A tight line to walk in the service department is your pay structure for service advisors and support staff. No matter who you are, someone is going to tell you how you compensate your employees is wrong. But, coming from someone with a dozen years as a service advisor, you’re doing it right. At least, mostly right.

See, the debate is founded in two competing factors, of which your service advisors will always struggle to find a balance. There’s the aspect of selling the absolute most you can to every customer that walks through the door. Then, there’s the position of providing the number-one exceptional service experience for every client.

And so it goes: high-selling service advisors love a commission-based pay structure. It rewards them for doing what they do best. And the advisors who love to care for customers’ needs are drawn to the salary argument.

The tendency is…

When your advisors’ pay plan is steeped in commission primarily, customer service can suffer. Sales pressure can turn customers off, possibly never to return. You may notice CSI scores are difficult to achieve or maintain simply because that’s not where your advisors earn their bread and butter.

When I first began as a service advisor, my fixed operations manager told me he expected a customer complaint every week or two about sales pressure, otherwise, I wasn’t trying hard enough. It’s true.

And when your advisors are structured to earn a set salary, your goal is probably to earn top marks in your CSI surveys. That’s quite doable, although when you remove the incentive to sell maintenance and repairs, undoubtedly your gross profit will suffer.

Where do you strike that balance?

What you’re doing works. Whether your advisors are mainly commission-based or salaried, you’re doing it right. And if there’s a good blend of both, that’s wonderful too. Speaking from the position of an advisor, you want to be properly compensated for your role each day. That’s all. You might respond better to one structure over the other, but it comes down to getting paid.

If I can make a suggestion, it would be to stick hard and fast to one pay plan. Commit to it for a determinate amount of time. Tweak it if necessary along the way, if both parties can agree to terms. But get it on paper. Then, set ground rules. Again, hard and fast. Clear expectations are required and must be enforced. If the pay plan says there’s a penalty for falling short on a goal such as individual or store CSI scores, stick to it. Your advisors need to know that you’re serious about not just their pay plan, but how your department is going to operate.

Potential pay structures

Typically, a service advisor’s role is a sales position. That usually lends itself well to a commission-based structure, I’m sure you’d agree. Here are a few typical ways to blend pay structures for advisors. No particular plan is better than another, just different. One may not work for your store, while another is overwhelmingly successful. We won’t talk numbers – that’s too big of a topic right now. Just structure.

• The advisor is paid a base salary, just a meager amount as a foundation. Add to that a flat fee per RO, increasing incrementally based on their average hours per work order (this can be lucrative for a great service advisor). Tack on a bonus for achieving certain CSI scores on a 3-month rolling average. It’s probably most commonly seen in domestic stores.
• A modest salary is paid, essentially the largest component of their pay. A smaller segment of the pay plan is based on their sales, while a larger potential bonus comes from CSI scores. This seems to be a favorite among the import dealers for some reason.
• Advisors are paid straight salary, nothing else. It’s a great idea on paper but can become lackluster when the advisor settles into a groove, realizing they’re getting paid the same whether they sell or not, or take care of their customers or not.

Advisors are a hot commodity right now, and they know it. The position is difficult to fill with experienced staff, so you’ll find advisors tend to push their boundaries. I love the idea of a straight salary position combined with a zero-tolerance stance on breaking rank for this reason. Pay your service advisors really well (it’s a hard job, truth be told), then be sure to correct or discipline them when they fall short of the standards set out.

As an added bonus, toss in a cash spiff from time to time. I found that was a great way to spice up the job and spark sales.

Do you follow one of these pay plans, or something similar? What works for you and your store? Share your successes and shortcomings.