PREPARING FOR THE FUTURE – NOW

Why is Autocare the must-attend training event for technicians and business owners in 2023?

I am sure that I am not the only one noticing more EVs on our roads. The realisation is hitting home that the EV transition is not just something we have been writing about, it is clearly underway and will gather even more momentum once the Federal Government announces their EV strategy over the next few weeks.

Some of the most optimistic projections show that about six percent of the car-parc will be EV by 2030. Although workshops will still be predominantly working on ICE vehicles, EVs will soon become part of your workshop mix – if they are not already. As a result, workshop owners and managers need to be asking “what workshop changes and new equipment do I need to implement to service these vehicles?” And technicians need to be asking, “how can I safely service and repair these vehicles?”

Where would I recommend as the best place to get those answers? Autocare 2023. Autocare is the largest and most comprehensive training convention for automotive technicians and workshop owners ever held in Australia, taking place across the 9th and 10th of June at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre.

From an EV perspective, Autocare will deliver technical training sessions covering everything from high voltage battery management to EV servicing and safety to ensure technicians can efficiently and safely repair these vehicles. From a workshop management perspective, the Convention has a dedicated session named ‘EV Business Essentials’ that will share the latest trends and practices to show you how your business can adapt to the coming EV transition.

EV servicing and safety is just one of many important industry topics that are comprehensively covered at Autocare.

For example, Autocare 2023 has been designed to motivate and inspire the next generation of automotive technicians, and arm them with the knowledge they need to fast-track their training and skills.

We have heavily discounted ticket pricing for Apprentices of $75 for two days, so if you are a workshop manager or owner planning to attend Autocare, bringing along an apprentice is a valuable, and affordable, investment in your business.

With apprentices in high demand across the industry, we are also tackling the industry skills shortage head-on at Autocare with a dedicated session on the latest research and insights on how to attract and retain the best staff.

From advanced diagnostics, ADAS and exhaust aftertreatment, to customer service excellence, business planning and marketing, there are too many fantastic training sessions across our Technical Training program and Workshop Management Program to mention in this column. I recommend heading to www.autocare.org.au and clicking on the schedule tab to see why you can’t afford to miss this historic event, and also enjoy reading our Autocare 2023 preview in this issue of the magazine.

“Autocare 2023 reflects the focus the AAAA places on addressing the industry’s biggest issues.”

How are we able to deliver so many incredible topics at one event? We have spent months bringing together a truly world-class speaker list. From our international guest Brandon Steckler, a world authority on advanced vehicle diagnosis, through to our incredible list of automotive business leaders and highly respected technical trainers; nowhere else can you receive such a highly valuable mix of practical training and insights on the topics that matter from the best subject matter experts.

I am also proud to announce we are delivering a FREE to industry Trade Show at Autocare 2023. This exciting and valuable addition will bring together 100 of Australia’s best brands to showcase the latest technology, tools and equipment that will be vital to workshop and technician success in the future. A dedicated training stage on the Trade

Show floor will also provide some free technical training sessions throughout each day. I must clarify that trade show registration will not provide access to the paid Autocare Training Programs. To register for the free trade show, head to www.autocare.org.au/tradeshow

For vehicle modifiers that want the chance to influence national vehicle standards and interact with regulators, I highly recommend attending our exclusive National Light Vehicle Modification Summit. This ground-breaking summit takes place on Friday the 9th of June at Autocare in Brisbane. Tickets and more information on the Summit is available at www.autocare.org.au/modsummit

We have already had hundreds of technicians and business owners purchase tickets to Autocare, so don’t miss your chance to attend this unprecedented event to raise your technical service capabilities, and increase your business success.

Finally, and on a separate note, I would like to share that Michelle Vizzutti, who has been an integral part of the AAAA for 30 years, is retiring. On behalf of the entire AAAA team, and AAAA members across the country, I want to sincerely thank Michelle for her incredible contribution, support and friendship and wish her the best for her new chapter in life. An article that celebrates Michelle’s tenure with the AAAA is on page 9.

WHAT’S NEXT?

Find yourself a job you love, and you’ll never work a day in your life

So, the old saying goes, at least. But is it true?

If we take it literally, then obviously not. Even the most enthusiastic business owner or technician has their bad days.

But when it comes to Capricorn Members, there’s certainly some truth in the sentiment. We know from our 2022 State of the Nation Report that 62 percent of our respondents said they are very or extremely happy and just two percent said they weren’t happy at all. What made them happy? The top answer, chosen by more than a third (36 percent) of all respondents, was “I love what I do.”

There were a range of other answers, all around the eight to 10 percent mark, including having a great working environment (staff, customers, etc), liking being a business owner, having an abundance of work and the job providing for a good lifestyle.

So, there’s certainly a strong correlation between loving your job and happiness in your career. But where does making money come into it? And what about perceptions of success?

We dive a lot deeper into the interplay of happiness and success in this month’s online articles at CapHub, so check out cap.coop/ caphub if you are keen to explore this topic further.

Finally, it is worth remembering that, even if we love what we do, we all have bad days.

Taking time off, getting away from the business, putting that “gone fishing” sign on the door, can be a great circuit breaker – providing time to recharge the batteries, find perspective, and prioritise life over work.

Hopefully we all enjoyed some of that over the Easter long weekend and have been able to return to work happy and refreshed.

Yours in cooperation,

David Fraser Group CEO – Capricorn Society Ltd

For more on Capricorn Society membership, visit www.capricorn.coop