Car Dealership Guy Podcast Sep 16, 2025

"There's No Technician Shortage!" – The Mastermind Behind Bozard's Service Lane Machine | Ed Roberts, COO at Bozard Ford Lincoln

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And you asked, how did I go higher all those texts? I didn't. We created them. A lot of those texts either started as a valet, or they started as an old-change kid in quick lane, or they started in our communication center, or they started in detail. And then we took them through our tech development program.

Today I'm joined by Ed Roberts, Chief Operating Officer at Beauxart Ford Lincoln. Visiting Ed Roberts at one of his shops is in just a meeting. It's a pilgrimage dealers across the country have been making for years.

They come not only to meet demand behind Central Florida's world-class service lane machine, but to also capture even an ounce of his brilliance and operations and efficiency. In our conversation, we peel back the layers on what's fueled his runaway success and walk away with a semester's worth of insight packed into just one hour.

A big thank you to our sponsors for making today's episode possible. Cox Automotive, dealer DMV, and Nomad Content Studio. And now let's get into the show.

Ed Roberts on the CDG podcast. Ed, welcome.

Thank you. Glad to be here. You'll see.

I can't believe we finally made it happen. I had a text from one dealer and he was saying, jokingly, but respectfully, he said,

I feel like going to see Ed is like a rite of passage in a car business. It's like I talked to people. They're like, oh, I went to see Ed's facility. It's like visiting the Pope.

And so I was like, too shy. That was a great comment. But it does seem that way, where, you know, you talk to people and they're like, yeah, I saw Ed's facility.

It's like, it's like a big deal for people, rightfully so. You've put a lot of blood, sweat, and tears into this place. Do you feel that way?

Do you feel that way as well when people come to visit?

Well, we do have a nice facility and I'm honored to be a part of it, but it's not the facility because at the end of the day, it's just brick and mortar.

When we all go home, there's nothing here. It's just a silent building and it's what we bring to it every day.

Our people bring the culture and the culture that they bring here and the enthusiasm and the buy into the vision is just, in my opinion, obviously I'm living it, is second to none.

But I love it when other dealers come here because it's a two-way street and when they come, we can learn from them.

When they can learn from us, everyone has something they can hang their hat on and because that becomes so natural to them, they may not tell you about it, but in conversation it comes up and you can learn through some conversations of just how they do things and we do things.

But the key is for both of us to take something back and so I love to go in other dealers as well because you can find out those things, but it's always win-win when they come in.

What's your tour like? I say that at my prior company when I was raising capital from investors outside the industry, I had this very choreographed, I knew my way.

They come to the office, we do a stop there, we go there, then we break it, we stop at a Starbucks, which keeps it very more human and kind of down to earth and then we go to the reconditioning center.

I'm curious if you have a very prescriptive tour that's set for everyone that visits.

Most of the time it's somewhat structured, but it's free willy as a rule.

When we do follow the structure, we start in quick lane and then we end up in my office and the reason why we do that, we can go full circle.

But we have Bozard University here and we have so many development programs, whether it's a technical training program or whatever it may be, we hire mostly for entry level spots.

So I take them to an entry level spot into our store and then walk them through the journey.

And when I can walk them through that journey, I can introduce anybody that comes into someone that started in a different role because about 70% of the people that's here started in a different role than what they're doing today.

So they've grown into.

And when you can do that, they tell the story for you.

You don't have to tell the story.

You introduce them, hey, Alex, tell whoever, how long you've been here, where you came from, what you do when you started here.

And they tell the story and those are the cool elements.

And on one hand, you are an exceptional operator.

On the other hand, and I guess he's going in hand, but you to me, I view you as an educator.

Look what you just said, 70% start at entry level.

Bozard University will talk about all of this.

Where did you develop that competency, that skill to be such an educator?

Because you started out as a tech.

You were turning wrenches, right?

And it's not really what you need to excel at to be great at turning wrenches.

Talk to us a little bit about that.

Well, I'll dance around on that a little bit because we talk about the industry talks about there's just a shortage of technicians.

And I don't believe there's a shortage of technicians.

There's a shortage of developmental programs to create technicians.

And there's a lot of people that want to do the work, but don't necessarily have a path to get there.

And those in the audience that know me, I started in very humble beginnings.

And my intention was, I didn't have an intention to get in the car business like so many people that come on this podcast.

You'll see, we all end up here by accident or most of us end up here by accident in the same year.

I was homeless.

I was still finding a way to go to high school.

I wanted to at least get my education and went into a job fair that the school was having and met a guy that was a fixed obstrator at a Ford Diller.

And he told me to stop by a store and we'd talk and things didn't work out at that store.

And that's a whole other story in itself.

I didn't start there.

I was given a job.

I didn't start and ended up going to another Ford store.

And that was my gateway into the business.

And then it was a grind.

I didn't know anything.

I didn't know how to be a technician.

Didn't know any of those things.

And I instantly found myself being a tech apprentice.

And there was no path to make myself better.

I had find ways to make myself better.

And the reality you fast forward now 33 years.

And what my mission has been is to create those paths because there is people that want to do this,

but don't have the confidence to do these things.

And when you can create those paths and connect them to it, it doesn't just create it.

You got to connect them to them and then push them through it or guide them through it.

And then they become, as we all talk about, we always want better versions of ourselves

or the best versions of ourselves when you can help someone do that over and over and over again.

That's very gratifying.

So it really comes from way back and someone giving me the opportunity

and realizing the void that was there.

I didn't really have it a guide to go by to get to progress at all.

That I want to get people opportunity that wants it and the ones that want it.

If they show that they have the right attitude and they're going to put in the effort to do it

and they'll buy into the vision, then I want to give them a path to get to wherever they want to be.

Whether it's a technician, whether it's a salesperson, whether it's a service advisor,

whether it's something accounting, jobs are endless at a car dealer.

So that's where it comes from is just the roots of how I got started.

I don't want to gloss over the fact that you just mentioned something important,

which is you were yourself homeless.

Can you just tell us how did that come to be?

How did you get out of that?

Well, how did it come to be?

I was self-inflicted homeless at the time.

The reason being is I come from a family that was heavily into crime and drugs

and all kinds of other things.

And when you watch cops on television and they raid a house,

that is very real television where they come in and knock the door off the hinges

and they take over everybody in there because they have to do that.

They don't know who's in there.

They don't know who the bad guy is.

I have my head stepped on a few too many times or more times than I wish to tell.

It makes you think that, hey, is there something else out there?

Because these people coming in here to do this to us because in that environment,

I'm thinking they're doing that to us, they're living a different life than we are.

So being younger in my family, I was the fourth of five kids

and watching my dad and my brothers and sisters go through what they was going through

and learning and I got to a point probably by the time I was 11

that says, I don't want to be, I don't want to go down that path.

And then started chasing different things and then became,

I had to leave that environment because when you live in that world,

it's just like when you go into the ghetto of any town,

when you live in that world, that's what that world is.

So the people across the street do the same thing.

The people next door do the same thing.

In order to separate yourself from it, you got to leave it.

So I bought a car for 600 bucks before I had a driver's license

and that became my home and I had to separate myself.

Now I still showed up there for the next probably a year or so

and took a bath occasionally, but I had to leave that environment to break away from it.

And then as things progressed, I really had to separate myself.

So a couple of years later, I separated myself and my family for several years

to create my own identity.

And now I've supported them since that time

and I don't support everything they do,

but I make sure that they have a roof over their head

and that my family is taken care of.

But it was self-inflicted to leave the environment

because you can't be in that environment and be somebody else.

Which makes a lot of sense, right? You're a product of your environment

and it just doesn't make sense.

So talk to us about your journey in automotive.

You started as a tech, as we mentioned.

You've grown a lot through your career.

I'm not exactly sure how long it's been since you got into the industry,

but if you can just tell us about that journey,

being a tech, turning ventures, growing from there.

Well, I will give you a little more of the story of how I got in

and that will kind of set the tunnel for the tenacity of where I came from.

I supported myself by digging in dumpsters

and getting cardboard out, glass bottles, aluminum cans,

whatever I could turn into any kind of value.

And then ultimately ended up finding it long more in a trash

and fixed it and got it running somehow.

Got lucky to get it going.

So I was cutting grass and digging in dumpsters

and doing various different things.

And that's how I was supporting myself as I was going through high school.

And then when I spoke to the gentleman that came into the high school

for the job fair, he says, come by, I'll give you a chance.

And so I went by the store the next day, interviewed with him.

He says, yeah, I'll give you a chance.

And I'll put you over here with this guy.

You can learn from him and you can do this.

He asked me if I had any tools and I didn't know what to tell him,

but I wasn't going to put myself in position to say that for him to tell me

I don't have a job there at this point because he's offering me something.

So I lied to him and said, yeah, I got tools.

But what I knew inside is I can find a way to go get some tools.

Of course.

And that was July 4th weekend of 1992.

And I went out that weekend and worked my tail off.

Thankfully it was a holiday weekend.

There was more stuff out there than I was usually finding and made 400 bucks

and recycles and went to Sears.

Those of you guys that remember Sears bought $400 worth of tools

and showed up there on Monday.

And he told me the previous week when he interviewed me,

he says, I won't be here next week.

I'll be on vacation come in and see my assistant.

So I was supposed to come in and see the assistant.

But over the weekend when I went and bought tools and I'm unwrapping them

and I'm putting it together, I stopped by my family's house

and told them what was going on.

And they told me you're not one of the people out in the real world.

You don't ever make it.

That's not who you are.

You're one of us.

And then I show up at that store on Monday

and I go in and ask for the gentleman I'm supposed to ask for.

And he looks at me and he judges the book by its cover.

I look like a hoodlum, smell like a hoodlum, sound like a hoodlum.

Because I was a hoodlum.

I was straight out of the ghetto.

And he says, there's no place for you here.

And then it replaced back through my mind

that my family told me that before I showed up there.

And so I converse back and forth with and try to convince him otherwise

for about 10 minutes.

That didn't go anywhere.

So I left and I'm sitting out the traffic light next to that store.

And I can turn left and go back to Sears

and get my $400 back

and go back and tell my family they're right

where I can turn right

and at least go try to find something else.

And I made the decision and I won't turn right

and I won't see if there's something else out here.

I had no tie to a car dealer.

That was the first time because he was at that job fair.

That's what put me there.

But I said, if somebody at a car dealer give me a chance

maybe somebody else will too.

And I turned right, didn't have a clue where I was at

where I was going to end up.

That road ended in about three-quarters of a mallet

teed off and I turned right again

and about four and a half miles further down

was another Ford store.

So I turned in there and met a guy by the name of Charlie Waters

hired me for half the money that the other place was going to hire me

but he gave me the chance.

And giving me that chance was what I needed

and the fuel was not going back to what I came from.

And so that tenacity is what cured me through to where I am today.

So every role that I've been in, I've been a sponge

and I've challenged status quo

and why does it have to be this way?

How can we do something better?

Let's look at it through a different lens.

Let's look at it through our customers lens.

Let's look at it through what they experience.

And those things has paid off handsomely for me.

I've worked for Ford Motor Company for a period of time.

I came back home when I was losing my dad

just to be close to my mom and take care of her

and got back on the car dealership world.

But that's my home.

I love people.

And so it was the glamour working for Ford Motor Company for a period

but what was home to me was working with people.

And so the car dealership world was my life

because I'm not in the car business.

I'm in the people business.

And so that fit and the continued to grow became

before I went to work for Ford, I became shop foreman,

service manager, all those things.

Then I went to work for Ford, came back

and ultimately I've been here at Bozard for 13 years.

Started here in 19 or 2012.

Actually today is, as the recording of this

is my 13th anniversary, the aisle.

And when I started here was a 43rd employee

and we had seven technicians, three advisors,

eight salespeople and we was a small store

in a small town.

And today we have 459 employees.

We're a large store still inside of a small town.

So we way outgrow our market.

And I started here as a fixed obstacle during 2012.

Became the COO early on in the pandemic

and we continue every day we strive to get better.

Our slogan for this year is all systems go.

Meaning that the rocket's in the air

and we got to keep it in the air.

So we nobody can back off, we have to keep pushing forward

and people will buy into a vision, they'll buy into a why

rather than buy into trying to squeeze more out of them.

So where all systems go, put on the gas

and grow in like credible ones.

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in the shoutouts below.

Incredible story.

So I have so many questions.

First of all, tactical question first.

459, that's total dealership, right?

Yes.

Fix, variable, everyone.

Okay, what's your fixed org look like?

Which will lead me to one of the most requested topics.

Of course, your mobile service game.

And we'll talk about the university one by one.

But like high level, like how big is your fixed org?

So I will shock the world out there on this.

And this is this will highlight that there's not

necessarily a shortage of technicians.

12 years or 13 years ago started with seven technicians.

Today we're 165 technicians and 37 service advisors.

One, two, three, four, five service managers total.

We're a huge operation, but we're a fixed store first.

Obviously we have a large variable operation as well.

But we build, the store has been built on the

ownership experience.

And when you build on the ownership experience,

you spend so much less money not chasing that

conquest element because you create that loyalty.

That loyalty, that retention.

Absolutely.

How does Mr. Bozard keep you at Bozard?

It's like literally, I see you out there.

I see everyone visiting your store.

I can only imagine all the different, you know,

principles that I've tried to poach you.

And I'm an entrepreneur.

Like I think about these things.

Like what's the incentive look like?

I got to ask.

I love being here.

I love the team that we've created.

The Bozards has been phenomenal to me from the

right from the beginning.

And it is not normal to grow this fast.

And you'll see, you know the deal.

Growing this fast is expensive.

It can be rewarding when the right things are

happening, but I mean, you've got to have structure

to go along with it.

So it's expensive.

And the difference between us and a lot of companies

is, and we're not 100% because we strive to

get there, but we have a lot so much more

alignment at the top of the house.

There's not the end fighting.

And when we can align and create the vision and

sell that vision to our team and our team buy

into that vision, then there is no limit.

And there's no limit to what we can do.

And having that buy in from the leadership

makes it a fun, fun ride.

So there isn't a time that I go to them and

say, hey, I need to do something different.

They give me a lot of flexibility to do a

lot of things.

I run a couple other businesses on top of this.

I did notice that.

You have other ways to do that.

And so I do that.

What do you mean by that?

I do that through people.

As I said on a people person, so when you

can bring people in and share the vision of

whatever that company is and get buy in from

that, then they push towards that vision and

they go out and accomplish a job.

So I don't have to be full time in those

other elements to make an impact there.

But it is about bringing the right people

in that believe in those elements and

creating that alignment.

Alignment over conformity.

When people conform.

And a huge respect to your company's

leadership for being astute enough to

understand what someone like yourself

brings to the table and to structure

the role in a way that enables you to

grow in other ways that are maybe not

directly related to the business, but

keeps you happy, keeps you there.

That's a smart move by them.

Keeps me fulfilled.

And that's what we have to do to our

team members as well.

We got to make sure they fulfill

in their job.

People can be paid well, but if they're

not fulfilled, they can be unhappy in

their role.

But if you're fulfilled and you're

paid well, then you're pretty

content with where you're at.

And we're not done yet.

I tell people every day that we're

just getting started and we are.

We have so much opportunity in front

of us because every day is ground

zero.

Every day is where we're starting

fresh.

How do we get better today than

today?

You know, you said something that is

I just like you worded it really

well, right?

You said there's no technician shortage.

There's a developmental program

shortage, which it's like so simply

yet.

It's just so true.

How do you train?

How do you solve that?

How have you been able to hire a

hundred plus technicians and build a

machine?

What's your what's your what's

your secret?

Most people.

And that isn't just in this

industry.

And the business world.

We're in it for the short game.

We're in it for what can we get out

of it today?

What can we squeeze out today this

month this week?

And there has to be some level of

that, but there also has to be that

vision of where do you want to be

five years from now?

Where do you want to be at the end

of this year?

Where do you want to be in ten

years from now?

And when you look at it from a

long game standpoint, you plan

things out differently.

You put things differently in place

and we created them.

A lot of those texts either

started as a valet or they started

as an old change kid in

Quicklane or they started in our

communication center or they

started in detail.

And then we took them through our

type development program.

And originally when we started

it in 2015, that's what we

called it was type development

program.

And then we as we revised it

and you constantly have to

revise things.

You're never at there's never

a destination.

Everything's a journey.

So then it became TDP 2.0.

And then we got fun with it.

And we called it TDP 4.36.

And then we rebranded it and

called it Beaux-Arts Technical

Institute.

And when we rebranded it and

called it Beaux-Arts Technical

Institute, we said we have all

these other development programs

too.

Let's let's encompass that.

And and we had

vertically integrated the tech

schools that we all talk

about.

You've literally vertically

integrated that.

You are the tech school.

We are the tech school.

I will hire kids from a tech

school.

But you don't have to be from a

tech school.

And so speaking of the long

game.

I'm working.

I work with high schools.

I give those high schools

tours through here.

We create challenges out in

the shop for those kids to

come through.

Because if you go to a car

show, those are car people.

Those are people that have

some type of passion about an

automobile.

But they may not know how

it takes or whatever else.

So the desire is there.

And we can teach the other

things.

Then then that creates the

pipeline.

But we work with tech

schools.

We work with high schools.

High schools is not a today

game.

High schools is a five or

10-year game.

Tech schools are a little bit

quicker.

But tech schools are just

teaching the fundamentals.

And I appreciate that they

teach the fundamentals because

that ramps that speed up

faster that they go through my

BTI program with.

But ultimately we got to

make sure they fit who we

are.

Do they fit our culture?

Can they bring something?

Can they give something to

the team that we don't have?

Can they enhance something

that we do?

Are they a good person?

Do they have the desire to do

what they want to do?

We call it the three C's.

Character, chemistry, and

competency.

And the competency is really

very teachable.

That's, and you're saying

that's the core things that

you're looking for in

people?

Absolutely.

And the, I got Val A's

that started here two years

ago.

They sell 20 plus cars a

month now.

So the path doesn't have to

be a technician.

We have a sales person.

I believe this is his only sales

job that he's ever had.

And today, I just moved into

the FNI office because we

want to grow from within.

And so our tagline for

BOSER University is when from

within.

And when their peers see

someone, see one of their

friends move into a role that

they're chasing, it gives

them hope that they can get

there.

But when they see someone

coming from the outside, then

they think, okay, well I

got to go fill the hole

that he left.

And then we have this

return to people where we're

trading people.

And when we're trading people

back and forth, you can't

really push in that direction

of a single vision, chasing

a single goal that we're all

after.

Okay.

So a bunch more questions.

Do people pay to attend

BTI?

They do not.

They do not

pay dollars to attend.

They do have to pay with

attitude and effort.

And if they bring those

things, there is requirements

that they have to hit and

they're producing while

they're there.

And those requirements move

up as they go through the

program.

And as long as they're hitting

those elements, and obviously

we want to be engaged with

them because sometimes they're

not hitting those elements

and there's other reasons

they're outside of influence

or why they're not.

And that's where

leadership comes in is

engaging and learning the

person for who they are

because you should know

those things.

They should never be a

surprise to you when

there's outside influence.

When you carry them down

that path, they become

very loyal to you because

you didn't just give them

a job, you gave them a

job.

You've invested in them.

Absolutely.

So if I'm a dealer

and I hear this right now

and I want to sponsor someone

to send them to BTI,

can I do that?

Maybe at some point.

But right now we're

building our people.

Ed, my brain is so

contaminated from private

equity that all I'm

thinking about right now

is like, how do we

take this chicken and

plump it up?

Oh my goodness.

Because it's incredible.

You've literally vertically

integrated the training

at a scale that I

haven't witnessed before

as far as I know.

I know.

Maybe someone else has,

but it's pretty incredible.

So building on top of that,

how are you gauging

for these 3Cs, right?

Because like you said,

you don't need to have

any technical background,

but you need to have

the attitude or the

competency.

So how are you,

what's the process

for gauging if someone

possesses these things?

Well, some of them are

judgment calls.

I have to guess

whether you're

a good person or not.

But there's questions

that you can ask

that carries you down

those paths.

And there's their responses

as well.

But it's still a judgment call

another day.

At times we're going

to make bad decisions.

And if we're not

making bad decisions,

we're probably not

making enough decisions.

But you have to choose

to stay engaged,

own boarding properly.

And a lot of times

when you did make

a bad decision

and you own board

them properly

and you vet them

through the process

of what's expected

for them,

as soon as they see

what's expected

or everything,

I'm not going to put

it in the right way.

But I've been a very good

interviewer

and sometimes

the best people

that can interview

are the ones that

have the most

experience interviewing.

And think about that

for a minute.

They got the most

experience interviewing.

What are they always

doing?

Looking for that

next job.

Well, those aren't

necessarily the ones.

So characters

is a judgment call.

Competency is really

are you teachable?

If you know it all,

you're not going to fit.

But if you're teachable

then we can

if you know it great,

but if you don't,

how can you fit in?

This is a fun environment.

We like to have fun.

We like to connect

with each other.

And if you can't fit

into that environment,

if you can't bring

some element to that,

then you're not for it.

And there's some

there's some intangible

there as well.

Gotta fit the culture.

Exactly.

So Ed,

like practically speaking,

how did you go

about doing this?

How are you managing

a curriculum,

building a curriculum,

you know,

updating a curriculum?

Is this,

is this your entire

job to roll your job?

How do you actually,

you're still running

an actual business.

You're running

two businesses actually.

That's the way I perceive it.

How?

It's the right people.

So it starts with

selling the vision.

And when we go all the way

back to 2015

when we started putting

this together,

we created a demand here

at the store that we

could not keep up with

in one shift.

So we needed to go

to two shifts.

And this is not a metro

market.

So in a metro market

there's nothing that

happens at night.

You sleep at night.

And since nobody

wanted to work a second shift.

So the easiest way

to create a second shift

was, okay,

there's a window of time

that you'll work that

second shift because

you're a trainee

and that's

when school is.

So we created

as a night shift.

And we did that

and continued

to evolve the program.

And did we make mistakes on

what?

Yes.

Did we have the right

curriculum in the beginning?

Whether we had to write

one or not,

that would be enhanced.

But as we got that ball rolling,

what the

let's call it the chief of staff

at one of the

local technical schools says,

I like what you guys are doing.

I'll come right at the curriculum.

I'll come.

Let me be a part of it.

I'll do whatever I can do

to be a part of it.

And he joined us

in 2018

enhanced what we do

when we,

when we expanded

into another building.

I didn't necessarily need

to run night shift at that point

because we had more space

and we was able,

but at one point I had 76 technicians

working in 26 bays

and the,

let that sink into the audience there

because they're trying to figure out how to,

how do I do,

get it down to where I can have

one tech rebate.

Yeah.

How did you do that?

The,

we created two man teams.

We created things.

We says that we're going to challenge

status quo

and then a second shift.

Well, then when we moved

into another building

and I added 50 something more bays,

I didn't need that

second shift to that point.

But I tell people all the time,

you never know what your demand is until you meet it.

And so we've never truly met

our demand yet.

Even at 165 techs,

we haven't found our demand.

So that's why I can't give you any techs yet.

You'll see.

But what's your capacity for training?

I mean, you say you have 165 techs

and you haven't met your demand,

but are you right now

trying to train as many as possible?

So we have shifted back to night shift again

because we have grown to that point

to where I don't have,

I got 165 techs,

but I don't have 165 bays.

I only have 98 bays with lifts in it.

And then I have 46 mobile trucks

that we'll talk about in a few minutes.

So still I have more techs

than bays that I have.

But the training has went back to night again

because that was the need.

We are getting closer.

I mean, there was years that we went.

We always have a six or eight week wait

to come into service.

And our market,

the city of St. Augustine

has just over 15,000.

The county that we live in

is just over 300,000 now.

But we service about four times

what we should service

for that size community.

So we expand outside of our market.

And we have to, for those reasons,

for the size that we are,

but we offer an experience.

Go back to what I said earlier.

If you focus on the experience

and any dealer sells as a glamour.

That's just part of it.

That's what it does

because that's what we chase.

Well, it all does start in sales.

But that sells experience is very short.

It lasts hours, days,

sometimes weeks, occasionally a month.

But the ownership experience last years.

And by the time you're done

with the ownership experience,

you've forgotten about the sales experience.

But you are always living

that ownership experience.

And when you focus on that ownership experience,

you create the loyalty.

And when you create the loyalty,

we don't have to have a call to action.

I don't have to have a hook to bring you in

and say, we got this big giant sale going on.

We're very top of mind.

There's very little CTA stuff that we do.

It's all top of mind marketing,

whether it's we're marketing for service,

we're marketing for sales.

It's very top of mind.

Because all we want is brand consideration.

We have a restaurant now

in between the two stores.

Full service restaurant, full bar.

It serves about 5,000 plates a week.

And that's right in between

our Ford store and the Lincoln store,

connecting to the Lincoln store.

And if you'll bring your wife and kids here

or your husband and kids here

twice a month to have lunch or dinner,

I just want the brand consideration.

When you're in the market for a vehicle,

let's go buy Bozerb and grab dinner

and see what they have.

And then we have displays

built around that parking area as well.

And that's where it's very inviting.

But everything's interesting.

So yeah, well, when you say

we're servicing roughly four times,

what a store our size should be servicing,

to what extent is that being driven

by your mobile service fleet?

So mobile service,

we've been doing mobile service since 2015 as well.

But we started that with fleet.

And then we started ramping it up

at the end of 2019.

And then when COVID hit in early 20s,

it was like geniuses.

And we got our customers out of the sphere.

Yeah, so it just shot through the roof.

And one of the things that

we'll probably end up talking about

is missed appointments.

Well, nobody makes an appointment

with a dentist if they don't have a need.

Well, it's the same way with a car dealer.

You don't make an appointment with a car dealer

if you don't have a need.

And our missed appointments shot through the roof

in early COVID time.

And when it did,

they've already told us that they have a need.

That need just miraculously go away.

They either went somewhere else

or they got scared to come in

because of the times we was in

or whatever it may be.

Well, typically you call someone

and you wear them out

and you try to bring them back in.

You try to reschedule them.

Yo, see, why don't I come to you?

I understand life happens.

Let me come to you and take care of it

in your driveway for you.

There's no reason to say no to that.

And once customers experience mobile,

I'll say experience the convenience of that

whether we're coming to your place of business

or coming to your home,

they don't want anything else.

And if you fast forward,

I'll talk about looking out five, 10 years.

If you fast forward 10 years,

maybe five years, hopefully,

in that ownership experience,

if you buy a vehicle from us

and you service it six times

during the time that you own it,

I want five times that I've come to you

and service it.

And maybe that one time

I sent a pickup delivery service for you

rather than you having to come in here

because we all need to face that.

Nobody gets excited about going to a car dealer

unless you're going to buy some kind of rare,

exotic or some kind of halo vehicle.

That's when you get excited.

Other than that,

there's no excitement going to a car dealer.

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Incredible.

So mobile service is the majority

of your business at this point

from what I understand.

So mobile service is about

a third of our fixed business.

We service

when I say about a third

it's about a third from a dollar

standpoint not from our account standpoint.

We service about 2,000 customers

a month in field and

but I believe that will grow to where

we will service 80% of our customers

in field over the next 10 years straight.

And then your mobile service ROs

are they on average lower

than you know in shop

and I assume that's simply because you're doing smaller jobs typically.

It goes both ways and fleet

the RO is actually a little bit less

than what it is when they come in.

And typically when a fleet vehicle comes in

it's broke and so that takes a little bit more

but in field we're just maintaining it.

So on the fleet side of it

that I average tickets lower.

They're just like pack me in, give it all.

I don't want to ever see you again.

Just give me all the work at once.

Exactly.

Now on customer side of it, it's almost twice the RO value

out in field.

Incredible.

And let's dig into that a little bit.

We know that a good advisor can sell

and with pictures they can do a better job of selling.

Pictures are worth a thousand words.

Well video, video is worth a thousand pictures

so we continue to amplify that.

Good advisor with pictures makes them better

with video makes them even better.

Well in mobile when you can show

and see it come out of their vehicle

there is never a question.

So it's not selling anymore.

It's showing.

If you show them that it needs it, they're buying.

So in mobile service it makes selling so much easier.

Could you show them right in front of their face?

Yes.

It also creates a more transparent, honest experience

which is good for everyone in the long run.

Absolutely.

And the cart dealership world's got a bad rap

for decades I would say centuries

but we hadn't been around for a couple of centuries yet.

But we've got a bad rap for decades

and that breaks those barriers down.

The barriers of trust is calm when you do mobile service.

But you've got to do it with the right.

You've got to have a good communicator going out as well.

And that was my next question.

I want to deconstruct some of the common misconceptions.

First one being technicians don't want to drive

and or interact with people.

What's your take on that?

You've got to take a different look at it

simply because you've had an HVAC technician show up to your house

and they didn't tell you that I need to take your HVAC system with me

back to the shop so I can fix it.

They fixed it there.

Or they replaced it or whatever it may be.

They know how to communicate with you.

Well we can teach those levels of communication to the right people.

Your most technical people aren't your best communicators.

We all know that the best programmers,

they speak a different language.

Same with car people.

Most technical people aren't the best communicators.

But we're not going to do that technical of work out there.

So we're not taking apart an engine.

We're not taking apart a transmission.

So those guys don't have to be communicators.

They're here in the shop.

They're doing that kind of work here.

But when we chase guys that's pool service technicians,

HVAC technicians, plumbers,

they're already used to communicating.

Someone taught them the technical aspects of that job.

We are structured to teach them the technical aspects of that job.

They're already used to dealing with customers.

They're already writing invoices out until those are the elements

that ramps that up so much faster because we've already started

with someone that wants a different opportunity,

wants to learn about cars because nobody's excited

that they got an AC guy unless your AC's broke.

But when you're a car guy,

you're checking out everybody else's cars.

You're doing whatever.

There's a lot more excitement that comes with that.

So it's easy to pull those guys in,

teach them the technical aspect,

and send them back out and let them do what they do.

So I think the answer there is you're right.

You can teach an old-school technician that maybe doesn't want to learn

how to communicate.

But if you bring someone fresh, someone new,

you mold them the right way.

It's clearly doable and very profitable as you've clearly proven.

This guy's a limit for us.

We haven't got to where we know we can be

because, and this is what the audience has struggled with,

who do I do it with?

If I had 50 more guys,

I'd put 50 more vans out there that was good communicators.

But I want to make sure I'm putting the right people out there.

And so we're a little bit slower with that as we ramp that up.

Mainly last year we took some chances on some people

that probably it didn't fit.

And we usually have very low turnover,

that spiked a little bit last year because of that.

But if you're not trying things, you're not learning things.

And we had to try it.

And sometimes you stumble on something.

Sometimes you say, OK, well, that stubbed my toe.

Let me try something different.

But what we don't do is a lot of dealers will say,

well, we tried that.

That didn't work.

Well, you only tried it one way.

You didn't continue to try it.

So what you're really saying is,

you hadn't found a way for it to work yet.

You just got to keep trying.

And that's what we do.

You know, when I hear you speak, Ed,

put aside the sophistication and it takes time

to get to your level of mobile service.

But it feels like you're shooting fish on a barrel

in the sense that if you right now put gun to my head,

said, Josie, you have to grow this dealership 3x, right?

And it can't come from used.

And I obviously am giving you some artificial constraints

here.

But the point being that it's a green field right now.

You can literally go everywhere and become

a mobile service provider.

Because in most markets, the dealers are not providing

mobile service.

It's like the opportunity is there to grab.

It feels like if I think about return on investment,

return on hassle, return on my time,

this is arguably the most significant return on time

right now to be had for dealers.

Because guess what?

In X amount of years from today,

every dealer or 90% of dealers will offer mobile service.

It won't be as novel.

But today, you're telling me that you're not directly

conquesting, yet you're selling service to people

way out of your market because they need it.

They want it and you're offering it.

I'm just blown away by that number.

I never expected you to tell me 4x what your store should be doing.

That just tells me how much demand there is

for this service out there, yet people aren't offering it.

People aren't offering it because it is...

Unfortunately, we always do things the way they've always

done done.

Exactly.

When we truly look at it through the customer's lens,

they don't want to show up here.

We can build all the Taj Mahals and think that

we got the greatest store in the world.

I think we do here, but I still know that

they don't want to come here.

I want to go meet them at their level,

but let's dive into that a little deeper.

When I go and meet them in the driveway,

and I don't own the driveway,

I maybe have an F-150 there,

and then there's a 4Runner there.

Well, I'm servicing the F-150,

and I'll let them know that I can also service that 4Runner

next time I come out.

They know they can't get that done

at their other local store.

Now I'm servicing the 4Runner and the F-150.

I'm the only person they're coming to,

and then when they're in the market,

I want the brand consideration.

Then I have a larger chance of owning the driveway

by doing those elements in their driveway.

If we look at it from just the element of mobile service

and not look at what it can bring to the store,

yeah, it creates its challenges,

and the margin will never be what it is in the service department.

But what we're doing is denying the aftermarket.

We're denying all the aftermarket stores out there

that is more convenient to them

because they don't have to drive 25 miles to them.

They drive four miles to them.

I'm coming to them,

so I'm making it more convenient than even the aftermarket.

So now I own that customer,

or I own the opportunity to continue to own that customer.

And Ford is coming off right now a record year of recalls.

You clearly are aware of.

Do you think this opportunity exists for other brands in other regions?

Or is it specific to your region for some reason?

And Ford, which is,

I have to assume driving a significant amount of mobile business

due to the recall situation.

What's your overall kind of assessment

on the viability of what you're doing in other regions with other brands?

So I work with a lot of stores,

and almost every brand of a store that I work with

hates recalls.

And I love recalls

because recalls is an opportunity to reintroduce ourselves to our customers.

And nationally,

less than 31% of our customers

service with the brand dealer

after their warranty period.

Less than 31%.

And so that means 70% is going somewhere else.

That's an opportunity to bring that customer back and introduce them to your store.

And so I love it from that reason alone.

We buck that,

and we run somewhere between 72% and 76% in a venture.

But the reality is...

Sorry, what do you do between 72% to 76%?

Our venture of our customers in our market area

that do business with us for service after warranty.

So we're two and a half times the national number there.

But the reality of that is

recalls allows you to reintroduce yourself to the customer.

But we can't look at it as an inconvenience.

So I got another one of those.

It's an opportunity to show off our brand.

It's an opportunity to show off who we are,

to show off the convenience,

whether you're doing it with mobile service,

you're doing it with who bring them through.

Do I like that Ford has released more recalls than anybody?

I do not.

But reality of that is Ford is very quick to accept and move along.

And a lot of these things are very piddly recalls.

It's all in a clip here.

Putting a tie strap on there, reprogramming this.

There's not been very many that are major recalls.

But Ford is very quick to react to that.

Well, I appreciate that because that minimizes my marketing dollar

because now I have a new list of who I know has a need

that I can reintroduce to my store

whether they're doing business with us or not.

Are you leveraging a tool like, are you doing like busy car?

Are you doing like recall outreach directly?

So we have a couple ways.

And yes, we do use busy car.

There's a couple of tools that we use to reach out to our customers.

We get lists from Ford.

But those lists are limited.

They may not be the most updated.

And guys like busy car and some of the others do a great job

of scrubbing through that data and giving us cleaner lists.

But I'll take those lists from anybody that can provide them to me

because that's an opportunity for us to grow our market.

And we can grow our market.

We're denying the aftermarket.

And we're denying the market around this.

Yeah.

That's incredible.

I wouldn't go into like a bit of a lightning round

because I have, you know, as I was preparing for the podcast,

I'd be talking to some dealers,

some of the largest dealers in the country.

And people just had great questions.

And some of them are very tactical.

So I figured let's just do like a quick lightning round

and get your take on all these things.

So I'll see you're excited.

You know, let's go.

All right.

If you could track only three numbers to run fixed stops,

what are they?

I hate one line repair orders.

I don't want to be an order taker.

There's opportunities every time there.

Percentage of MPI, video MPI.

I want to make sure that we're letting the customer know

that we're looking at their vehicle,

introducing the technician to them and then ELR.

I don't care about hours per RO

because I don't want to push these guys to sell things

that customers don't need.

But I want to know that they're selling it to them

at a fair price, whether it's one advisor or another,

that it's equal footing.

So those would be the three.

Incredible.

This sort of ties in with hours per RO,

but to condition see efficiency versus productivity,

what are your floor to ceiling numbers?

So I don't have a floor.

I have constant improvement.

I don't care if you turn 10 hours a week while you're in BTI.

But next week, you should be turning me 15.

Next week after that, you should be turning me 17.

And that constant progression,

our highest producer,

and he averages about 500 hours a month,

our highest producer came from one of our first graduating class

in our tech development program.

And I can assure you, he was not turning 40 hours a week

when he started here.

But he's consistently turning me over 125 hours a week now.

So you have your company average or baseline,

but you're looking for constant improvement.

Is there a number that's like,

hey, this is just too low.

It doesn't work for our company?

Yes.

There's expectations.

So if you can't meet those expectations,

you only make it to the line.

But you have to meet those expectations

before you come out of those programs.

Once you come out of BTI,

there's a transition team.

We call it where you're standing on your own

and you have to make that shift

to be able to produce those hours

to go out to be a line tech.

So everything's a level up in our generation.

What's a baseline expectation?

I want to see somebody turning 35 hours a week

before they come out of the transition team.

And they only get six to eight weeks to make that happen.

But when they go into it, they're prepared to do that.

If they made it to the transition team,

they're prepared to come out and do that.

Now, it isn't 35 hours a week or you can't be here.

If they're not getting there, then I'm engaging with them.

What do we need to do?

Did I bring you out too soon?

Is there some elements missing?

What barriers are you running into?

And that's just like the grass grows where you water it.

And I've got to make sure we're watering it.

And at 35 hours a week,

what's a typical efficiency for a tech like that?

Do I want to keep them at 35 hours a week?

No.

The average shop runs at 112%.

But at 112%, I have a lot of people that are less than 100%

because of the development programs.

But I have a lot of people that's above 100%.

So once they transition outside of the transition team,

there's levels for them to hit different bonus programs

and they're not going to hit anything less,

any bonus program, less than 100%.

Okay, let's go to first service retention.

What are your benchmarks at 12, 24, 36 months?

So I ran those numbers before we got on here

just to be able to hit those.

I do not offer first real change.

I don't want to offer anything for free.

I don't like coupons.

So it's about bringing customers back.

Keep the service premium.

What's that?

Keep the service premium.

Exactly.

So 83.7, first year, 80.1, second year, 73.4, third year.

That's about one and a half times industry average

from that mistake in third year.

And about 50% of the industry gives away that first,

at least the first old change.

You don't do that.

So in your case, what percent of those are mobile service

versus actually coming to the dealership?

We're ramping that up.

I can't say that that's huge yet because last year

that was our big push was to go out and offer that first service,

give them the best experience the first time they need service

and then continue on from there.

So that's a new push force.

I wouldn't say that a third of that yet is mobile yet.

So how are you bringing back,

when you said 81% first year, 12 months,

how are you bringing back so many clients

without doing the first oil change free

or anything like that?

Like what's your strategy?

There's a lot of compounding elements that come into that.

We are very involved with the community.

We have a restaurant here.

We make it convenient.

We send a, there's so many things that happen to that

in the sales process or they're exhausted

by the time they leave in a lot of cases.

And so we have a video link that we send out behind that

thanking them for their business

and preparing them for service.

So we introduced them through a video

and everyone gets that.

We can watch.

We don't know the open rates.

We know all those elements,

but it's a compounding effect.

It's the involvement in the community.

It's having a restaurant here.

It's the introduction to service.

It's all those elements of who we are that,

and most of the time,

it's on the service here.

So they've experienced it already.

Do they get a coupon for the restaurant or anything?

No.

Are you guys that small of a town?

Cause I mean, I have like a hundred restaurants

within a mile of here.

So I don't know if I'm coming back to yours.

We are a different restaurant.

It's a Ford's garage restaurant.

It has a lot of nostalgia to it.

And there's not very many restaurants here.

We're not talking, this isn't no Perkins, right?

Right, right.

Exactly.

So a lot of attentionality went into all these things.

Love that.

Talk to me about show rate expectation

for confirmed appointments.

I went over and challenged the desk on that.

And obviously we target 75%.

Year to date, we're about 59% of show rate.

And so there's always, always opportunity there.

But I have to give it to them.

They do a great job on closing.

They're at 17.6% year to date.

And they're in that offices.

So there's always, always opportunity for improvement.

That's why I'd say we're just getting started

because anytime we're talking numbers,

that's 50s and 60s and 70%.

Yep.

There's so much opportunity in front of that.

Voice AI in the shop.

Yay, nay or not yet?

This goes very excited.

I'm very excited for this answer.

This goes very similar to one of the recent podcasts you've done.

You'll see.

We want AI to enhance who we are.

And we have signed with a partner.

And I won't say who it is yet because we're heading for struggles.

But we are a large volume service center.

And I don't think they was prepared for the size that we are

and be able to react to the things that we do.

So it has not enhanced us yet.

But there is opportunity for AI there for sure.

Okay.

And I'm sure if anyone's going to find that opportunity,

it's going to be you.

Hence why I put not yet.

And it seems like you're in that in between stage.

So maybe we'll check in six months to 12,

six to 12 months and it'll be a different answer.

I'm hoping for it to be a different answer in 30 days.

Even better.

All right.

Now warranty AR days to target.

How do you manage it?

What do you look for?

We do a lot with teams.

We didn't talk about a lot of the team elements here.

I have a warranty team and they do a phenomenal job.

And when we look at our assets,

our schedule assets and see what's sitting out there,

warranty is always one of the cleanest.

But my average is 5.6 days from the time of ride up

to the time of payment.

And so it's rare that things roll into the 30 day column.

And now then you'll have something to get some hold for

for approval or whatever, but 5.6 days.

Obviously that's our money sitting out there.

We need to keep cash flow moving.

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Tech incentives, how are you at a high level

incentivizing your best technicians?

Are you doing like base salaries or high base salaries?

Anything kind of unconventional?

Can you give us an overview there?

So it should always be challenging things there.

So we do longevity.

We get out of bonus within the year

based on how long they've been here

and how many hours they produced.

That is something that you can offer to them

to stay longer.

It's just elements of rewarding them for being here

along with other things.

But then we throw out different incentives

at different times to drive different things.

But as the recording of this,

Powerball is huge.

So I could throw out a contest out there today.

I saw that.

You turned it out.

I was driving on the highway and it was empty.

I was looking around and I was like,

yeah, look at that.

It's weird.

There's nothing there.

Then we got closer.

I'm like, ah, there's a one.

And they're like, okay, I see.

I see what's going on here.

1.7 billion right now.

Oh, it's a one, sorry, and a B.

Yes.

That's probably a weak view at this point.

But yeah.

So spend a couple of bucks and set targets.

Anybody that sells a car today,

you get a Powerball ticket.

Anybody turns 10 hours.

So it creates that little urgency in the moment.

So just challenge the status quo.

Don't do the same thing.

Stare, step this or that or whatever.

Change things up, keep it fresh.

And give them something to chase after.

Everybody wants to chase a target.

Incredible.

And then the last one for the lightning round is how do you

manage pickups and drop offs?

Call it mileage, radius, vehicle mileage, service type.

What's your process there?

That was in a metro market that would be a lot smaller

radius, but it is not abnormal for us to go 60 miles out

and to pick up a customer's vehicle.

And that's just because of where we're at.

But we are number one for Ford and pick up delivery

nationally.

And I feel like we can triple that fairly easily.

So we are truly getting started, just getting started there.

But it's all from the customer that experience.

When a customer calls you and tells you that they have

a need, they're telling you that they want to spend

money with you.

And if you don't find every reason for them,

every way to make it convenient for them,

then that's a failure on our part.

And what's your Pareto for mobile service?

In other words, what's the 20% of jobs that make up 80%

of work when you're out there doing mobile service

at customer's home?

What are you actually doing?

The majority of the work you're doing at people's homes

is like oil changes, breaks.

What's the most common type of work that you're

doing at people's homes?

The most common work that we're doing mobile

is some type of repair.

Maintenance is a small percentage.

That's less than 30% of what we do out in the field.

Do a lot of SLP parts, do a lot of infill dyag.

And when we do the infill dyag, we realize that

we can fix it infill and we fix it.

So it's about not saying no.

And if you can't fix it?

Then I have two tow trucks, or I have pickup

and delivery drivers, and that's what we set up.

Oh, okay.

Yes.

Well, you got through the lightning round on

the Car Dish of God podcast, so congrats.

Thank you.

Ed, what's your constant, your continuous

improvement type of guy?

What's in your mind right now?

You mentioned voice AI.

You said you'd like to solve that within 30 days.

So that's clearly something that's on your mind.

You're thinking about how can I make sure we

get all these calls and be a more efficient shop.

What else is on your mind?

So there's a few things.

Mobile is top of mind.

We do a lot with mobile, but there's still

a lot of opportunity in front of us.

The AI has a, there's so many ways

it can enhance who we are, but we're

hitting some barriers there, and we're

going to get through those barriers.

So I'm not yet kind of guy.

We hadn't got there yet.

And then the convenience to land an appointment.

If you go to some of these dealers' websites,

and I challenge dealers with this all the time,

it is so hard to either create a lead

or send an appointment.

And if we don't get that down, and we're

down minimally, but we're not down

where I want to be.

I wanted you to be able to make an appointment

with three clicks.

And I want you to be able to create a lead

in three to five clicks.

And so we are constantly working on that.

And I'll work with my DMS and we'll take

some layers out and then they'll put them

back in because they got to suffice everybody else.

So that's a battle that we're fighting,

but those are the three things.

Convenience to land an appointment or lead.

And AI, how it can enhance us

and continue to enhance what we do mobile.

Ed, how supportive has the manufacturer been to you

from like a labor rate perspective on maybe

unwarranties or from technology?

And you know, what are you permitted to use

to make that experience better?

Do you feel like you're getting the support

from the manufacturer?

Could it be better?

What's your take on that?

The manufacturer looks at us as a land

of what's possible.

So with that, we get the pallet a lot

of stuff with them, but I don't get

any other benefits from it.

Nothing else that comes from it,

but they do give us a lot of opportunity

to pallet stuff with them.

Got it.

All right.

So let's talk to us about your book.

Again, you're a man of so many talents,

you know, writing books.

It's, you know, sharing your knowledge,

doing a big service for the industry.

I sort of, so the way I've viewed,

the way I've viewed the Cardio Shabbat platform

is like, it's very simple, right?

If we can get dealers to share their insights

and help other dealers, then all dealers

get better.

And then the customer experience improves.

Customers are happier.

Dealers are happier.

Their experience is better.

They're also more profitable.

Everybody wins.

And you are, I mean, you're a practitioner, right?

You are literally sharing your knowledge

with so many people.

You are very positive, Sam.

You're a giver.

Why write a book?

What inspired you to do that?

And what is it about?

So we started this podcast with

people visiting the store.

And as I tell a lot of them when they come in,

because it was asked so many times,

a lot of people ask, what's the one thing

that made the biggest difference?

Because everybody's looking for that silver bullet.

They want to go back and do all the work.

Well, all the work is pretty simple,

but it has to be laid on top of each other.

So it's all the little things done

consistently over time.

And that's why I wrote the book.

It's not any one thing.

It's, hey, everybody can be busy,

but that busyness doesn't always reflect

into effectiveness.

So let's focus on being more effective

rather than so busy, react into fires.

And then a lot of times we counsel people

for things that hasn't necessarily

set the expectation for or train them

properly for.

And what we should be doing is coaching them.

So it's flipping those things around

that if you change these elements,

the impact can be huge.

And so I was encouraged

for decades to write a book.

I finally did.

And there's so many ways to make it

better.

So I'm working on a revision of it

to be mile one repaved.

And the.

So when did you actually write the book?

Right?

Like you're you're so busy at the shop,

like, you know, you get home or you're like

11 p.m. like burning the midnight oil.

Like when are you writing the book?

I made notes for years if I ever was

to write a book, these are things that

and then I am.

I don't sleep a whole lot.

I sleep about four, maybe four and a half

hours a night.

So God bless you.

That's not me.

So I'm up at two or three o'clock in the

morning.

And so that window of time when I would

get up until about five to where I start

to get ready for.

You fixed ops, people.

I'm telling you, man, like the text would

like I admit, like I don't I've never,

ever was first at the shop maybe once.

Like it's just not I don't know how you

guys do it.

Let me stay there till midnight.

Just don't make me get in early, man.

Don't make me do that.

I'm so variable.

So I picked I picked on the variable

guys.

I tell them that we're eating lunch

by the time they're eating breakfast.

The reality of that is it's just flipping

it around.

The fixed ops guys is eating dinner with

the family.

And while you guys are still here, like

you just said until 11 o'clock.

So it's give and take.

I know.

Is there is like, is there one?

Give us a teaser from the book.

You give us the overview, but is there

like one story that you haven't mentioned

on this podcast or one lesson or

anything from the book that is like,

you know, a key that you want to

just mention now?

Well, a lot of times we this will

really we work on it together.

And we don't challenge status quo

because of the fear of managing the

change that goes with that.

And the change is not hard.

It takes intentionality and

effort.

And so the shifting it to that

we get to do this and here's the

vision of why makes the change so

much easier.

So it's pushed as it's making change

with a positive spin on it.

And those are everything that we do

to get better what requires change.

And we have to we have to find

a way that that we can make it

rewarding to ourselves and to our

teams that makes us push towards

that because otherwise it's just

the grind.

And I never want to just come in

and and survive the day.

I want to come in and make the

day thrive.

And so finding ways to grow through

change in a positive way and

getting the team to buy into it

and push through with you is

instrumental.

And it was a cool experience to do

that with Alamali.

Wow.

You're such a give or add that

I'd love for you to send us your

just let us know send us the link

to buy your book when it's out

and to include it in one of our

daily emails that go out to tens

of thousands of dealers.

I'd love to just include it in

there and get you more

exposure because I think it's so,

so important.

And you know, you give so much

from yourself and I'd love to,

you know, do that from our team

and help you out as well,

hopefully, but it's incredible

kind of how you're doing this

on a different tangent.

I want to ask you, you've shared

a lot about yourself already on

this podcast, but what do people

not know about you?

There has to be more to the

onion here.

I want to peel it back just a

little bit more.

I see there's a football in the

back and that's still a bit

superficial, but give me

like, let's go really deep here.

What do people not know about you?

What everybody looks at me as

being this cool, calm, collective,

very laid-back person and I am.

But at heart, I am an adrenaline

junkie.

And so before I had kids,

I was riding motorcycles at

200 miles an hour and

since I had kids, I got off of

those.

So now I have hot rod jet

skis.

So I got motorcycles on water

and that is my pastime.

I am an adrenaline junkie.

Where do you go?

Like a lake, ocean?

Where do you typically go?

Wherever there's water.

If the ski will fit in it,

I can ride in it and that's

where I'm at.

So I like fresh water

because the cleanup time is

easier and I spend more time

on the water, but I don't

stay away from salt either.

So, but I'll go anywhere with

it.

But that's my favorite.

Do you still, yeah, do you

still like return wrenches or

anything like that?

I am not a car guy.

I turn wrenches as

a means to an end.

I like performance.

So I roll around a thousand

horse-tower pickup truck.

But, but no, I don't.

What do you drive?

What is it?

I drive a elevated

Raptor R.

Okay.

Yes.

Wow.

Incredible.

It's like to have fun.

It's like to,

people don't like to ride

with you.

Yeah, I bet.

Dude, this has been just

incredible.

You've shared so much.

You've been so gracious with

your time.

Any, any closing thoughts?

I just had a lot of fun.

So I, as you can tell, I don't

want it to end.

So I'm kind of, you know,

dragging you along a little

bit more here.

But I'll give you, I'll let

you do the closing thoughts

or, you know, if you have

any questions for me or

anything.

I mean, it's been incredible

conversation.

Well, you'll see, you've

given me a lot of props here

and I appreciate that.

But ultimately, you're

making a difference out there

and you're bringing this

platform out and where people

can learn and get better.

And the, the traction that

you're gaining shows that,

that you're making a difference.

But the sometimes maybe you

question yourself, am I doing

the right things?

Am I doing this?

People getting something out

of this, you're doing a

phenomenal job.

You and your team are doing

a phenomenal job and keep

doing what you're doing.

Really appreciate that,

especially coming from you.

That means a lot.

Definitely is a, it's a

treadmill, but it's a,

it's a rewarding treadmill.

So, you know, given the

fact that it does benefit

so many people.

So that's definitely keeps

us going and motivated and

excited about, you know,

continuing to get knowledge

out there.

So, Ed, this has been awesome.

Ed Roberts, Bozard, Ford,

Lincoln.

And thanks for coming on

again.

Really enjoyed the conversation.

Yossi, thanks for having me.

All right. Hope you enjoyed

that episode.

Please give the podcast a

rating. Consider subscribing

to the show and check the

show notes for links to what

we talked about.

Thanks for tuning in.

I'll see you guys next

time.

Bye.

About this episode

Ed Roberts, COO of Bozard Ford Lincoln, shares his journey from humble beginnings to leading a successful dealership known for its innovative technician development programs. He emphasizes that the perceived technician shortage is actually a lack of developmental pathways. The conversation explores how Bozard's unique culture, community involvement, and mobile service initiatives have driven growth and customer loyalty. Ed's insights on employee development, customer experience, and the importance of adaptability in the automotive industry provide valuable lessons for dealers looking to thrive.

Ford F-150 Toyota 4Runner

Original notes

Today I’m joined by Ed Roberts, COO at Bozard Ford Lincoln. We discuss how Ed scaled a team of 165 technicians from scratch, the strategies behind his world-class service lane, his unlikely entry into dealerships nearly 30 years ago and much more. This episode is brought to you by: 1. Cox Automotive - Discover what’s driving improved customer experiences—and dealership results. Download the Drivers of Shopper Satisfaction ebook from Cox Automotive today: https://carguymedia.com/464vOfw 2. DLRdmv – Dealers, are you still stuck using outdated interstate titling methods? DLR50 from DLRdmv modernizes out‑of‑state titling by providing 24/7 sales tax, title, and registration fees, pre‑populated state-specific forms, through an online platform that directly integrates with your DMS. CDG listeners get 30 days of free full-service access to DLR50 on unlimited out-of-state deals. Head over to @ http://www.DLRdmv.com/CDG , use code POD30 to claim your free month today. 3. Nomad Content Studio - Most dealers still fumble social—posting dry inventory pics or handing it off without a plan. Meanwhile, the store down the street is racking up millions of views and selling / buying cars using video. That’s where Nomad Content Studio comes in. We train your own videographer, direct what to shoot, and handle strategy, to posting, to feedback. Want in with the team behind George Saliba, EV Auto, and top auto groups? Book a call at http://www.trynomad.co Get your own copy of Ed Roberts book "Mile One: An Endless Journey to Effective Leadership" here: https://a.co/d/iC7TKZd or visit his website at https://mileoneleadership.com/ Check out Car Dealership Guy’s stuff: For dealers: Industry job board ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠http://jobs.dealershipguy.com⁠⁠⁠⁠ Dealership recruiting ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠http://www.cdgrecruiting.com⁠⁠⁠⁠ Fix your dealership’s social media ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠http://www.trynomad.co⁠⁠⁠⁠ Request to be a podcast guest ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠http://www.cdgguest.com⁠⁠⁠⁠ For industry vendors: Advertise with Car Dealership Guy ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠http://www.cdgpartner.com⁠⁠⁠⁠ Industry job board ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠http://jobs.dealershipguy.com⁠⁠⁠⁠ Request to be a podcast guest ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠http://www.cdgguest.com⁠⁠⁠⁠ Topics: 00:41 Why is culture so important? 03:30 How did Ed achieve success? 06:11 Overcoming homelessness: key lessons? 12:51 Building a strong team how? 18:30 Most effective training programs? 33:24 Benefits of mobile service? 34:47 Improving technician communication skills? 40:03 Do recalls help retention? 54:07 Best continuous improvement strategies? Car Dealership Guy Socials: X ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠x.com/GuyDealership⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠instagram.com/cardealershipguy/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ TikTok ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠tiktok.com/@guydealership⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/company/cardealershipguy⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Threads ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠threads.net/@cardealershipguy⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook.com/profile.php?id=100077402857683⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Everything else ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠dealershipguy.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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67:24

"There's No Technician Shortage!" – The Mastermind Behind Bozard's Service Lane Machine | Ed Roberts, COO at Bozard Ford Lincoln

Ford F150

Toyota 4Runner

F-150 Raptor

About this episode

Original notes