PART 4
PART 4
PERSONNEL
introduction
The service department can provide quality service only if each of its many
varied functions are carried out skillfully, in a well-organized manner.
Efficient organization requires that;
General
Manager
Lube Body
Mechanic Electrician
& Wash & Paint
04-1
ORGANIZATION AND
PERSONNEL
Chapter 2 Manpower Planning
Manpower guidelines are calculated on the basis of the conditions by the following funda-
mental elements.
The number of Kia units in operation diminishes gradually as the vehicles reach the end of
their life cycle. Naturally, every product, including the motor vehicle, has a finite life period
before it has to be subject to disposal. In general, vehicle depreciation takes place over 12
years until it is finally scrapped. The vehicle survival rate shows the proportion of vehicles in
actual operation as time goes, and is derived from Kia’s business experience.
VSR
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0
0 year 1 year 2 years 3 years 4 years 5 years 6 years 7 years 8 years 9 years 10 years 11 years 12 years
Past Year(s) 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
VSR 1 0.99 0.97 0.94 0.88 0.8 0.69 0.56 0.44 0.32 0.21 0.14 0.06
04-2
ORGANIZATION AND
PERSONNEL
The following example tells how you can calculate the current number of units in operation in
your territory using the vehicle survival rate and the number of annual vehicle sales. The
number of annual vehicle sales can be obtained directly from your sales department. At this
moment, a Kia dealership’s sales data is taken at random for an example, which shows a
gradual growth in its volume through eight year business with Kia.
Calculation:
Total No. of UIO in the Dealership’s Territory
12 years
No. of UIO in the Warranty Period = Σ(No. of Annual Vehicle Sales × VSR)
0 year
12 years
No. of UIO out of the Warranty Period = Σ(No. of Annual Vehicle Sales × VSR)
3 years
In this example:
Total No. of UIO in the Dealership’s Territory
= 432 + 417 + 405 + 366 +311 +246 +79 + 63 + 25
= 2,344
Past Year(s) 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
VSR 1 0.99 0.97 0.94 0.88 0.8 0.69 0.56 0.44 0.32 0.21 0.14 0.06
No. of Annual
Vehicle Sales
432 421 418 389 353 307 115 113 57 - - - -
04-3
ORGANIZATION AND
PERSONNEL
2.2 Number of Repair Orders per Month
The number of repair orders per month, which means the number of vehicles brought in, can
be estimated considering the current number of units in operation and other market-related
factors.
Customer Return Rate (82%: during warranty, 66%: after warranty) - CRR
This is to determine how many customers return to the dealership where they purchased
vehicles for receiving after-sales service. It shows how well the dealership retains its customer
with offering satisfactory services. 82% is the global average customer return rate during the
warranty period, generally the first three years after new car purchase. The customer return
rate based on the Service CSI survey is shown as below.
Global Average 82 12 4 2
East Europe 89 9 2 -
West Europe 85 11 3 1
M. East & Africa 89 7 3 1
Asia & Pacific 73 17 7 3
C&S America 74 16 7 3
Kia expects that all Kia vehicles sold will return to the Kia certified dealership to receive after-
sales service. However, the facts are Kia vehicles do not return at the rate expected. Recent
industry studies and our experience have shown that the customer return rate is 82 percent at
04-4
ORGANIZATION AND
PERSONNEL
most during the first three years of ownership and declines sharply each year thereafter with
warranty termination. In general, the proportion of CRR shows about a 20% decrease after
the warranty period expires. Therefore, the dealership must make every effort to keep up the
customer return rate that they achieved at the beginning as well as increasing the goal rate
that they set to achieve. In practice, you can adjust this rate to your dealership referring to
your own business experiences for more accurate calculation of the number of repair orders
per month.
The following shows how you can estimate the number of repair orders per month using these
market-related factors;
Calculation:
In this example:
No. of Repair Orders per Month
04-5
ORGANIZATION AND
PERSONNEL
2.3 Number of Technicians
The number of technicians can be obtained by dividing the sum of labor time with a technician’s
capacity, and the sum of labor time can be derived from the number of repair orders. The
following factors relating to labor time should be considered prior to calculation of the num-
ber of technicians.
The following shows how you can estimate the number of technicians corresponding to the
number of repair orders;
Calculation:
No. of s Technicians
No. of R.O. per Month × Average Time Taken per R.O.
=
Working Days per Month × Working Hours per Day
No. of R.O. per Month × 2.3
=
22 × 8
= No. of R.O. per Month × 0.013
In this example:
No. of Technicians = 429 x 0.013 = 5.58 ≈ 6 Technicians (Rounded up)
04-6
ORGANIZATION AND
PERSONNEL
2.4 Manpower Guideline
The following chart gives the basis of manpower planning in relation to diverse market situ-
ations. But, beware that this guideline can not be the best choice for every dealership as
each business circumstances differs.
No. of Annual Vehicle Sales 100 200 300 500 800 1,000 1,500
No. of Units in Operation 800 1,600 2,400 4,000 6,400 8,000 12,000
In the Warranty Period 296 592 888 1,480 2,368 2,960 4,440
Out of the Warranty Period 504 1,008 1,512 2,520 4,032 5,040 7,560
No. of Monthly For Non-Warranty 75 150 225 374 599 748 1,123
Repair
Orders For New Vehicle P.D.I. 8 17 25 42 67 83 125
Total 138 276 413 689 1,102 1,378 2,067
Daily 6 13 19 31 50 63 94
Service Manager 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Administrator - - 1 1 1 1 2
Cashier 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Clerk - - 1 1 1 1 1
Service Advisor - 1 1 2 3 4 6
Workshop Controller - - - - - 1 1
Workshop Foreman - - 1 1 2 3 4
Technicians 2 4 6 9 15 18 27
Body Repairer - - 1 1 2 3 4
Painter - - 2 2 4 6 8
NOTE
●It is assumed that the number of annual vehicle sales is fixed by certain amount through 12
business years with Kia to estimate the number of units in operation.
●It is assumed that the warranty expires in three years.
●Number of Work bays = No. of Technicians x 1.3
●Technician implies only mechanic and electrician by the definition of Kia’s Technician
Recognition Program.
●Manpower for the body and paint work is separately considered just for reference because
those work loads differ considerably according to the dealership’s circumstances.
04-7
ORGANIZATION AND
PERSONNEL
Chapter 3 Job Description
A Service Manager’s job is to get work done through employees. Regardless of the approach
used, work will not be effectively accomplished without directing those who must do the
work. Employees work best when their job function is clearly defined, so a job description for
each employee in the department is a must.
04-8
ORGANIZATION AND
PERSONNEL
3.1 Service Manager
The Service Manager is responsible to the top management of the dealership for running,
controlling and administering the Service Department and accomplishes the effective ope-
rations of the Service Department by gathering all the power of the personnel in the depart-
ment.
04-9
ORGANIZATION AND
PERSONNEL
3.2 Administrator
● To administer centralized service invoicing.
Function ● To administer efficiency and productivity controls.
● To administer warranty claims and all related programs.
3.3 Cashier
● To handle all service and parts related money transactions.
● To reconcile daily business transaction.
Function
● To administer petty cash.
● To maintain pertinent records.
Reports to ● Service Manager
In charge of ● Clerical Help
● Customer relations ability
Qualification
● Administrative skills
04-10
ORGANIZATION AND
PERSONNEL
3.4 Service Advisor
A full time Service Advisor should be employed when customer repair orders written daily
exceed fifteen. An additional Service Advisor should be employed for each increase of fifteen
customer repair orders providing that the department operating profit can bear this extra
expense.
● To deal with all customers and coordinate service work and time.
Function ● To act as liaison between service customers and dealership.
● To promote the sales of labor and parts.
In charge of ● Customers
04-11
ORGANIZATION AND
PERSONNEL
3.5 Workshop Controller
A workshop controller is added to coordinate the proper dispatching of service work when
the number of service advisers exceeds four.
● To maximize workshop utilization.
Function ● To monitor timely completion of work in process.
● To assign work to technicians in accordance with their ability.
Reports to ● Service Manager
Coordinates with ● Service Advisor and Workshop Foreman
Qualification ● Ability to plan and control, product knowledge and administrative skills.
● Assign work to technicians according to their skill level, and to “time
promised” with workshop foremen’s consent.
Duties & ● Follow-up work in process and inform service advisers ahead of time if
Responsibilities “time promised” cannot be kept.
● Maintain shop capacity control, and advise service advisers of capacity
status throughout the day.
● Product knowledge
Qualification ● Personnel management ability
● Administrative skills
Qualification
● Knowledge of product related maintenance and repair procedures, general
mechanical skills.
● Perform quality work in accordance with instruction on the repair order.
● Inform the workshop foreman about job difficulties.
● Inform the workshop foreman about additional repairs or services required.
Duties & ● Maintain an orderly and clean work area.
Responsibilities ● Keep personal and shop tools in top condition and inform the workshop
foreman of any broken or unusable tools.
● Training and supervising assigned trainees and apprentices.
● Handling customer’s vehicle with care.
● Vehicle testing following repairs is carried out.
04-13
ORGANIZATION AND
PERSONNEL
Chapter 4 Personnel Management
Work Areas It’s important to make the work areas as comfortable as possible through proper
lighting, ventilation, heating, decor, colors, and level of maintenance.
Off-duty Areas Employee facilities have a significant effect on employee morale, so that
they affect quality of work, productivity, and customer satisfaction in turn, although these
areas are seldom seen by the customers.
● Provide facilities catered for employees’ convenience and personal hygiene such as shower
room, locker room and employee lounge.
● Provide a game room or a gym for refreshment during their off-time unless it distracts emplo-
yees from their job in working time.
04-14
ORGANIZATION AND
PERSONNEL
2) Psychological Working Conditions
Psychological working conditions are generally more important than physical conditions. For
instance, if two dealerships offer similar physical working conditions, employees will gravitate
to the one which has better reputation for employee training. It is possible to attract capable
staff away from other employers with high compensation, but it will be difficult to retain those
for a good while without good psychological working conditions. Good psychological working
conditions can be a good trade-off in job deciding against physical working conditions. Various
factors should be considered to improve the psychological working conditions and two of the
most important are followings.
The more open the management style, the more responsive the employees will be to helping
achieve productivity, profitability and customer satisfaction goals.
Issue of Fairness Equally important is the issue of fairness in all dealings with employees.
While there may be some differences in conditions of employment established as part of the
pre-employment negotiation, once employees are on staff, it is important to interpret working
rules fairly for all. Fairness does not mean leniency or weakness, but means the establishment
of reasonable rules that can be consistently interpreted.
04-15
ORGANIZATION AND
PERSONNEL
4.2 Remuneration Package
A good remuneration package has three objectives.
● To attract good people.
● To retain them, once they are hired.
● To motivate the kind of performance that satisfies customers and
enhances profits.
Remuneration packages use three different elements which are base-pay, benefits and incen-
tives to achieve the three objectives above. The following considerations should be given
when designing a remuneration program.
Keep it simple. If it’s too complex, people won’t understand it, and it won’t have the de-
sired results.
Make sure it is directly related to the job description, so it does not work against the goals
you want to accomplish.
Solicit employee input wherever possible.
Be flexible. Try to provide the compensation individually that each employee wants most.
1) Attract People
To attract quality people, the remuneration package must be competitive. It does not have to
be identical to competitors’ but it must be perceived as equivalent. For instance, the base-pay
may need to be higher than average if you receive less in the way of benefits. Or, if
psychological and physical working conditions are outstanding, it may be O.K. that the pay or
benefits is a little less competitive.
In order to make the remuneration package competitive, the dealership needs to know the
competitors’ pay plans, and there are several ways to get this information as shown below.
● Ask candidates while being interviewed about all aspects of their remuneration in their most
current jobs.
● If an employment agency is involved, ask them to report on salary trends.
● Talk to local technicians or other schools about starting pay for graduates.
● Read other employer’s recruiting ads
2) Retain People
Once the people you want have been hired, a well-designed remuneration package helps
keep them on your staff. There are some suggestions to retain capable people on your side.
● Be competitive about raises in pay, especially when your employees are being offered a job
from other employers.
● If high turnover of personnel is a serious problem, consider a longevity bonus.
04-16
ORGANIZATION AND
PERSONNEL
● Be alert for employee boredom and burnout, and take action to compensate for it.
● Enrich the job assigning new responsibilities such as putting service advisor in charge of
service meetings, and offer additional compensation for it.
● Promote a person who proves one’s capabilities.
● Utilize job-rotating to motivate personnel.
● Afford good opportunities for training.
● Provide vocational counseling, if necessary
3) Motivate People
The basic pay plan forms only part of the remuneration package. Motivators such as incentive
pay or bonuses do the rest of the job. When you compensate employees with the results
achieved, you must be fair and equitable to avoid an antipathy between the rewarded and the
unrewarded. Most employees share the information about their own personal pay plan. It is
therefore desirable to be prepared to answer employees’ questions regarding the pay plan
rationale.
Fringe Benefits Fringe benefits are a part of the basic remuneration package. Typical bene-
fits include paid vacation, paid holiday, paid sick leave, use of company car and so on. Fringe
benefits can be a major determinant of job selection when employers are competing fiercely
for the same labor pool. Those competitions may happen among dealerships, diverse types
of service outlets, fleets, manufacturing companies, etc. Fringe benefits cost the dealership
a significant amount of money, but employees often overlook their value. To address this,
prepare a statement once a year for each employee listing the value of the fringe benefits
received in the past year.
04-17
ORGANIZATION AND
PERSONNEL
4.3 Motivation
A well-designed remuneration package has a number of motivational
elements in it. Incentives and bonuses are closely tied to motivating
the desired performance. Raises can also have a motivational effect.
However, it takes more than a good compensation plan to achieve
optimum employee performance and longevity, and it also requires less
tangible motivators. It is important to build a program that takes into account the
fact that different people are motivated by different things. Thus it is important to tailor
motivational programs to individual preferences wherever possible. There are two basic types
of motivators.
1) Extrinsic Motivators
Extrinsic motivators include such things as employee incentives, pay
plans, productivity bonuses, and other types of rewards that can
be provided in the form of programs offered by management.
Most extrinsic motivators are part of the overall remuneration
package and they can be defined as rewards for performance
that come from the external of individual. Extrinsic motivations
are easy to use and usually effective, but tend to be somewhat limited in
their effects. For example, when employees earn raises in their base pay, they are motivated
for a short while. But they are soon apt to absorb the increase into a higher standard of
living and the motivational effect is gone.
Continuous incentives eventually are perceived as “part of the base package” and it will
become necessary to increase the size of the incentive in order to achieve the same results.
To make extrinsic motivations effective, it is important to be particularly careful in deciding
what kind of motivations will produce the best results. The followings should be considered
to make sure to devise meaningful motivators.
04-18
ORGANIZATION AND
PERSONNEL
2) Intrinsic Motivators
Intrinsic motivators appeal to employee’s pride, self-worth and
personal accomplishment and growth. The effects of intrinsic
motivators tend to be stronger and longer lasting than the effects
of the extrinsic ones and the cost are comparatively less. Intrinsic
motivation comes from the internal of individual, and they cannot
be easily granted by management. Intrinsic motivation is shaped
when employees perceive their working conditions favorable to
them, and those motivators are following as shown below.
Individual Growth Growth is another intrinsic motivator that has a powerful effect if the
conditions are right. It means giving employees the opportunity to learn, to grow and to
become competent. Promotion is the most common example of a growth motivation.
In the best dealerships, intrinsic motivation is a major part of the overall motivational plan.
Employees are well trained and supervised so that they are given as much authority as possible.
A manager sees him/her self as an assistant rather than a director, and helps employees when
necessary, rather than giving specific instructions for every moment, and this offers tremendous
potential to the development of both dealership and individual. The following are advisable for
managers to abide by in order to make it all possible.
● Take the time that is needed for training and supervision. You will be paid back many times over.
● Allow employees to make mistakes. That is only way they will learn.
● Trust employees to do things on their own. That is what builds pride and leads to more im-
provement in performance.
● Be patient and build a team that is both professional and loyal.
04-19
ORGANIZATION AND
PERSONNEL
3) Balanced Approach
The fact that both extrinsic and intrinsic motivators are important suggests the balanced app-
roach to the remuneration package. Try to blend the two types of
motivational systems into your programs. Well-designed employee
MASTER recognition programs combine some type of reward from manage-
ment, with opportunities for individual growth. The following help
add the effectiveness to the recognition programs.
● Present a certificate or other type of written description of what the employee did to receive
recognition.
● Present the certificate at formal awards ceremony.
● Recognize several employees at the same time, it helps build on the group’s enthusiasm.
4.4 Welfare
A proper welfare systems for employees can induce every person in the organization to work
to his best abilities with a will to achieve the organization’s objectives given by specific
figures, such as total annual sales, the number of vehicles to be served, effective service
hours, or some kind of ratios and growth rates, etc.
Welfare facilities to ensure the worker’s well being are needed to maintain their morale at a
high level and motivate them to work to raise productivity. Facilities such as an employee
lounge with restroom and shower facilities are necessary. Otherwise they will tend to use the
customer’s lounge, restroom or even their cars to rest or loiter during breaks in work, which
could certainly displease customers.
The employee lounge must be provided with bulletin boards, displaying news on services,
current status on attaining monthly production goal, customer satisfaction survey results, etc.
These notices should be served as means to motivate employees to greater efforts.
In addition, regular medical examination for employees can prevent the spread of disease
and avoid lost man-hours. It is recommended that all employees should have a regular medi-
cal examination annually.
04-20
ORGANIZATION AND
PERSONNEL
4.5 Recruitment
To recruit the necessary After Sales personnel is extremely important. Please consider the
following qualifications when recruiting.
Aptitude Aptitude is the most important thing to look for in recruiting employees. Remember
that every man is for his own trade.
Identity A person, who has a good reference, has many contacts in the local district and
whose family is under stable conditions.
Volition An active person having the strong will to do his work is recommendable.
General staff ○ ○ ○ ○
Service person ○ ○ ○ ○
Sales person ○ ○ ○ ○
Parts person ○ ○ ○ ○
04-21
ORGANIZATION AND
PERSONNEL
4.6 Employee Development
Highly effective and motivated employees are to be made through the
establishment of a formalized training program. All service personnel
must be given appropriate training based on pre-established training
and certification systems in order to raise their motivation and in-
crease their retention.
1) Standards
●The dealer should have a yearly training plan for all service and parts staff.
●The dealer should have an ongoing apprentice recruitment program.
●Performance appraisal should be conducted at least annually for all employees.
●New employees should receive a 90 days performance review, then annually thereafter.
●The dealer should have a termination policy that includes an exit interview.
●The dealer should meet the annual training target which is set out by the distributor.
●The dealer should provide a competitive remuneration/incentive plan for all staff.
●The dealer should safeguard every personal record as an important document.
●The wage system for each employee should be competitive within your local market and be
motivating for the employee.
2) Training Plan
Ensure that all your people, Service Manager, Parts Manager, Service Advisors, Administrator,
Cashier, Technicians, Car Washers, etc., benefit from proper training. While the bulk of training
expenditures will probably go to technical personnel, others should not be neglected either.
Training should be held on a regular basis, based on yearly training plans. The training policy
should address where a demand for training exists (e.g. weak-point improvement, changes in
staff, new products launch, etc.), who requires training, what is the most effective form of
training, and when the best time for training is. The following should be considered when you
make up the training plan.
04-22
ORGANIZATION AND
PERSONNEL
4.7 Performance Evaluation
Performance evaluation is an important part of personnel management, which is kept in each
employee’s personal record. Performance evaluation is one of the most powerful tools for per-
sonnel management, training and motivation.
2) Who?
One of the employee’s immediate supervisors, such as Service Manager for Service Advisors
or Workshop Foreman for Technicians, is generally suitable to carry out the assessment un-
less there are any personal issues between them. Both objective judgment and diplomatic
negotiating skill are required for the evaluator.
04-23
ORGANIZATION AND
PERSONNEL
4.8 Termination Policies
It is not a good idea, for legal and other reasons, to dismiss an employee without cause. Ob-
tain legal counsel regarding the requirements for employee termination in your area.
● Have objective reasons for termination. Failure in conforming to clearly stated work rules or
performance goals is normally sufficient reason for termination, if those things had been
advised to employees and well-documented.
● Avoid termination if the employee demonstrates the right attitude and potential to improve.
● Notify employees in advance, in writing, if they are in danger of being terminated. The notice
should be signed and dated, with conditions of continued employment clearly stated, and a
deadline where appropriate. Offer a clear redemption procedure. A copy of this notice should
be placed in the employee’s file.
● Retain complete written records after the employee leaves in case of future legal actions.
04-24