Employee turnover is typical at many auto dealerships across the country. A recent study even indicated that it’s as high as 67% for salespeople and 40% for other dealership employees. Since most sales associates only stay with dealerships for about two years, the first step to keeping turnover low is learning why employees are leaving. Since the average dealership loses $500,000 per year on expenses directly related to turnover, keeping it low has to be a top priority. Here are some solutions to help overcome it and improve employee retention.

Voluntary Turnover

What causes salespeople to look for job opportunities elsewhere rather than staying at your dealership? If your voluntary turnover is too high, then it’s probably due to some of these reasons.

  • Jobs and skills are not the right matches – This can stem from an inadequate employee screening and recruitment process. Although every dealership will experience bad hires, it’s helpful to find candidates that are the best fit for your values work culture through automotive recruiters.
  • Lack of professional development – It’s difficult for some sales associates to expand their responsibilities and pursue other career paths. Dealerships can help overcome this by providing employees training and encouraging horizontal and vertical career movements.
  • Poor management relationship – Employees want to work for supportive managers. Dealerships with excellent retention usually share one thing in common – empathetic leadership.
  • Unrealistic expectations – Since most dealerships have pay structures based on hitting sales targets, it can lead to a high-pressure work environment that drives up turnover. Dealerships that prioritize reasonable expectations and greater work-life balance can lower turnover.

Keeping Employees Happy and Motivated

After improving voluntary turnover, dealerships should shift their focus to keeping their sales teams content and productive. And, it starts with being fair with sales leads. Instead of sending them all to the rep with the best close rate, leads should be spread around to cultivate other associates. Then, ensure that competition remains healthy. Although it’s tempting to overhire in hopes of increasing sales, it could lead to reps getting in the way of each other. Automotive recruiters also advise against quota games that keep salespeople from receiving commissions, bonuses, etc. Finally, dealerships managers can praise the efforts of all employees in order to keep turnover low.

Defeating employee turnover starts during the hiring process by screening for candidates that are a good cultural fit. The top talent on the market wants to work for supportive management. Then, you can focus on offering professional development opportunities, setting realistic work expectations, and encouraging healthy competition.

So when you’re ready to have the recruitment team at Autopeople in your corner, give us a call at 1-800-659-9501, visit our website at www.autopeople.com or email us to discuss what Autopeople can do for you.