Dave Baiocchi Acquiring Talent
Happy New Year! I am sure that everyone reading this is trusting that the new year will hold fresh opportunities for us to continue building and refining our engagement with customers. A good way to kick that off is by taking stock of the current economic landscape. The supply chain disruption I spoke about in the last edition is still with us, and it’s expected that shortages of critical manufacturing components will continue deep into the Spring and Summer of 2022.
I’ve said before, that the calendar holds no magic. When December gives way to January, annual forecasting efforts are many times driven by hope instead of strategy. In spite of our valiant efforts to “pencil-whip” our obstacles; the same realities blocking our progress on December 31st will, no doubt, still be limiting our progress on January 3rd.
There are a lot of factors currently in play that we can do nothing to control. We can’t conquer them; we can only prepare ourselves to work “around” them. One of these obstacles has been looming far longer than the pandemic. Last month I talked about “Job Shock”, and how our inability to hire and retain quality technicians has reached critical levels.
With a dearth of new equipment on the lot, our opportunities in CUSTOMER SERVICE will be priority one. Our customers will depend on us to extend the life of the equipment that is tired and worn. These challenges will be impossible to solve without hiring more technicians and putting more vans on the road.
It’s difficult however to ramp that up quickly. It’s not necessarily the capital investment (vans, tools, and parts) that is holding us back. Most of the dealers I speak to, have MULTIPLE vans sitting empty on their lot, awaiting new staff. Many dealers could hire 3, 5, even as many as 8 additional technicians without having to invest an additional dollar of capex.
Customarily, we have used three venues to locate and acquire technical talent.
- Competitors: We all know that this is the quickest method to fill a van with a warm body. The strategy is based on the assumption that our dealership is already the “employer of choice” with wages, benefits, and working conditions outpacing competitive employment offerings. This strategy however seldom really provides the quality individuals we were looking for. The fact is…the trainable, self-motivated, and high-caliber technicians in the marketplace already have a sweet deal with their current employer. Most of the hires willing to jump ship and sign on with you, always seem to develop training deficiencies. attendance issues, or behavioral problems that never allow them to really help move the team forward. The reasons are self-evident. This is a competitive industry. You know it…. your competitor knows it. Everyone knows what it takes to retain top talent, and they are already offering it.
- Automotive and Industrial: Making the shift from automotive or industrial repairs to material handling equipment is not a difficult shift. Yes, there is some training needed to acclimate new automotive techs to working on hydraulics or motive power systems, but the “nuts and bolts” of the job are not usually the limiting factor. The issues inherent with the conversion have more to do with expectations than they do with technical abilities. Most of these candidates come from automotive dealerships where they were guaranteed 40 hours a week, and all repairs are conducted under one roof. They also are certain that they will never be called to work overtime on a weekend or after hours. Training, tools, resources, and facilities in an automobile dealership may also be more robust and modern than in an equipment dealership setting. I am not suggesting that these candidates can’t be successful if they are offered in-shop opportunities. The problem here is that we are looking to fill ROAD. Once that tech gets his third call in three nights to repair units after hours, in the elements, they may not be so willing to see it through.
- Automotive Trade Schools: Graduates from these institutions have invested heavily in their future and are looking to recoup this investment. These institutions however are geared toward (and many times financed by) automotive OEM direct training programs. Students enter the program for Ford, Chevrolet, Toyota, or Nissan with the assurance that they will be trained and certified to service and repair that OEM’s line of products. This leaves little room for material handling companies to make a competitive argument. Some of these students however enroll in the basic mechanical programs and we should regularly target these graduates with the lure of having their own service vehicle, opportunities for overtime, and a hungry job market in our industry.
These three venues aside, my suggestion for bolstering the ranks, is to enlarge the pool of candidates. We can do that by using some tactics that allow us to engage the candidate at an earlier juncture. It will require a longer-term process, and we will have to design and execute “home-grown” training regimens in order to be successful. Most dealers have never considered these options, but with growing market needs, and shrinking talent pools, WE HAVE TO DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT.
Military:
If you have a military base in your market area, there is always a motor pool. Here technicians repair everything from armored troop carriers to Blackhawk helicopters. Most military motor pools are manned with enlisted ranks who will “term out” after a period of time. Those who do not choose to re-enlist will need employment. The upside is that usually, the skills and knowledge base of these candidates are top quality. They also have personal habits and interpersonal skills honed by a disciplined lifestyle. They generally enjoy the autonomy of working on the road, and many of them are good candidates for leadership in the ensuing years. The downside, especially for those deployed in combat scenarios, is that they can come with some unexpected mental and emotional issues that may require accommodation.
Transitioning troops into private life is taken very seriously by the military, and they have set up a system of provisions through the VA to do just that. The Veterans Benefits Administration created the Office of Transition and Economic Development (OTED) to provide opportunities for returning servicemen and women to achieve economic success. My advice is to connect with the OTED in your region and make sure that the local staff knows that you are on the lookout for candidates with specific skills.
High School FFA Programs
If we want to enlarge the field of candidates, we have to start early. Establishing relationships with FFA leadership is a great way to do that. These are the kids that intentionally involve themselves with the types of activity we are looking to encourage. They learn how to weld, build specialty equipment, and customize machinery before they ever leave high school. FFA advisors at the high school are always looking for partnerships, sponsorships, and joint projects with private industry. Think about starting a summer intern program where some of these FFA kids can be trained. Then offer them full-time employment after they graduate.
MHEDA program
As I said earlier, the technician shortage has been with us for quite a while. MHEDA saw this coming, and in an effort to serve their dealer members, MHEDA started a specialized program to develop and certify technicians. This program is a few years old, and it may be the resource that brings you the high-quality candidates you are looking for. At a minimum, the program serves as a template that can perhaps be replicated regionally, either inside your dealership, or in tandem with MHEDA, or a community college.
The MHEDA CFT program both educates and certifies lift truck technicians. It includes 55 hours of e-learning content, as well as hands-on training and assessments.
You can find more information on the MHEDA program here: https://www.mheda.org/education/certified-forklift-program/
Like it or not, our success in this industry will in great part, be predicated on how well we continuously recruit, train, and motivate a technical workforce. We have to be innovative and unique. We have to pay competitive wages and provide well-defined paths for advancement. We have to start early and invest in programs that build a workforce from the ground up.
About the Author:
Dave Baiocchi is the president of Resonant Dealer Services LLC. He has spent 40 years in the equipment business as a sales manager, aftermarket director, and dealer principal. Dave now consults with dealerships nationwide to establish and enhance best practices, especially in the area of aftermarket development and performance. E-mail [email protected] to contact Dave.
