Automotive recruiting expert Joe Lockerd on how your car dealership can attract superstar talent

On the latest episode of Straight to the Point, automotive retail and marketing expert Frank J. Lopes is joined by Joe Lockerd, operations director for Automax Recruiting and Training, one of the most successful automotive recruitment companies in the country today. Today, Lockerd shares how your car dealership can attract superstar talent.

Lopes jumps in and gets straight to the point. Car dealers and general managers today might think that automotive recruiting is easy. All you have to do is put a listing up on Indeed or Career Builder. However, a recent Cox Automotive Dealership Staffing Study found that the average turnover rate at a dealership is 40% for dealership employees and 67% for salespeople.

Lockerd explains that one of the big contributing factors to poor automotive recruiting is a lack of time. One of the steps Lockerd says car dealers can take is to be proactive. Especially in today’s tight job market, putting up listings online and waiting for applicants to come to you, doesn’t cut it. It takes time to find the right candidates and sit down with them and sell the position.

Additionally, there is a sizeable shortage of automotive technicians in the industry. Lockerd says that hiring technicians was a 9 out of 10 on the diffculty scale before the pandemic. Now it’s a 10 out of 10. Lockerd says everything comes back to supply and demand. As the supply of skilled laborers goes down, and demand for that talent rises, so do wages. First and foremost, Lockerd says dealerships have to pay more.

Also, car dealers need to try being a bit more open-minded when it comes to candidates. Even though an applicant might not be OEM certified on day one, if they are ambitious and career-minded, they could be a good fit.

To hear even more tips from Joe Lockerd, be sure to watch our entire interview above.

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