Dealers looking to stay competitive in today’s rapidly shifting automotive landscape have one thing in common: they are investing in their people. That is the message from Camron Wilson, Vice President of Education and Training at NADA, and Michael Hayes, Director of NADA Academy, who join us on today’s CBT Now episode to outline what is new at NADA and why the urgency around dealership education has never been greater.
According to Wilson, employee engagement is declining nationwide across all industries, driven largely by workers who lack the skills needed to feel confident in their roles. For dealers, that challenge is compounded by an industry that is changing faster than many operators can adapt, from the widespread adoption of digital retailing to the accelerating influence of artificial intelligence on how consumers gather and act on information.
A growing portfolio
The average U.S. dealership is roughly an $80 million enterprise employing approximately 75 people, Hayes confirms. At that scale, informal on-the-job training and institutional improvisation carry real financial risk, particularly in an environment defined by thin margins and increasing operational complexity.
To meet that need, NADA has significantly expanded its 20 group offerings in recent years. What was once a more generalized peer networking model has evolved into a portfolio of specialized groups covering human resources, collision center operations, fixed ops, variable ops, used vehicles, and marketing. A new women’s leadership 20 group is also launching, moderated by Colleen Tayhan.
For dealers operating in multilingual markets, NADA now offers Spanish-language 20 groups as well, made possible by adding a Spanish-speaking facilitator. OEM-specific training and tailored education programs for manufacturer field staff round out the expanded offerings.
"The opportunity for training and education… we consider it more education overall… is so great in all areas of our industry that we're so fortunate to be privileged to be a part of, but there's some wonderful opportunities to be able to move people to the next level."– Michael Hayes
From service advisor to senior leader
On the curriculum side, NADA describes its programming through what it calls an education escalator, a tiered pathway designed to grow dealership professionals from early-career roles all the way through senior leadership. Wilson argues that training begins at the service advisor level and moves upward through a professional series aimed at new and high-potential department managers. Recently added offerings include marketing bootcamps and marketing analytics bootcamps, reflecting how dramatically the discipline has changed in the digital era. Notably, while the professional series was originally designed for new managers, roughly half of its fixed operations attendees are managers with a decade or more of experience who are receiving formal training for the first time.
Making the investment work for your store
For dealers looking to build a comprehensive training strategy, NADA’s education subscription model offers a practical entry point. Priced at $799 per month for a dealer’s first rooftop and $499 per month for each additional location, the subscription allows dealerships to enroll an unlimited number of employees across NADA’s full suite of seminars, professional series classes, and advanced programs, with the exception of the full academy.
"[With NADA’s education subscription] You can send as many people as you want to any of our seminars, professional series classes, and advanced seminars. The only thing it doesn't include is our full academy program."– Camron Wilson
Wilson believes that progressive dealers are increasingly using the subscription not only to train employees in their specific roles, but to cross-train staff across departments, broadening institutional knowledge and building internal pipelines for future managers.
Beyond its core curriculum, NADA continues to expand its reach through the Dealer Driven Podcast, now in its second season. Upcoming episodes will cover warranty administration, used-vehicle investment strategy, and a mid-year public policy update, produced in collaboration with NADA’s legislative team. Episodes are intentionally kept to around 20 minutes to accommodate the attention spans of busy dealership professionals.
Hayes, who is set to retire in September after a decades-long career in the automotive industry, will be succeeded as NADA Academy Director by Brian Crossin, a nine-year veteran of the organization. Wilson, who will continue leading NADA’s education and training efforts, closed the conversation with a straightforward directive for dealers still on the fence about where to begin.
