What do techs want from a service advisor?

When a dealership hires a service advisor, they do well to consider how this person will interact with the customers. However, it’s vital not to overlook what the technicians want from a service advisor too. After all, the service advisor’s salary is higher than the mechanics to ensure the auto technician’s job can be made easier, tasks will be completed quicker, and your customers will be happier. 

In this post, we look at three things the techs desire from a service advisor. From good communication to completing the RO completely, these are things that will make everyone’s job go smoothly. 

Superior Communication

Having a middleman in the service department is necessary. The technicians are busy repairing and maintaining vehicles, so the service advisor is left figuring out what the client wants. Additionally, that same service advisor needs to go back to the customer and explain what must be done.

This isn’t the time to play “Whisper Down the Alley” and mess up the requests from either end. Customer requests must be adequately relayed to the tech and the outcome must be clearly transmitted back to the client from the technician. 

The majority of customers aren’t going to understand the repair that’s needed. The service writer must be able to decipher the basics and make them easy to understand. If the technician has a recommendation, the service writer should always relay these messages to the customer, ensuring everyone is satisfied in the end. 

If this doesn’t happen, both sides are going to be confused and no one will be happy.  

Understands the Technology

To build on the last point, the service writer has to understand what they are talking about. If there is a lack of understanding about what is being serviced and how it works, miscommunication will follow. 

For this reason alone, it makes complete sense to hire a service writer that was once a technician. Not only will this person understand what the mechanic is talking about, but will also know how to help the technician complete their job faster because the advisor has already walked a mile in those shoes.  

Works with Informative Repair Orders

The final step to proper communication between the service advisor and technicians is a well-written RO. The basic repair order should ask for five items: a complaint, diagnostic procedures (including the tests and inspections performed), test results, root cause and recommended correction. Aside from these basics, all orders should contain the customer’s name and a contact phone number, along with vehicle information, such as the VIN, make, model, year, and mileage. 

Writing and relaying the information from an in-depth RO does take some extra time, but it’s the ideal way to make things clear from every angle. With the work order in hand, everyone is on the same page, from the back end to the customer. If there is a problem, it’s much easier to track down where the miscommunication occurred, saving everyone in the shop time and money. 

Before hiring a new service advisor, consider how this person will benefit both your clients and your auto technicians, ensuring the new candidate is a great fit all-around.

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