Can anyone solve the technician shortage problem in automotive? No. It’s just a fact that there aren’t enough technicians. But rephrase the question. Can you solve the technician problem at your dealership? We think so.

This is going to be the topic our CEO, Jared Hamilton is going to tackle at the 2023 DrivingSales Executive Summit. Like all of Jared’s other keynotes, this one will be based on research, and we could use your help.

The solution to the technician shortage problem at the dealer level requires an understanding of the current technician motivations and mindsets. We want to uncover what it would take to make your dealership the most desired place for technicians to work in your market, giving you the ability to recruit and fill your open technician positions.

This technician study will be focused on four factors we feel can give us the insight we need to be able to tackle the technician shortage problem.

The first factor is how to recruit. We need to understand the motivating factors that would cause technicians to switch from one dealership to another. How can you create an appealing compensation and benefits package?

Next is non-monetary motivation. What are the factors other than compensation that would motivate your techs to perform at a higher level? Can we prioritize these motivations in order to create the most effective environment for recruiting new techs and retaining current ones?

Along with non-monetary motivations, what are the frustrations technicians are having with their current employers? How can you mitigate these frustrations and improve your technician culture?

Finally, compensation. We need to understand the most motivating pay plans. What does the ideal pay structure and compensation level that would encourage technician performance look like? What are the drivers that you could offer that would make a technician take less compensation (i.e. Flexible hours)?

So how can you help? In order for us to uncover these factors, we need technicians to take a survey. All answers are anonymized, so the techs don’t need to worry about employee blowback. Technicians can access the survey here.

You will also want to attend the DrivingSales Executive Summit to see the results. I’m sure there will be lots of conversation around this topic. DSES is at the Cosmopolitan this year. You can learn more here.

You CAN solve the technician problem at your dealership. Please invite your technicians to complete the survey and join us in Las Vegas as we uncover the insights.