Upcoming Events
WrenchWay May Topic of the Month: Technician Onboarding
Having a solid onboarding process for new technicians is critical to their long-term success at the shop. However, studies have shown that 88% of organizations don’t onboard well (Gallup).
Throughout the month of May, we will be sharing content, hosting events, and working with our clients to improve their technician onboarding process. Join us by participating in one or all of the following:
- Roundtable – Join us on May 24th at 1pm CT as we’re bringing together three experts to talk about how they onboard new technicians. It’s free to attend, but you must register. Register Today
- Shop Talk Videos – Watch videos from Top Shops across the country as they share how they onboard new technicians to set them up for success from day one at the shop. Visit Shop Talk
- Blog Articles – We’ll be featuring shops with the best onboarding processes and sharing tips on how to create a great onboarding experience. Subscribe to the WrenchWay blog to ensure you don’t miss an article! Subscribe to the Blog
- New Guides – We’re creating detailed guides that give a step-by-step approach to creating an exceptional onboarding process for new technicians. (Guides are exclusively available to WrenchWay Top Shops.) Login to Your WrenchWay Account
- Poll Questions & Discussions – We’ll be posting poll questions on Shop Talk to spark discussions between technicians and shops.
Technician Onboarding — Setting Up Your Techs for Success
Type: Online Event
Date: May 24, 2022 at 1:00pm CT
Description:
Most shops think they have a good onboarding process in place for technicians. However, according to a WrenchWay Insiders poll, 92% of technicians replied their shop’s onboarding process was average at best, with over half rating the process as below average or worse.
A shop’s onboarding process can make or break a technician’s experience in a new shop. A good onboarding process should acclimate the technician to their new role, the shop’s culture, and set them up for long-term success in the shop.
In this roundtable, we will discuss how shop owners/managers and HR can structure technician onboarding to create an experience for new technicians that will boost employee satisfaction, productivity, and retention.
This roundtable is free to attend, but you must register!
WrenchWay June Topic of the Month: Great Owners & Managers
According to a recent WrenchWay Insiders poll, 65% of technicians have left or considered leaving a job because of a manager. In this competitive job market, shop owners and managers need to be doing everything they can to build and foster relationships with technicians.
Throughout the month of June, we will be sharing content, hosting events, and working with our clients to help improve and promote the relationships between managers/owners and technicians. We will also be sharing stories about great managers and owners from some of our Top Shops. Join us by participating in one or all of the following:
- Roundtable – Join us on June 8th at 1pm CT as we bring together three great managers/owners to learn how they build and foster relationships with technicians in their shops. Register Today
- Shop Talk Videos – Watch videos from Top Shops across the country as they share how their management team develops relationships with their technicians. Visit Shop Talk
- Blog Articles – We’ll be sharing tips on building leadership skills, fostering relationships with technicians, and how managers and owners can support technician recruiting efforts. Subscribe to the WrenchWay blog to ensure you don’t miss an article! Subscribe to the Blog
- New Guides – Be sure to check out our latest guide for 13 easy things managers can do to improve employee satisfaction and retention. (Guides are exclusively available to WrenchWay Top Shops.) Login to Your WrenchWay Account
- Poll Questions & Discussions – We’ll be posting poll questions on Shop Talk to spark discussions between technicians and shops.
The Role of Management in Technician Recruitment & Retention
Type: Online Event
Date: June 8, 2022 at 1:00pm CT
Description:
The number one reason employees leave companies is because of their manager, not their job. In a market where recruiting and retaining technicians is more difficult than ever, shop owners and managers need to be doing everything they can to connect with current and prospective technicians.
In this roundtable, we have brought together shop owners and managers to discuss:
- The role management plays in retaining technicians
- How they build relationships with their technicians
- How they support technician recruitment in their shops
This roundtable is free to attend, but you must register!
Past Events
WrenchWay’s Free Solutions for Post-Secondary Schools
Description:
Demonstration of WrenchWay’s free solutions for post-secondary schools offering automotive, diesel, or collision programs.
Learn how you can use WrenchWay Schools for free to attract more students to your technician program and connect with local shops and dealerships and get the resources you need to improve your program.
WrenchWay’s Free Solutions for High Schools
Description:
Demonstration of WrenchWay’s free solutions for high school instructors who teach automotive, diesel, or collision technology classes.
Learn how you can use WrenchWay School Connect and Shop Talk for free to connect with local shops and dealerships and get the resources you need to improve your technician program.
Heavy-Duty Disruptors: The Parts & Technician Shortages
Description:
From technicians to parts, heavy-duty shops are suffering shortages across their entire business. These disruptions are having dire impacts on shops leading to decreased earnings and cash flow, declining customer satisfaction, and more.
In this webinar, leaders of WrenchWay and Fullbay discuss how the parts and technician shortages are impacting heavy-duty shops, the industry, and more.
Attract More Technicians — Figure Out What Makes Your Shop Better Than the Rest
Description:
Shops all over the country are hiring and in order to stand out from competitors and attract technicians, shops must figure out what is unique about their shop and promote it!
In this webinar, we discussed new technician recruiting strategies, the step-by-step process on how shops can identify what makes them unique, and how shops can promote their shop to attract more applicants.
WrenchWay Schools Week 2022
Description:
This was our first annual WrenchWay Schools Week, created to highlight and celebrate all the great things schools are doing to help students find success in auto, diesel, and collision technician careers and beyond.
Student and instructor roundtables, along with Top Shop interview recordings, are now available!
How Shops Can Actually Recruit Technicians in 2022
Description:
Job boards are great, but if your recruiting strategy begins and ends there, you’re missing out on an estimated 75% of technicians that are open to new opportunities, but not actively looking at job boards.
In this webinar, we discussed how shops can make 2022 the year they actually attract more technicians.
TechMission 2021
Description:
This was our second annual TechMission event! TechMission brings together technicians, shop owners and managers, and schools to talk about why technicians are leaving the industry, what schools can do to better prepare technicians for industry, and what shops can do to keep technicians in the industry.
Check out the eight impactful sessions today!
7 Mistakes Shops Make When Recruiting Technicians
Description:
Finding technicians is no easy task when nearly every shop and dealership is hiring. Yet, even in this competitive market, we continuously see shops falling short with their recruiting strategy.
In this webinar, we discuss the most common mistakes we see shops making when trying to recruit technicians and what they can do to fix them to start attracting more applicants.
7 Secrets of Successful Auto Repair Shops
Description:
Ever wonder what the best of the best repair shops are doing to grow their business? From customer marketing to retaining employees and more, we’ll be dishing the top secrets of the most successful repair shops across the country.
WrenchWay’s 1 Year Anniversary & Sneak Peek of Reverse Job Posts
Description:
Join us as we celebrate WrenchWay’s 1 year anniversary! We recap highlights of our first year, discuss customer success stories, and give a sneak peek of our newest product launching soon: Reverse Job Posts.
WrenchWay’s 20/90 Challenge: Recruiting & Retaining Technicians
Description:
Every shop owner and service manager knows they need to make recruiting and retaining technicians a priority, yet few actually do anything about it. We get it — we’re all busy. But until shops really start to focus on technician recruitment and retainment, hiring is always going to be a fire drill.
In this webinar, Mark Wilson, Co-Founder and CEO of WrenchWay, will walk you through WrenchWay’s new program that helps shop owners and service managers achieve results by dedicating a little time each week to recruiting and retaining technicians.
Whether you use WrenchWay’s 20/90 Tracker or not, this webinar will give you actionable things you can do each week (that don’t take a long time) to amp up your recruitment and retention strategies.
Managing Military Veterans in the Shop
Description:
Technicians are in high demand across the entire country, and veterans who have experience as military technicians offer a unique skill set that can bring a lot of value to shops.
In this roundtable, we’ve brought together a diverse group of panelists to discuss:
- Why shops should be proactively recruiting veterans
- Overcoming the stereotypes of employing veterans
- Tips for managing veterans in the shop
Women in Wrenching: How Do We Attract More Women to the Industry?
Description:
Take a look at almost any service center in the country and one thing is blatantly obvious — men outnumber women by a landslide. But, why is that? What can schools, shops, and dealerships be doing to make the industry more attractive to women?
In this roundtable, we discuss:
- What it’s like to work in the industry as a woman
- How we can attract more women to the industry
- How women can accelerate their careers within the industry
Why Shops Need to Focus on Technician Career Development
Description:
One of the biggest complaints we hear from technicians is they are often frustrated with not having a clear path for career growth in a shop. As career development becomes more important to technicians, it is critical that shops and dealerships make this a priority.
During this roundtable, our panelists will help us understand the growing importance of career development programs in shops, what some of those programs look like, and what results shops have seen by having a program in place.
Moderator: Jay Goninen, President, WrenchWay
Panelists:
- Tim Winkeler, President & CEO, VIP Tires & Service
- Jim Bennett, Director of Technical Training and Development, ATI
- Jake Schaefer, Service & Parts Director, Smart Motors Toyota
- Damon Agostino, Automotive Technician, Sixth Street Automotive
How Shops & Schools Can Get More Technicians Into the Industry
Description:
In this WrenchWay roundtable, we discuss the current status of technician programs at the high school level, as well as the perception students, parents, and counselors have about a career in the automotive and diesel industries.
We brought in a diverse panel to help uncover what has (and hasn’t) changed at the high school level, what needs to improve, the challenges shop programs face, and, most important, how shops can help schools.
Moderator: Jay Goninen, President, WrenchWay
Panelists:
- Steve Hamre, National Technician Recruiting Manager, Lithia Motors, Inc.
- George Arrants, Vice President, ASE Education Foundation
- Ben Zimmerman, Technology Education Teacher, Verona Area High School
- Dustin Doyle, Service Technician, Truck Country
- Noah Wainwright, Student, Des Moines Area Community College
Why Most Shops & Dealerships Fail at Recruiting Technicians
Description:
Struggling to fill your bays with great technicians? You’re not alone.
You can chalk it up to the technician shortage. However, truth be told, shop managers and those in charge of hiring are making it even harder to find technicians by failing to address a major step in the job search process.
In this webinar, you will learn:
- The importance of understanding the technician job search process
- The step in the job search process that most shops and dealerships are failing to address
- What you can do to attract more and better technician to your shop
Speaker: Mark Wilson, CEO, WrenchWay