Any service managers or ex service mangers?

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YY1 said:
Sounds like you're not actually after "proficiency" as stated in the OP, but rather "productivity".

Not the same thing, may or may not be tied together.

The pitfalls, were pointed out, though.

I'll never forget the guy I worked with that got two bonuses in a row for "most work orders", pic in the news letter and everything.

Except his work was CRAP.

I personally had to go "fix" several of his "fixes".

This was building maintenance, though.

He did crap like- put the faucet knob on upside down and then tighten it so tight that it wouldn't move.
Really? How about- you try to turn it on before you leave.

Finally enough other guys bitched so much that they simply ended the program.
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Same thing. We had a new hire at the dealership that was working the commission program. He was doing new car set ups and making bank. If course all he did was check fluids and tire pressures and run them out. We found a lot of issues that he should have caught if he just did his job.
 
Proficiency is great but what happens is they ajust the flat reate time down to what the quick "proficient" guy can do and it kills the slower not proficient guy...Ive seen it. One shop paid .6 for brakes(hang pads aand rotors) while the dealership paid 1.9 (machine rotors clean and lube all parts and hardware) flat rate is a great game untill management starts screwinga round with it it i snever to the techs advantage..
 
Yy1....for clarity proficiency is what we're trying to improve, typically in the marine industry a good tech will be around 80-85% its pretty hard to break that because of numerous marine related factors and no flat rate the junior techs will be around 70 to 75 so if we can tweak those up a bit it can make a big difference.
 
I remember working for Ford flat rate 25 years ago..the guys who did the quick in an dout the door clean up, Id always get the one guys comebacks. management didnt care pay him once to not even fix it pay me peanuts to go back over it. He was the wonder boy though couldnt be slowed down fixing anything...Id always do the F 150 head fgaskets that paid 8 but took 12 hours but the truck would start right up and no leaks to go back over. The only thing flat rate taught me was how to manage money :) I cant beleive that people still are willing to work that system Im sure there are guys getting screwed everywhere the same way I did nothing has changed. Its still greed drivien and the college drop out service rep makes the same or more than an average tech.
 
A parting thought before I bow out-

My industry (IT) has a propensity to seek "technological solutions for administrative problems".

IE something along the lines of- "I don't want to force employees to use their company provided email, so can you compile a spreadsheet of all the outside emails, feed it into our mail server, and keep it updated on a monthly basis?"

Instead of simply instituting an administrative policy of "you WILL use the company email for official business, and we WILL NOT accept that you did not receive an email at your private address as an excuse for any lack of communication".

Perhaps you could "just" administratively resolve the issue by paying your "good" techs better.

You could certainly use your metrics to validate why someone is or is not getting a bump to a higher pay grade without getting onto a semi-automated system of monthly bonuses.
 
Giving a tiered bonus based on sales helps with up-sales and efficiency.

I manage a GM body shop and while not the same you could do something similar.

150k/month = 2% of gross sales
100k/month = 1.5%
90 and below = 1%

I also paint every vehicle that comes through the shop. I get paid flat rate for that as well. Our refinish efficiency is around 250-300% and body is around 200%
 
toolmanmike said:
Good program but not fair at all for the electrical guy or the fellow that does a lot of warranty work. Warranty doesn't pay much. Pinched wires, and squeaks and rattles even pay less.
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Mike,
At the time the NVH guy and the drivability/electrical guy were not flat rate guys. As a matter of fact, in my 20 years with Chrysler, ‘84 to ‘04 we always had an hourly guy or two who did the jobs like that. Noise, Vibration, Harshness, water leaks, electrical issues and drivability issues that sometimes really beat up the normal flat rate hero’s.

Hourly and better paid because of the skills kind of offset the bonus plan for the flat rate guys.

Cliff Ramsdell
 
I wouldn’t implement some that’s going to be a ton of work to administer and cause division. Institute a program based on a half dozen shop goals such as sales, profitability, safety, warranty claims,etc.Pay no more frequently than quarterly (progress pay out) perform quarterly employee reviews and factor the bonus based on earned wage and performance factor ie 0.7 if you’re below par and 1.25 if you’re the best. There should be no surprises. Make sure and weed out non performers (not those still learning) which you should be doing anyway.
 
Killer6 said:
About 2yrs before I walked out of My last wrenchin' gig at the dealership, the then-new "pre-owned" car Mgr was talking in the office, stating how today's Techs are "APC's"....Authorized Parts Changers. I looked Him right in the eyes and said; " Dude, You need to get Your head out of Your ***!"
It has all been summed up pretty much above. Flat-rate turns greedy, lazy techs into thieves, the quality goes in the tank & comebacks thru' the roof. They also learn quickly, like a child, if You give them a task they don't want to do....take forever to do it & F-it up as badly as possible. Oh, the writers will whine & complain, but the pain-modified behavior will kick in & they'll stop giving them the **** jobs. We had a yearly bonus, based on "productivity", the dumbest laziest guys would not only haul in the hours all year...but reaped the reward for being that way as the final insult to the rest of Us who solved problems & knocked out the warranty work and their comebacks. Some heads finally rolled, but when experienced guys roll home with 4.5-6hrs, & the numbnut in the next bay goes home with 17hrs, after hiding the lower b-joint in His box that He flagged 2hrs for...which only pays 1.5, & gets away with it.....morale is going to be a serious issue.
That's the tip of the iceberg, lol!! Profit sharing is actually a better idea, but even then, the writers & parts personel got paid commision on the shops productivity...and seemed to fight it at every turn sometimes...mind boggling....
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I think Killer 6 was in the same shop as me... Take care of all the problems and make peanuts.... The dealer I worked at was constantly getting "Ford Asset" trainees... Every damn one seemed to have read the same rule book, throwing parts in their tool box and billing the time was a great way to flag hours.... Never mind that they were only in the shop for four to six months before they disappear & all the problems they create fall on the actual techs shoulders...
 
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