Making adjustments to the collision repair industry for the millennial workforce
With every new generation that enters the automotive repair industry, there is a new set of motivations, expectations, work habits and values. The new ideas and perspectives new generations provide determine the vibrancy of our industry, while the experience and leadership of previous generations determine our industry’s trustworthiness and longevity.
Over the past few years, I’ve seen a growing sense of urgency from managers during shop visits regarding the attraction and retention of millennials as the generation settles into the workforce.
Most – if not all – dealership-based shop managers are struggling to manage millennials and are lost on how to recruit them.
With the millennial generation set to become upwards of 75 percent of the total workforce by 2025, we need to develop a plan. Our way of thinking needs to change drastically and immediately.
The common understanding of characteristics and work preferences of millennials represent a challenge within the context of our industry. Millennials tend to avoid professions that call for 9-5 schedules, yet that is a structural reality of collision repair that simply is not going to change. Millennials steer away from jobs that perform repetitive tasks. Again, that is a basic reality when it comes to collision repair.
However, there are other values millennials bring into the workplace that are just as important and well suited to collision repair. Millennials value relationships and experiences far more than climbing the corporate ladder. Millennials are also comfortable taking initiative to contribute to decision making; not content to be simply instructed on what the company feels is best or important. These attributes are characteristics of engaged, accountable employees.
Over the last several years, as I’ve worked with dealership-based collision centers, I’ve encouraged owners and managers to have them include their entire staff in the process of developing current and future strategies for moving the business forward. This is not new. In fact, this is one of the core principles of LEAN. No one knows the job better than those who do it!
I encourage my shops to support what we at Sherwin-Williams call a PRIDE Meeting. PRIDE stands for Personal Responsibility In Delivering Excellence. This is a weekly stand up meeting where everyone can have a say and make combined decisions of what is best in moving the business forward. This type of culture is what the most talented Millennials are attracted to. They want to help drive the bus and learn along the way. The idea of riding along just for a paycheck just won’t cut it any longer.
Managers of dealership, independent or MSO collision operations should recognize the potential of those looking to actively participate in shaping the industry, and capitalize on the recruitment benefits of embracing this culture.
Recruiting millennials and considering compensation
At the end of 2018, outstanding student loan debt reached almost $1.5 trillion, nearly doubling itself in less than 10 years. According to Bloomberg, more than 2.7 billion borrowers owe in excess of $100,000.
With this trend showing no sign of slowing, and tuition growing higher each year, more young people are choosing to explore blue-collar career options compared to previous generations. The benefits are clear: Blue-collar fields often pay better and are less saturated than the roles typically marketed to high school students.
Recruiting the most talented millennials requires a slightly different approach. Traditional methods such as online ads and even LinkedIn carry less resonance today. Millennials are more likely to learn about opportunities via mobile search. According to a survey from the Pew Research Center, 78 percent of Millennials used mobile devices to find jobs as of 2016. This trend is not limited to Millennials. The same study showed 73% of Gen Xers search for work on mobile devices, and 57.2 percent Baby Boomers engage in mobile job searching, up from just 51.2 percent in 2014. This means that along with traditional methods of posting, mobile-friendly platforms are a must for employment notices.
Another key consideration is setting accurate expectations through clear job descriptions. Collision Centers must develop job descriptions in order to understand who they have and what needs are to be filled. No longer can shops hire people, put them in a position, give them no training and expect them to succeed. It’s imperative that businesses understand their weaknesses and needs in order to successfully hire.
Attractive compensation for millennials also requires a slightly different approach. No longer is compensation simply about pay. Today compensation strategies are focused on creatively developing talent and motivating individuals for results. As employers, we have a valuable advantage for right-sizing our cultures for millennials: Thanks to numerous studies and a large volume of research, we know a great deal about what millennials want and expect out of the workplace.
Ultimately, an effective compensation strategy for Millennials contains four requirements. The strategy must:
- Fit the financial reality of the business
- Encourage and reward the right individual behaviors
- Inspire and reward teamwork
- Provide a clear picture for individual opportunity
Clearly, training and growth is extremely important to this generation. We’ve already seen that talented millennials will not stay in a position that doesn’t offer input, training and growth potential. They get bored easily, and have no problem changing jobs as often as they like if not happy.
Our industry will miss out on the best potential future leaders if we don’t build cultures that speak to the “what matters” that drive them. Millennials are like no other generation we’ve seen before, but that could be said for each generation. The challenge is to responsibly make the right adjustments to accommodate the best of what the new generation has to offer, while preserving what has sustained the collision repair industry for decades.
