Tackling the biggest issues facing the F&I office today with Jason Gannon, Pres. of F&I Guys

What should your car dealership be doing in this new year to ensure profitability in the F&I department? On this episode of F&I Today, anchor Jim Fitzpatrick speaks with Jason Gannon, President of F&I Guys, to discuss what F&I offices look like today and his recommendations for maximum productivity in 2022.

One challenge that car dealers and their F&I managers have to contend with, is the sizeable uptick in digital retailing solutions. Digital retailing presents many opportunities for car dealers, but the F&I component is a crucial piece of the puzzle. While traditionalists might be more hesitant to use digital retailing, Gannon says the data shows that over the last few years, vehicle service contract penetration and PVRs are up across the board. F&I integration into your digital retailing strategy is vital.

Another challenge facing F&I departments and dealerships as a whole is labor shortages and employee turnover. From Gannon’s perspective, car dealerships today struggle with understanding the Millennial generation and how those employees want to be managed and incentivized. Younger generations value quality of life over monetary gain. Car dealers need to change their scheduling to adapt to this trend.

Additionally, rather than recruiting F&I managers or running job ads, promote internally. Show your employees that there is a path of advancement they can work for. Training is also an area that the F&I office can struggle in. However, if you promote F&I managers internally, they can then be properly trained from the bottom-up, and not develop any bad habits.

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