Culture

from August 2022 Southeast Edition

in Texas, South Carolina

3 Collision Repair Business Leaders Find Ways to Develop Positive Company Culture

Three auto body shop owners spoke during the recent Society of Collision Repair Specialists’ Repairer Roundtable about their efforts to build a positive culture within their companies.

Bruce Halcro of Capital Collision Center in Helena, MT, said a change in pay plans was one step he took a few years ago.

“We were paying flat rate, and it created more divisiveness than anything,” Halcro said. “Everyone was doing their own thing and saying, ‘That’s not my job.’ So we switched everybody to hourly, working out a pay plan that got them as close as we could to the flat rate that they had.”

Halcro said he tries to get out to each technician’s work area every day to talk with them briefly.

“Sometimes it’s about the car they’re working on, but most of the time it’s about family,” he said. “I think that’s an important connection to have with employees. I think how you treat employees, showing them that you value them, really builds a culture.”

One thing Halcro said has surprised him was the impact on his company’s culture he’s seen from its sponsorship this past year of a youth hockey team.

“So we had our own section, a ‘Capital Collision section,’ at the games,” he said. “We actually hired a couple of the players to come in a couple hours a day, twice a week, to clean the shop, empty garbage. By the end of the year, almost our whole crew was going to these hockey games. By Wednesday, they all would be talking about who was going to the hockey game that Friday night. Honestly, that was one of the best team-building things that we’ve done, that’s been impactful for our youngest employees to some of our older ones.”

Ron Reichen, owner of Precision Body & Paint, which is opening its fifth location in Oregon this year, said part of developing his company’s culture involves having second-year students from a local community college collision industry training program spend their threemonth co-op at one of his shops.

“We try to have them touch

Shop Showcase each one of the different disciplines within that 90 days,” Reichen said. with Ed Attanasio “So they get to see where their appetite might be. During that 90 days, they’re learning the culture. They’re learning to come to work on time, to keep their work area clean, to read Social Media for Shops the OEM repair procedures, to read with Ed Attanasio

SEMA Show Goes On with Ed Attanasio

Media and Publicity for Shops with Ed AttanasioMontana shop owner Bruce Halcro said sponsorship of a youth hockey team has been good for team-building within his shop and follow the repair plan. They understand they’re part of a team.”

Oregon shop owner Ron Reichen said having students work in multiple departments during their first 90 days helps them learn the company culture

Shop StrategiesContinued from Cover Gas Tax Holiday

with Stacey Phillips

consumers.” In mid-March, Kemp signed House Bill 304 to suspend Body Shops Givthe state tax on motor fuel through May 31. In May, the governor ex- ing Backtended the moratorium through July 14. with Stacey Phillips

Georgia collects 29.1 cents a gallon on gasoline and 32.6 cents a gallon on diesel fuel. SuspendTips for Busy Body Shopsing the gas tax represents a revenue loss of about $150 million to with Stacey Phillips$170 million per month.

Meanwhile, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams has launched ads on gas station adMy SEMA vertising screens to highlight her support for suspending the gas tax until the end of 2022. She with Stacey Phillipscontends Georgia has a “massive budget surplus” because of federal American Rescue Plan funding.