Jan. 27, 2020—Over the weekend, ASA Colorado held its summit in Denver, Colo.
On Friday, Bryan Dodge, a professional trainer and speaker on leadership, kicked off the summit with a full day of leadership training. One morning session, “Are We Happy or Engaged?” was led by Geoff Berman of ATI. Berman explained that the key to happy employees is to get them engaged, because, most likely if an employee is engaged, he or she is also happy.
Berman shared a number of eye-opening stats, including the fact that the workforce is shrinking. Because of this, he said, shop owners need to find a way to attract new talent and once they’ve got them, keep them.
Berman shared strategies to do this, including creating a tribe within your shops through rituals and symbols. For example, celebrate the workers that go above and beyond. Berman also advised attendees to stop hiring for knowledge alone.
“If you hire the right person, you can teach them cars,” Berman says.
The right person will work well for the good of the company and has good people skills. The rest, he says, can be taught. Build up the culture in your shop and the right people will come, he added.
