
Every dealership should have a proactive approach and a concise plan to recruit. They should have an employee value package proposition showing the candidate why they should work for their dealership and why and how their dealership is different. They should also have employee testimonials/reviews on sites like Glassdoor and Indeed.
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Invest in Human Resources in Auto Dealerships
The average dealership spends approximately $64,000 in advertising, but LESS than $1,000 a month on HR and recruiting. This statistic alone proves that HR and recruiting in the automotive sales industry is undervalued. You can tell what a dealership cares about based on where they spend their time and where they spend their money and apparently HR isn’t it. It’s no wonder that there is a 70% attrition rate. Additionally, most dealerships fail to see the value in investing in recruiting technology such as a recruiting website to drive candidates proactively.
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Don't Offer Enticing Benefits Just for Employee Satisfaction
Another challenge dealerships face in recruiting and retaining top talent is less than satisfactory pay plans, demanding hours with little time left for work/life balance and a lack of diversity. Most dealerships do a terrible job creating pay plans that create a true win-win for both the automotive professional and the dealership. Additionally, because most dealership team members lack the necessary time management skills, they are working harder instead of smarter and must overcompensate by working excessive hours. Also, dealerships fail to effectively target females, minorities, ex military, etc, which make great candidates.
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Ineffective Onboarding Strategy & No Automotive Sales Training
There is a saying when it comes to employee retention in the automotive industry did we hire them dead, or kill them after we got them? Meaning, was the hired candidate the wrong person to begin with, or did they fail because of the dealership environment? Either way, the dealership is at fault.
Whether hired purely out of desperation, or the recruiting strategy failed, again the responsibility falls back on the dealership. Perhaps the recruiting strategy and process were effective and the right person was hired, but the dealership didn’t invest in personal and professional development. To onboard new hires appropriately, it is essential to give them the training needed to succeed.
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Terrible Sales Culture
Corporate culture refers to the beliefs and behaviors that determine how a company’s employees and management interact and handle outside business transactions. Often, corporate culture is implied, not expressly defined, and develops organically over time. (Investopedia). Unfortunately, the automotive industry is not considered a model example for company culture. This stems from and is a direct reflection of leadership.
The way people think, the way people talk, the way people behave and the results of the dealership all fall back on, and is impacted by, company culture. If the culture sucks, good people will leave and the dealership will be left with a team of underperforming members.
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