crazy job combination

[tnpartsguy]

I was looking at another dealer's website yesterday, and looking at the staff, when I came across a pcture and a job description that just made me laugh.

Warranty Administrator/Dealer Trade Coodinator.


I've been around a number of years, and have had an odd lot of jobs tossed on my lap, but this one just made my day.

[lsx only]

honest truth i am the sales manager,warranty admin,dealer trade cord and salesman and I love it

[ohiobuckeyes]

I just like to use the title of Operations Manager....

IT Man, Phone Man, Moving man, Courtesy Shuttle Driver, Office Administrator, Title Clerk, Finance, Dealer Trades, Receptionist, Fire Chief (since I put out fires one saleperson told me), and come Monday thinking I can add Furniture builder to that list as well.

We all do wear many hats inside of an dealership, because we love the car business and want to make sure our stores excel and are successful.

[XDCX]

That is a crazy job description but in some ways it makes sense.

With the decline in warranty work/payment over the past several years I'm guessing that even a larger sized dealership can't justify having an full time Warranty Administrator. Handling Dealer Trades is another important task, but one that doesn't warrant a full time employee.

The biggest downside I can see to trying to combine the jobs would be weekend Dealer Trades. For dealers who spot deliver the Sales Manager wouldn't be willing to wait until Monday to complete the Dealer Trade.

On a side note, I'm a big supporter of having only one or two people handle Dealer Trades. I remember one store I was working for and the oldest new cars we had in inventory were vehicles we took in trade to help another dealer sell a car. It was frustrating to realize that you did a Dealer Trade to help another dealer to sell a car and then you got stuffed with a high dollar Dealer Trade that was almost impossible to sell.

[79LilRedExpress]

Originally Posted by XDCX

On a side note, I'm a big supporter of having only one or two people handle Dealer Trades. I remember one store I was working for and the oldest new cars we had in inventory were vehicles we took in trade to help another dealer sell a car. It was frustrating to realize that you did a Dealer Trade to help another dealer to sell a car and then you got stuffed with a high dollar Dealer Trade that was almost impossible to sell.

Yep, I think we've all had that experience...

The other unsellable units are the pre-specs that we have to order early in the year before the prices are posted...

We call these units "FISH"... First in, still here !

[XDCX]

Originally Posted by 79LilRedExpress

The other unsellable units are the pre-specs that we have to order early in the year before the prices are posted...

We call these units "FISH"... First in, still here !

I love the "FISH" explanation. That's "Quote of the Week" material.

[steve_biegler]

I thought maybe "FISH" because they stink!

[CL Pgh]

Originally Posted by 79LilRedExpress

We call these units "FISH"... First in, still here !

Yep... a familiar term for sure around here... unfortunately!

[JoeRocket]

For years I was parts manager for two stores and ordered all of the new cars from the factory for both stores (GM dealerships).

Not to brag, but I had developed a really good system for new car ordering and it was based on my experience from developing parts stock orders. After the first year, dealer trades dropped and so did aging units.

After being transferred over here, they had me "train" the dealer trade/vehicle inventory manager on my method but he never uses it. Oh well.

The funniest thing I can remember about the whole experience is the first time I attended a vehicle ordering meeting at the business center. They had us all introduce ourselves and when they got to me and I said "Parts Manager" everyone looked at me like I had two heads. The rep asked me if we had made a mistake...lol!!

[79LilRedExpress]

Originally Posted by steve_biegler

I thought maybe "FISH" because they stink!

That's usually the case after they have been here about 90 days... everyone just seems to walk around them....

[XDCX]

Originally Posted by JoeRocket

For years I was parts manager for two stores and ordered all of the new cars from the factory for both stores (GM dealerships).

Not to brag, but I had developed a really good system for new car ordering and it was based on my experience from developing parts stock orders. After the first year, dealer trades dropped and so did aging units. !!

That's interesting. I don't think I've ever heard of a Parts Manager ordering new cars before but it does make some sense.

I remember calling on a Dodge store that had an administrative employee order all of their new cars - he wasn't part of the Sales Department and didn't answer to the Sales Manager. Like you, he did a fantastic job and had the ability to study what was selling and what wasn't and ordered his vehicles accordingly. He also came up with some great color/trim packages that other dealers never seemed to order.

By contrast, I recall talking to a Dealer Principal who just had a melt-down after he discovered his Asst. Sales Manager ordered a clone of a vehicle that had been in their New Car Inventory for almost a year. The ASM figured they needed to re-order what they sold - he wasn't paying attention to how long the vehicle remained in inventory.

Originally Posted by JoeRocket

The funniest thing I can remember about the whole experience is the first time I attended a vehicle ordering meeting at the business center. They had us all introduce ourselves and when they got to me and I said "Parts Manager" everyone looked at me like I had two heads. The rep asked me if we had made a mistake...lol!!

That's funny - they probably figured you got the meeting mixed up with one that was for Parts Managers.

[XDCX]

Originally Posted by 79LilRedExpress

That's usually the case after they have been here about 90 days... everyone just seems to walk around them....

I totally agree - especially with used cars.