Auto retail consultant Laurie Foster on effective ways to attract talent in today’s competitive market

There has been an influx of positions needed to be filled across retail automotive. Companies are looking for talented people and talented people are looking for great companies to work for. So what’s behind all of this and are these positions being filled? Joining us today is Laurie Foster, Founder and CEO of Foster Strategies Group, to discuss how companies can effectively seek out talent.

Every single job candidate is getting multiple offers. Foster says you have got to bring your ‘A’ game. Put your best foot forward as to who you are as an organization, how you treat your people and talk to potential employers about the vision from day one. She says people are making choices not just on the money but where they are magnetically drawn to go to work for. It’s not just about culture but purpose.

Foster says, dealers have so much legacy recognition and expectations, based on models that are antiquated. She says the hours are a problem because the leaders are told, that’s just what it is. Working hard had a different payoff for people. Foster says it starts in role reclarification of the leaders you hire and the objective clarification on what you want each of these roles to do and why. Employers need to ask, are we accomplishing our goals, and is there another creative way to do things? She says, the answer is yes! Not only does the role needs to be re-identified and clarified, so does the compensation.

We don’t have enough general managers who are true business leaders, says Foster. They are functioning like senior sales managers. She says it has to start with the dealers. Foster believes this industry is full of amazing opportunities. We have to echo what our consumers look like and what they want or we’re going to continue to get gobbled up by companies such as Carvana and Tesla.

Foster ends the conversation by discussing the future of automotive and recruitment. Foster says the future of automotive could be that the franchises slowly evaporates. She says we could still be the vehicle ownership enterprise. Foster says you have to ask the question, not what do we pay but why do we pay them? Also, you have to figure out what model you’re matching up against and the overall goals.

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