Pub. 2 2012 Issue 4

9 I n retail automotive, this means what’s good for the dealer may not always be perceived as being good for the employees. Take change, for instance. Dr. Demming understood completely that change is necessary to survive. Change can be difficult, but neces- sary if dealerships are going to stay competitive in this market. Even though the volume of sales has picked up this year, the Internet has made pricing so transparent that dealerships all over are being forced into price- matching wars. Continued, downward pressure on pricing means lower margins, and unfortunately for dealers it looks like this trend is here to stay. In order to be profitable in today’s world and in the future, dealers must look for ways to stay lean and improve processes. They must continue to test new technologies that can either save them money or make more money. But often when a dealer or GM attempts to intro- duce a new process or technology, they are met with stone-cold resistance from employees. As a DMS provider, I often hear from dealers who would love to implement a new system, but decided not to because when the idea was presented to the dealerships’ em- ployees, there was such an uproar that you’d think they had proposed a permanent ban on all coffee consump- tion within the dealership. I don’t blame the employees, however. Implement- ing a new process or learning a new technology can be difficult. If a major change is being considered in your dealership, here are a few things to keep in mind:  survival is not mandatory — continued on page 10 The title of this article is a quote by W. Edward Demming. Regardless of what industry you’re in, sometimes there is a divide between what’s good for a business and what’s good for the employees of that business. It’s Not Necessary to Change. Survival Is Not Mandatory. BY MIKE ESPOSITO