RICHMOND, Va. — On Aug. 23 the Washington Metropolitan Auto Body Association (WMABA) held one of the largest collision industry meetings in Richmond-area history, when speakers Bernie Blickenstaff, Jeff Hendler and Chuck Sulkala rallied 75 attendees by asking them what their issues were and discussing how they could be overcome. The audience responded with topics ranging from exotic metals and parts procurement to material caps and minimizing supplements. Highlighting a segment on finding qualified technicians, Blickenstaff pointed to two local college professors in the room and said, "Talk to them, they hold the future of our industry." Executive Director Jordan Hendler said, "The attendance and excitement of this meeting proves that Richmond and surrounding areas are ready to step up and meet the challenges of the future. The Gaining Control Workshop will give managers and estimators an opportunity to continue their education and solve problems they are facing every day. Negotiating, production, scheduling, and financials are just a few of the subjects that will be instructed upon." Jeff Hendler and Chuck Sulkala, former ARMS instructors, along with longtime industry consultant Lou DiLisio, will return to the area on Oct. 13th and 14th for the Gaining Control workshop, hosted by WMABA, a two-day workshop held at the Fredericksburg Expo Center in Fredericksburg, Va., that will focus on management practices for today's collision repair industry. "In a lot of cases, you have to go back to the basics to maybe relearn and rethink the way you run your business," DiLisio says. "What we are bringing to the table is experience, but beyond owning and operating shops, we also have had the opportunity to work with a multitude of different market segments in our consulting roles. This has given us different perspectives on things that a typical shop owner has to do day in and day out to put food on the table at the end of the week." In Sulkala's mind, being a successful shop manager doesn't just depend on having the right information; it also means using this knowledge the right way. "Today, more people have information," he says. "I'm talking about the repairers, the insurers, everybody. They are able to slice it and dice it and sort it in different ways than they ever had in the past. As a result, everybody has been working in trying to tighten up their businesses. Hopefully, most of these shops are running management systems and getting reports and seeing things because somebody told them a long time ago, 'You've got to watch that number there.' All we want to do is let them know what it's doing and know what it means." Excited by what this two day course will offer Hendler feels that "Gaining Control" will appeal to anyone who wants to freshen up on being a strong businessperson in an often complex industry. "We have an overcapacity of collision repair shops to the amount of work available," he says. "There's enough capacity in the industry right now to do $80 billion in collision repairs, and it's a $35 billion industry. If you're going to be successful, you have to figure out how you're going to cut your market share out of an overabundance of shops and distinguish yourself for the next guy." For more information about the Gaining Control workshop, contact WMABA Executive Director Jordan Hendler at (804) 789-9649 or email [email protected]. Flyers are available for download at www.wmaba.com.
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