Latest / Downshift With Tonnika / The Hiring Mistake Shop Owners Keep Making | Sara Fraser & Chrisi Falco - Ep 20

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The Hiring Mistake Shop Owners Keep Making | Sara Fraser & Chrisi Falco - Ep 20 · Downshift With Tonnika

• Tonnika Haynes [00:00:00]: I've been thinking this, and if they just did this at the old shop, it would have been so much better. Because he was thinking when he got what he was doing 50 cars a day, and I was like, no, we do, like, 15, bruh. Yeah. Like, I don't do that over here. He's just like, I get to go to lunch. I'm like, yeah, yeah, I can get. Make the motorcycle club thing. Yes. Tonnika Haynes [00:00:18]: We're going home. Sara Fraser [00:00:19]: Like, no, we have a life outside. We have a life outside of this. Tonnika Haynes [00:00:23]: Welcome to Downshift with Danika Haynes, the automotive auntie. The thing about Tanika, she gets to know you, she'll laugh and cut up with you, but then she'll hit you with some knowledge that you may not want, but that you need. Let's Downshift. I would like to start by letting you two introduce yourselves. You can do that until you okay in the company and then go do it. Set, Ready. Ready, Set. Two, three, one. Sara Fraser [00:00:56]: I'm Sarah Frazier. I'm the vice president of Auto Ignite Management. So we do things like business coaching, we do service advisor coaching, and we also do hiring management, which has kind of been my baby, and a program that I started very organically a few years ago that has continued to grow and grow and grow, and we help shops find technicians, service advisors, shop foremans, managers, even accounting. Like, we've helped fill a lot of different positions in shops, and it was something that I started doing for coaching clients of ours, and then it just. Word got out and it kind of grew from there, and I realized this isn't something I can do all by myself, and I need to bring more people into this. And so we have a staff of about eight of us now. And Chrissy joined us back in, I want to say, November. It's been about six months you've been with us. Sara Fraser [00:01:47]: Yeah. Chrisi Falco [00:01:47]: Oh, wow. Feels like. Sara Fraser [00:01:48]: Yeah, Feels like she's been there forever. I mean, she's such a key player on our team, and it's been really amazing. Our staff all come from the industry except for one of us. And he comes from. His background is stage management and theater and restaurant management. So systems, processes, people, all of that phenomenal with. And so it's just the passion our team has for finding people and getting them in the right place. And we have a group chat where we're always chatting, like, oh, I had this amazing interview. Sara Fraser [00:02:17]: They have to hire this person or this, that, and the other thing. And so Chrissy and I have known each other for quite a few years, just through Being in the industry and being at events together and through conversation, I knew I needed to build a team and bring more people on. And she was kind of looking for something and it just happened to be a perfect fit. Chrisi Falco [00:02:35]: So, yeah, I'm Chrissy. Tonnika Haynes [00:02:38]: It's Chrissy. Sara Fraser [00:02:39]: That's all you need to know. Chrisi Falco [00:02:41]: I'm also known as the better Falco. That might carry a little more weight in the podcast world and I love it. I'm a talent acquisition specialist. Right now she's a Tess. Yeah. And it's amazing. Like it's one of those things that I never knew I wanted to do it until I was doing it. And I get to impact people's lives every single day. Chrisi Falco [00:03:04]: And I don't know very many people that in the course of their work they can impact people like that. And it's just, you know, we talk to so many people and there's so many great candidates out there and so many great shops and there's this notion that there's a shortage of techs, but I think what the shortage is is there's a shortage of connections. Tonnika Haynes [00:03:25]: Right. Chrisi Falco [00:03:25]: So the right people aren't connected connecting with the right businesses. So that's what we're here for. Tonnika Haynes [00:03:31]: I think you're doing a great job. Sara Fraser [00:03:33]: Thank you. Tonnika Haynes [00:03:33]: I've had a wonderful experience. Sara Fraser [00:03:35]: Thank you so much. Tonnika Haynes [00:03:36]: I told you, like, Stuart's ready to do that infomercial for you. I am too. Sara Fraser [00:03:39]: Yeah. Tonnika Haynes [00:03:40]: We've got to not know my client. I'm their friend. Chrisi Falco [00:03:42]: Yes, exactly. Sara Fraser [00:03:44]: Which in a lot of ways and Tonnika Haynes [00:03:45]: they don't pay me enough to do this. But no, what you said is I don't think there's a good connection. Chrisi Falco [00:03:53]: Yeah. Tonnika Haynes [00:03:53]: Do you allow people, I was thinking this last night. Do you allow people just to interview with you and they're in the pool that if you have a shop that's looking like can text directly give you Chrisi Falco [00:04:05]: their resume, we've been talking about that and it's one of those double edged swords, I think, because sometimes we'll interview somebody fantastic and for whatever reason, maybe it's a culture fit or maybe their skill level isn't quite where the shop needs them to be. So then we don't have a place to put them forward. Tonnika Haynes [00:04:27]: Okay. Chrisi Falco [00:04:27]: But then at the same time with trying to grow and working with all these other company like all these other shops, like do we start building like a roster, but that roster might pull somebody from a shop we're already aligned Tonnika Haynes [00:04:44]: with a little dangerous. Chrisi Falco [00:04:45]: So it's, it's kind of. I didn't mean to take that. Sara Fraser [00:04:49]: Yeah, no, no, you handled that perfect. Chrisi Falco [00:04:51]: Yeah, we, we've been talking about that. Sara Fraser [00:04:53]: We never want to poach from other shops. That's not something we want to do. We only want to help technicians who are actively looking, you know, and sometimes those really great techs are working somewhere and, but they might still want that better opportunity so they have their resume available. And so that's something we'll do. But oftentimes we'll even ask shop owners and is there a shop that you don't want us to interview somebody from? Because we know that you guys have relationships with each other in your community. And so if your buddy owns the shop and their employee is applying for your shop, that's at least a conversation that you know, I don't want to interview them. If you don't want to step into that. Right. Sara Fraser [00:05:29]: I'll at least let you know if there's that relationship. Let me reach out to you and say, hey, somebody from that shop did apply. Do you want to talk to your friend? How do you want us to proceed with this? Because yeah, we don't want to pay poach people from shops. That's not what we're about. And but yet at the same time, we had a technician come up to us yesterday who's moving to a new area and said, hey, do you have any shops in that area? The closest shop we work with is about two hours away from him. And I said, but hey, that shop owner is very connected. Let me reach out to him and see if he knows anybody where you're going. And that's something. Sara Fraser [00:05:58]: I'm happy to make those connections, but it's not really a service that we have in place. But if we can help a technician, I absolutely want to do that. We're also very picky about shops that we work with, to be completely honest. I mean, Tanika will tell you it's a million page questionnaire. We have so many fill out. It's gotten longer since you've done it. It's gotten longer. Tonnika Haynes [00:06:19]: It does a great job because it makes sure that the shop owner is serious. First of all, when they're applying, you have to deal with a nut job that thinks you're going to get a technician tomorrow. Sara Fraser [00:06:29]: Right. Tonnika Haynes [00:06:29]: And then it actually makes you think about your shop and your own culture when you're answering these questions. Lord have mercy. And then there are some questions like, oh, people offer that maybe I should do that. And then there's some questions like, yeah, all for that. Yeah, yeah, like a shot A lot of shops don't even know what they should be offering, what people are looking for. So that's great. Sara Fraser [00:06:49]: They don't know what they're looking for either. They just know I need a technician or I need a service advisor, but they don't know the level of skill or the level experience or the level. So not only do we now have a shop owner questionnaire that we have shops complete, we also have candidate alignment forms that go through different levels of skill and experience and what are you willing to train and what are you not willing to train and those kinds of things. And that's something that we just started rolling out to help align us there too. But yeah, so we're, we're pretty picky about the shops that we work with. So it's not like we have this massive. Not anyway, not right now. I mean, we have been growing so hopefully we'll be in more spaces. Sara Fraser [00:07:22]: But yeah, we don't have a shop in every city or anything like that. But we do know a lot of really great shop owners who are connected and so if we can help make connections, we're definitely open to doing that. But yeah, at this time we don't have like a. I mean, we've talked to technicians and we kind of have people who have told us, you know, if, if an opportunity in my area comes up, let me know if you know of something. And so we kind of have that. But we don't have our own pool of texts or our own bench of texts. And when we start working with the shop and we go to write their job ad and post their job ad, it's so specific to them and to that area that it's not like we have this cookie cutter ad where we just change the location and the title and we throw it out there. You know, we really, that's why we do that questionnaire, to learn about the culture and what they do that sets them apart and all of those things that we. Sara Fraser [00:08:09]: So we can speak to that and attract people that way. So, yeah, it is something we've definitely talked about and I think we'll, as this whole thing has grown organically, that will come into place organically as well. Tonnika Haynes [00:08:22]: There's gotta be a lot to take on. But yeah, here's the thing. When I'm listening to people, whether it's you guys or another company, they cost too much, they charge too much. It costs so much. It costs this. Why does it cost so much? And I know all of the hiring mistakes that I've made, I don't know the questions to ask. And then sometimes I feel like I just need a warm body. And you're quick to hire the wrong person just cause I need a person. Tonnika Haynes [00:08:45]: I need a person that actually costs money, too. So people don't really think about costing. Chrisi Falco [00:08:51]: Somebody's not better than the right person. That fast isn't always better. It's just like getting your car fixed. Like, cheap isn't good. Good isn't cheap. Tonnika Haynes [00:09:00]: Right. Chrisi Falco [00:09:00]: Like, you get what you pay for. Tonnika Haynes [00:09:02]: So I feel like I've got what I pay for. And then. Oh, here's the thing. Connection. You guys said the word connection. I don't sound all foofy. Foofy, but I'm so happy that we connected the way we did in Houston. Sara Fraser [00:09:17]: Yes. Tonnika Haynes [00:09:17]: That was crazy. That was crazy because I've seen you a million times and we've talked, but when we got to hang out, that was. That was a weekend. Chrisi Falco [00:09:25]: Yeah. Tonnika Haynes [00:09:26]: Like, we had some fun, Especially when Sara Fraser [00:09:27]: it came to care. I'm like, wait, I haven't been to Houston. Fort wor. Yes, you guys were recently. Tonnika Haynes [00:09:34]: Yeah, that was fun. That was a big fun. Sara Fraser [00:09:37]: Yeah. Tonnika Haynes [00:09:37]: So I raised that to say Women in auto care was an amazing event. There's a lot of women in auto care at different levels. Like, things that you guys are doing. There's things women that rich, women that own shops, women that are in the, you know, selling parts and whatever. Connection is a big deal. And you've been teaching a class on how to put yourself out there, especially at these events. You want to touch on that a little bit, but you did a great job. Sara Fraser [00:10:07]: Oh, thank you. So Tracy Capriotto and I started doing this class called From Awkward to Authentic. And it's all about networking at these events. And that also was born from her and I being pretty introverted and shy and awkward. And both of us came into this industry under fathers with big names. Both of us came in with such a high level of imposter syndrome, with such a high of anxiety, this, like, feeling of, I need to look a certain way, do things a certain way. I have these really big shoes to fill. I have to, you know, all of that. Sara Fraser [00:10:38]: And also sort of feeling like we were on an island and nobody else really knew what we were going through. Tonnika Haynes [00:10:43]: We were scared of you because you were superstars. Sara Fraser [00:10:45]: We had no idea. Like, that's so wild to me. Tracy told me the first time she met me in person that she was, like, intimidated. And I'm like, why? Like, I'm like, I'm a nobody. Nobody knows who I Am like, that's that little voice in my head, right? That's like, nobody knows me. And then so when people are like, oh, Sarah. And you know, da, da, da. I'm like, it's just really a weird thing for me. Sara Fraser [00:11:05]: But so we were like, we met through networking, and we've built an amazing friendship. We're not just people who connect at work, at events anymore. We talk almost every day. We've helped each other through relationships and friendships and all sorts of things that come up in our lives and loss of pets and just, all of, you know, those things that you do with your best friends. And even though we don't live in the same state and we only see each other maybe five times a year, we've built this relationship. And there are so many amazing people in this industry. If you open yourself up to finding those people. And you've been such a phenomenal auntie to so many people here, and you've adopted so many people under your wing and have really, like, leveled them up, and that's what this is. Sara Fraser [00:11:47]: If we can help somebody else level up, that's what we want to do. And being that shy, awkward, I'm afraid to talk to anybody person if I can help that person connect with somebody, find their person, find the space that they're comfortable in. So, yeah, the class we teach, we get into some psychology stuff and why our brain does these certain things and why it fights against us. But we also get into just how to have easy, low pressure conversations and, you know, not to walk in and start a conversation with. So what do you do? Who do you work for? Because it's just. That's a high pressure. It's such a. Like, oh, you know, instead, like, oh, hey, have you been to Tools before? What brought you to the conference or what session did you take this morning? And just those, like, easy ways to get into a conversation and to stay away from bonding over complaints. Sara Fraser [00:12:34]: You know, so many times. Tonnika Haynes [00:12:36]: It's cold in here. Sara Fraser [00:12:37]: Yes. Tonnika Haynes [00:12:37]: We're just complaining about these. So many kids here. Sara Fraser [00:12:40]: There's so many kids here. Right, right. But we're already bonding over the thing. Like, those are conversations you have with your people. Tonnika Haynes [00:12:47]: Right. Sara Fraser [00:12:47]: Who understand you and know you. But when you're standing next to a stranger and you're just like, oh, it's so cold in here. Tonnika Haynes [00:12:52]: And then they're having a hot flash. Really? Sara Fraser [00:12:55]: And then it's like you bond in misery. But where does the conversation go from there? You don't open it. Chrisi Falco [00:13:00]: Yeah. Sara Fraser [00:13:00]: You don't open a door. Chrisi Falco [00:13:01]: To, like, I don't want to add more. Tonnika Haynes [00:13:03]: Is ready. Sara Fraser [00:13:03]: Exactly. I got enough of that. Yeah. So this was just the second time we taught this class. And I told Tracy, I'm like, if this is the only class I ever teach for the rest of my life, I'm happy with that because it's so needed at every event where you have networking. And if we can teach it, like, the first day and then have people go out. Get to go out and use the things we talk. Exactly. Sara Fraser [00:13:22]: And we did it at Vision. And I think by the third day of Vision, a gal that was in our class came up to me, and she's like, I just want you to know I left your class with three new friends. We exchanged numbers. We've been meeting up throughout this whole event. And that just. That's why we wanted to do that. We wanted to. I can't be that community for everybody. Sara Fraser [00:13:40]: You can't be that community for everybody. But it's here. Like, those people are here. Find them. So, yeah. Tonnika Haynes [00:13:46]: Cause I've always not. I don't. Let me stop lying. I do not feel like I'm the odd person out, but I have felt that on occasion, believe it or not, sometimes I do feel uncomfortable in a room. But I was raised to go in there anyway, and so I'm a little more bold with that, but I've gotten a lot more bold with it. And I had to do a good job on following up, because when you were teaching yesterday, I was like, oh, I haven't followed up on some of the ladies I met at Tectonic. Let me go ahead and send a message. Hey, girl, what you doing? How you doing? And this dungaloo lives, like, right up the street, and we have the same birthday. Chrisi Falco [00:14:24]: Yep. Sara Fraser [00:14:25]: That's wild, right? It's my best friend's daughter's birthday, too. Tonnika Haynes [00:14:28]: Yeah. Sara Fraser [00:14:28]: Yeah. So, like, I just know so many amazing people that are January 3rd. My husband's close. He's the second. So, like, he's like, almost cool. Tonnika Haynes [00:14:34]: But Sara Fraser [00:14:37]: it's pretty close, I guess. I like Capricorns. I don't know. Tonnika Haynes [00:14:39]: Yeah, we're wonderful species. But the thing is, like, there's so many women that come with their husbands, and maybe they don't work in the shop. And I think Kim said it best. It's like. But they still want to be connected. Sara Fraser [00:14:51]: Yes. Tonnika Haynes [00:14:51]: And being around other people in the shop, maybe we can teach them how to relate to their. You can teach them how to relate to your spouse a little bit better when they're bringing Home. Crazy stuff. Because Rich is in the industry, so that's a. But I definitely want to tell any woman out there, young or old, we are not superstars. We're just weird people. We eat chicken wings. There's alcohol involved at times. Chrisi Falco [00:15:18]: And chocolate. Tonnika Haynes [00:15:18]: And chocolate. Especially this city. Sara Fraser [00:15:21]: Oh, my goodness. Tonnika Haynes [00:15:22]: Like, if you see us. I mean, if you walk up to me and you expect me to remember your name, I am not gonna remember your name. Sara Fraser [00:15:27]: Same. Tonnika Haynes [00:15:28]: It's not. Cause I don't think you're the most special thing in the world. It's just. I can't remember nobody's name. I have, like, a facial recognition. Sara Fraser [00:15:34]: Facial blindness. Same. Tonnika Haynes [00:15:35]: I'm like. Sara Fraser [00:15:36]: I mean, and in this industry, I. I thought to say it, but, I mean, there's a lot of people the same age, white male, who look very similar. And so it's. They kind of all blend, and they all wear the same colors. Tonnika Haynes [00:15:48]: They got the same outfit. Sara Fraser [00:15:50]: Black, dark blue. You know, thank. Thank God for Brett and Jimmy Lee bringing these flashy jackets and style you can pick out. Tonnika Haynes [00:15:56]: I am eager for that vibe. Sara Fraser [00:15:59]: Yeah, yeah. Tonnika Haynes [00:15:59]: But the rest of them, you like. Okay. Sara Fraser [00:16:01]: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Chrisi Falco [00:16:02]: A lot of white guys, baseball caps, beards. Like. Sara Fraser [00:16:06]: Yeah. Tonnika Haynes [00:16:07]: They need to have a beard contest. Sara Fraser [00:16:09]: Glitter beards. Tonnika Haynes [00:16:09]: Glitter. Oh, let's talk to Jimmy about that. Jimmy doesn't have a beard. Sara Fraser [00:16:13]: He's kind of. He started growing a little bit of scruff. Chrisi Falco [00:16:16]: Yeah. Tonnika Haynes [00:16:16]: We can put, like, fairy hair in the beard, and we'll get. No, we'll get Josh. Yeah. And the bearded brother to sponsor the beard contest at. Chrisi Falco [00:16:27]: There you go. Tonnika Haynes [00:16:28]: Yeah, that's what we're gonna do. Sara Fraser [00:16:30]: Brett was talking about having a women's division for the, like, you know, so they do a jacket competition here at Tools, and at some other events, they compete with these flashy jackets. And he's like, well, women, you guys are on a whole nother level. You would need your own division. And I said. I said, brett, here's the thing. Women are already competing. We just don't vocalize it. So we really don't need to put it on a stage. Sara Fraser [00:16:50]: Like, we're already, like, so in our heads about what everyone else is wearing and doing, and do I measure up and how do I fit into this? Like, we don't need to put, like, awards to that. Chrisi Falco [00:17:02]: Fun shoes. Tonnika Haynes [00:17:02]: Fun shoes. I'm, like, trying to see what TR has on her feet. I'm like, oh, where you get it from? See, I bought my fun shoes. Sara Fraser [00:17:10]: Did you love sparkly? Tonnika Haynes [00:17:12]: That one's not on. See, we've got sparkly shoe game. Sara Fraser [00:17:15]: I'm not showing you my shoes. Tonnika Haynes [00:17:16]: They're not okay. She's not ready for the. Sara Fraser [00:17:18]: My toes are sparkly, but my shoes are just after. Tonnika Haynes [00:17:20]: Like, I'm gonna get some sparkly shoes too. Sara Fraser [00:17:22]: Yeah. I have to teach today, so standing for four hours, like, comfort's a little higher. Are you teaching day again this afternoon? Yeah. So we're doing. Tracy and I, together again, are doing a class called Build Trust, Not Confusion, which is really interesting for us because it started from our communication class that we did last year and that talked about internal and external communication. And this is really just external focused on communicating with customers. Neither her nor I have ever been a service advisor. I mean, I've worked in a shop for six years. Sara Fraser [00:17:48]: I've jumped in and helped out in that space. But I've never solely been a service advisor. And so we were kind of imposter syndrome, right? Like, who the hell are we to be able to speak on this? Like, we haven't been in that role. Is anyone going to take us seriously? But really, the. The perception and space we're coming from is from the customer's perspective. And does that repair order make sense? And do the words you're saying make sense? And do we understand that? Because we have far more of the customer side of experience than we do the technical side. The service advisor. The technical side. Sara Fraser [00:18:18]: But then also in our positions in the industry, we also have a unique view, being so close to knowing. You know, I've sat in a lot of advisor classes. I've watched my dad teach a lot of advisor classes, podcasts that, you know, we've listen to or Tracy's edited or whatever. And so we have this, like, how things should be from what we hear. And so it's not a sales class. It's not about KPIs. It's literally about communication. Communication that makes sense, that's understandable, and how to build relationships and connect and all of that. Sara Fraser [00:18:45]: So it's really smart. Yeah, I think we've kind of found our zone in this, like, FUFU space, as I think Cecil was the first one who said that. I taught FUFU classes and the FUFU Tonnika Haynes [00:18:54]: is important because you know what? I remember my ob, who was also a customer, she was talking to me and I said, would you. I won't talk transmissions to you if you don't talk medical to me, because I don't know what you just said exactly. Am I dying or not, Doc? Yes or no. And that's how I talk to my Customers like, how bad are my brakes? Fred Flintstone? Ma', am, you need to put your foot out the door. Sara Fraser [00:19:14]: I love that. Tonnika Haynes [00:19:15]: And you're about to die. Like, I mean, I know who I'm talking, but I literally say, fred Flintstone. Chrisi Falco [00:19:19]: Yeah. Tonnika Haynes [00:19:19]: We're not stopping. Sara Fraser [00:19:20]: And that's such a visual. That means to me. Tonnika Haynes [00:19:22]: I'm serious. Sara Fraser [00:19:23]: I get that. Tonnika Haynes [00:19:24]: How bad are the brakes? They're not that bad. We get them done. We're checking the. Or whatever. Just have a regular conversation. But you'll know who you need to speak to in mechanics terms. Like, there's gonna be someone that wants to know how many millimeters. Sara Fraser [00:19:37]: Right. Tonnika Haynes [00:19:38]: I remember. I mean, I was at a conference and I took my car to the dealership for a recall. And I remember the dvi. The guy was telling me that the brakes were at X millimeter. And I know what. I know what it is. He didn't know that I knew what it was. And I said when I got back, I said, you said the brakes were at 4 millimeters. Tonnika Haynes [00:19:56]: To me, or maybe another woman, even another guy, that means, oh, I got four more to go. Sara Fraser [00:20:01]: Yeah, absolutely. Tonnika Haynes [00:20:02]: Yeah. I was like, what does that even mean? Chrisi Falco [00:20:03]: I'm like, what did I start with? Tonnika Haynes [00:20:05]: Yeah, Chrisi Falco [00:20:07]: yeah. Tonnika Haynes [00:20:08]: It's like, you've got four. Me. Oh, good. I got four more to go. Sara Fraser [00:20:10]: Yeah. Tonnika Haynes [00:20:10]: Like, no, you. Sara Fraser [00:20:12]: Yeah. Tonnika Haynes [00:20:12]: But people just don't get it because we're used to it and we're used to the verbiage and all of the stuff. But, yeah, keep it simple. Chrisi Falco [00:20:19]: Yeah, Yeah. I have to take my Kia to the dealer because the navigation stopped working. Tonnika Haynes [00:20:24]: Oh, that's nice. Chrisi Falco [00:20:25]: Okay. So it would only. Now, it would only navigate me to places I had been before. Tonnika Haynes [00:20:29]: It would only go left. Chrisi Falco [00:20:30]: Right. Basically. So I bring it into the dealership, and I, you know, first I did the calls and all the other stuff you have to do first, but then I'm face to face and I explain the situation really clearly. Like, this is what's not working. This is what I need to work. This is how I know it's not work. This is how come I know it's not working. And they do what they do and they tell me, oh, yeah, well, you know, whatever, whatever, whatever. Chrisi Falco [00:20:51]: Okay, great, Great. They call me a little while later and they're like, your car's done. I'm like, awesome. I'm gonna be able to navigate anywhere. And I get back there and I, you know, they hand me, oh, you're all set, Ms. Falco. Here you go. Sara Fraser [00:21:02]: Duh, duh, duh. Chrisi Falco [00:21:03]: Hand me my paperwork. I go, and I'm looking at the paperwork, and I turn around, I said, so. I said, so the navigation's fixed. Sara Fraser [00:21:10]: Oh, well, you had a recall on Chrisi Falco [00:21:12]: your ICC unit and. And all this, like, tech speak. And I said, so my navigation works now? Oh, let me go check with the tech. Tonnika Haynes [00:21:22]: No, ma'. Am. No, sir. Chrisi Falco [00:21:24]: So he goes out in the shop, and he comes back, he goes, oh, the tech didn't even look at it. I said, why didn't the tech look at it? That was my chief complaint. I came in. I came in saying, this happens. This doesn't happen. So here's why it's a problem, and here's how I know it. And you fix a recall that I didn't even know I had. Tonnika Haynes [00:21:44]: So Jeff said that on a podcast not too long ago. Oh, jaded mechanic dude, that. You know that little. Sorry sucker. Yeah. So shops are so excited. DVIs are important. 300% rule is important. Tonnika Haynes [00:21:56]: But they're so excited to do all of that that you forgot about the initial complaint. Yeah, I would be ticked off to the highs of taking care of. Chrisi Falco [00:22:02]: So I ended up having to bring it back. I said, well, if. I said, can I leave it now? And they're like, well, we don't have time now. I said, but you had it and didn't fix it. You're giving it back. So then I should be inconvenienced again and bring it back? I mean, just. I mean, he looked like a deer in the headlights. Tonnika Haynes [00:22:19]: And he goes, they never get training. I understand. Like, they don't get training. You know, independents do more training than those certificates. They just find you nice cup of coffee and put you in a. I Chrisi Falco [00:22:28]: ended up having to leave my car there for a week, which would have Tonnika Haynes [00:22:31]: been fine if you would have planned on that. When you dropped it off, say, well, ma', am, you know, this is what we found. It's gonna be here for a week. And. Sure, yeah, how can we help with that? Chrisi Falco [00:22:39]: But I had to go back the end of the week to get my loaner car. And then, like, they have my car for, like, four days. And I finally text the guy, like, hey, can I have an update? Like, what's going on with my car? You know? And he's like, well, we're still working on it. Tonnika Haynes [00:22:52]: No, you're not. You don't really know my name. Sara Fraser [00:22:54]: Really. Chrisi Falco [00:22:56]: Might end up being a head unit. What does that do? Tonnika Haynes [00:22:59]: What does that even mean? Chrisi Falco [00:22:59]: Just what, you know, speak to me like a human. Can you just fix my Navy, like, yeah, and now it's all better. But, you know, I'm like, I want to say to him, after that experience, I said to Sarah, so our service advisor training program, do we offer that to dealerships by chance? Because I got a candidate. Sara Fraser [00:23:19]: We don't. But we have talked about creating a specific program for dealing or for training technician or. Jesus, I can't talk for training service advisors who are coming out of dealerships and going into independence, because it is the. It is different. And I mean, we see that struggle in hiring. And somebody's like, I have 15 years of service advisor experience. And then you look at where and it's like, okay, yes, you do. But what is that going to transition like, to in the shop? And, you know, we do a question that's kind of about price matching. Sara Fraser [00:23:50]: And how would you, you know, handle this situation? Vehicles in the shop, customers drop the car off, vehicles in the shop, technicians in the estimate let you know what's going on. You've reached out, you know, you've put the estimate together, you've reached out to the customer, you've done your whole spiel, you've educated them, you filled them in on what we found, what we can do, what the total's gonna be, all that fun stuff. And they're like, oh, man, I gotta talk to the spouse. I gotta think about it overnight. Totally fine. You reach back out the next day and they let you know, hey, we did some research. We called a few other shops. I found a shop who's willing to do that same work for less money. Sara Fraser [00:24:21]: How would you respond to that? And we've had really interesting, you know, a lot of times coming out of dealership spaces, it's like, well, you know, what is our wiggle room? Can we price match? Da, da, da, da, da. And I'm like, well, let's say that you can't price match. There's no wiggle room. Where do you go from there? And instead of talking about warranty or finance or the car's already in the shop, like, we can get to it today. And the good advisors pick up on that. And they do say that, but. Well, I would just respect their decision and tell them that we're here if they need us. And we hear that a lot. Sara Fraser [00:24:53]: And it's. And it's hard because it's. The whole interview has gone great with this person. They have a great attitude. They have, you know, knowledge about the industry. And it's. So we know if we're going to send that person to a shop that that's something we have to highlight as they're going to need training in how to build relationships, how to actually sell value, not just focus on price. And so that's. Sara Fraser [00:25:15]: Yeah, we've, we've definitely thought about creating programs specifically for advisors coming out of the dealership world and how different it is. And, and there are. We do find great advisors from dealerships. I, you know, I, We've had lots of people who have gone back and forth and see, you know, benefit in both and, and all of that. And so. But it's, it is interesting to really find the experience. Doesn't always mean that it's gonna match what that shop is looking for. And that's why it's important for us too, to know how that shot feels about. Tonnika Haynes [00:25:44]: Yeah. Sara Fraser [00:25:44]: Their service advice, price matching. And where do we go with that? Yeah, yeah. And we don't, I don't think we work with any shops that do price matching. Chrisi Falco [00:25:51]: So it's funny because sometimes we'll have the exact opposite. You know, we'll have that service advisor candidate that maybe doesn't have a stellar resume and like, maybe the start of the interview is like a little rough. But then once you get them to start talking about their customers and their relationships and, you know, they go on this whole, like, you know, the quality, the, you know, the skill of the technicians. We only use these great parts. We stand behind our work. We're gonna be there next to you no matter what happens to that vehicle. And you're like, okay, okay. So the first three questions, I was like, on the fence, but now I'm all team. Sara Fraser [00:26:31]: You like, right? Yeah. Chrisi Falco [00:26:33]: You know, that one question can really show so much about the person you're talking to. Sara Fraser [00:26:38]: Yeah. Chrisi Falco [00:26:38]: Because I think it takes more confidence as a person to speak to the value of something that is intangible. Like, you can feel a relationship, you can see the stability of the company and like, maybe how they reach out in the community. But like, it's not like this little silver box you're getting. Tonnika Haynes [00:26:55]: Yeah. Chrisi Falco [00:26:56]: You know what I mean? So I think it, I think it takes a, it takes a different skill set. Sara Fraser [00:27:00]: And I think too, you know, when we have those people who we know need coaching in that space, then we dig into questions more so to find out, are they coachable? Are they going to be somebody who's going to be willing to adapt? Because it's not their fault that that's the environment they've been in and that's what they've been trained to do. And I have nothing against that. But are they going to be open to changing that process or is that like, they're going to come in and be like, well, no, I've always done it this way and I can't adapt. Tonnika Haynes [00:27:24]: That is so that situation. The last two hires were service advisors that I hired myself before hiring you guys. Same thing. Well, this is how we do it. Who's we? Who is we? We French today. But this is how it happens here. Chrisi Falco [00:27:39]: Aren't we friends? Tonnika Haynes [00:27:40]: No, this is how we do it. Sara Fraser [00:27:41]: Well, this is how I did it. Tonnika Haynes [00:27:42]: They're like, no, why are you arguing with me? This is my process over here. But I think Stuart was on. He was in the big box store and he didn't have any training. The first training he had was asta and I hired him, what, less than two weeks before then, which I love Sara Fraser [00:27:59]: that you brought him. So many times we see shops take their team to training, but not the new hire. Tonnika Haynes [00:28:05]: And it's like, why hit the ground running? Sara Fraser [00:28:06]: Why take them? Show them. Like, that's retention. Show them what. What this industry has to do. Tonnika Haynes [00:28:12]: He was on fire after that. And he said, he's like, I've never been to training and, like, sitting in classes like Becky Wick and Rick White. And he's just like, I've been thinking this, and if they just did this at the old shop, it would have been so much better. Because he was thinking when he got, like, what, he was doing 50 cars a day. And I was like, no, we do like 15, bruh. Sara Fraser [00:28:28]: Yeah. Tonnika Haynes [00:28:29]: Like, I don't do that over here. He's just like, I get to go to lunch. I'm like, yeah, yeah, I can make the motorcycle club thing. Yes, we're going home. Sara Fraser [00:28:38]: Like, no, we have a life outside. We have a life outside of this joint. Tonnika Haynes [00:28:42]: But then training, and he's training with elite. I've never, ever. Well, I'm not gonna say I never. The way that he was so excited about that, texting me from the plane, hey, this was the best thing ever. I got friends and this. So he's made his connections. He's got people to call on when he's having a situation, you know, that are in the coaching group with him. He just really enjoyed the whole process. Tonnika Haynes [00:29:04]: He kicks me out of my office five minutes before he has the son on the train. And I'm like, I need to find your own training computer. Sara Fraser [00:29:10]: Yeah. Tonnika Haynes [00:29:11]: Because he's like, I gotta go. Sara Fraser [00:29:12]: I'm just gonna. Chrisi Falco [00:29:13]: That's how you know you got somebody that's. He's as invested in you and your business as you are in him. Tonnika Haynes [00:29:19]: Yeah. So here's the thing. I've had people that try to bypass the process and say, hey, I put an application. Haven't heard anybody. And I was like, well, did you call? Did you follow the process? The process is important. And I believe that shop owners will probably get frustrated with that as well, because, again, they want a warm body. Sara Fraser [00:29:38]: Yeah. Tonnika Haynes [00:29:38]: But I really like to redirect, like, no, follow the process. I did step out, but I told you, I was like, this guy's an outlier. Because he had people come to me and like, no, this is the dude. You need him. Sara Fraser [00:29:50]: Like, why is he. Chrisi Falco [00:29:52]: Just start the process with us, him and the computer. Tonnika Haynes [00:29:55]: The computer thing. Chrisi Falco [00:29:56]: Yeah, that was. Tonnika Haynes [00:29:57]: He was like, yeah, I didn't get to do all of that. I was like, really? Sara Fraser [00:30:01]: We understand that. I mean, and we have shops that know that they've hired because of our ads we've put out. But, like, I have a shop owner I talked to just this weekend, and very small local community, and he's like, well, so this guy came in and he saw the ad, and, you know, I knew the shop he worked in, and I just interviewed him right there. Totally get that. Yeah. Like, I don't want to break this, like, tight community thing. And. And he said, but I know when I've tried to hire on my own and we've put ads out, we have never had the interest like we have had since your ad went out. Sara Fraser [00:30:31]: So he's like, I know we didn't follow your process, but I know this is still because of what you guys did, and I'm okay with that. Right. Like, there's. There is flexibility. Tonnika Haynes [00:30:39]: Well, too much. Because the process is there for a reason. Just like we have processes in the shop. Sara Fraser [00:30:43]: Exactly. Tonnika Haynes [00:30:44]: Because you don't want to just trust what everybody says. Because what I can imagine from what Chrissy has told me that tacks going through the process can start to show their true colors. Sara Fraser [00:30:54]: Oh, Lord. Chrisi Falco [00:30:55]: Like, some of this stuff. I swear, Sarah and I need to do a blog because I have gotten some wild answers from. From questions. I mean, I still. My very first wild answer, and probably my favorite was, you know, as we're going through the questions, just in the preliminary interview, this is like, the. Who are you? Let me get to know you a little bit. Like, can we have a conversation? And, you know, after talking about, do they have any ase certs and, you know, like, training and all of that stuff, I'm like, we have a question. What area would you like, more training in. Chrisi Falco [00:31:30]: And we're already talking about your skills and your work. And the guy was quiet for a minute, and he goes, well, I don't like to fly, so if it could be near my house, that'd be great. And in an effort to not make this person feel wrong or feel like a silly goose. Cause they just answered out of left field. I was like, okay, yeah, I get that. Flying can be hectic. Okay, so what kind of subject matter do you feel you could use or want, you know, some additional training in? And he was like, ah, well, I'd have to say all of it. Tonnika Haynes [00:32:05]: All of it. Chrisi Falco [00:32:06]: All right, just give me training. Sara Fraser [00:32:07]: What's at the top of the list? Chrisi Falco [00:32:09]: But that tells us that this is somebody just hungry to learn whatever they, you know, whatever they want to be taught. Tonnika Haynes [00:32:15]: Yeah, but then have you ever had someone say, I don't know, damn training. I know everything. Sara Fraser [00:32:19]: Oh, absolutely. Tonnika Haynes [00:32:21]: And who are you, young lady, to be asking questions about cars? You get your butt in the kitchen, you cook. Chrisi Falco [00:32:27]: I have a little painting that I keep on my desk. And I tick mark honeys, sweeties, darlings and babes. And depending on how many you get, that's like a little negative mark on your application. Yeah, I mean, I don't. I would never keep it from moving to the next level for that, but Tonnika Haynes [00:32:45]: I got my eye on you, fucker. Chrisi Falco [00:32:46]: But come on now. It is 2026. The only one you should be calling honey is Winnie the Pooh. Like, that's it. That's it. Or maybe you're honey at home. Sara Fraser [00:32:56]: I'm honey at home, you know, but. Chrisi Falco [00:32:58]: But a person on the phone in that professional. Tonnika Haynes [00:33:03]: You're interviewing for a job. Sara Fraser [00:33:06]: People swear on interviews all the time. And, like, technicians, you know, I've worked in a shop. Tonnika Haynes [00:33:11]: Right, right. Sara Fraser [00:33:12]: I understand the language. Like, I get it. And if you talk to me outside of my, you know, my professional Persona, you will find that I also swear like I'm a human. Chrisi Falco [00:33:22]: Right, Sailor blush. Sara Fraser [00:33:23]: Yeah. And so it's. It doesn't bother me too much. And I didn't really think of it too much until one day I was down in Texas in my dad's office, and I was an interview, and I had it on speakerphone, and I'm, like, not thinking anything of it. And he's just like, they said that on an interview? And I was like, oh, yeah. I'm like, you know, if it's an advisor, I'm gonna think a little bit differently, you know? But I think, too, the thing is, when we're interviewing, we're not interrogating. We are trying to make that person so comfortable. Like, we're just having a conversation. Sara Fraser [00:33:50]: And if that's who they are, I want to know that. Like, I want to know who they are. I want to know what they're going to show up at work. Like, I don't want them to show up to an interview with the. This is who I think you want me to be. Tonnika Haynes [00:34:02]: Right. Sara Fraser [00:34:03]: And so we try to really get them at ease, get them comfortable. We kind of like in the same space of, like, networking, starting easy, starting low pressure. I know so much about people's dogs and hobbies and things that have nothing to do with whether or not they're going to get that job. But. And this is something that I think is interesting too, is we've. There's a lot of talk about AI coming up and how to use AI and this and that, and can we use AI for hiring. And there's new rules and regulations being put into place around these things. And I've often thought with the amount of work that we have and we're growing, could we use AI to do this preliminary interview that we do? Like, could we just set it up and have this questionnaire go out that they fill out and they send to us? But the thing is, about our preliminary interview, it's not the answers that we're really after. Sara Fraser [00:34:48]: It's what's underneath those answers. It's the tone. It's that, you know, when I ask somebody, do you currently have or have you ever had any ASE certifications? I don't care if you have any ASC certifications. I want to know how you feel about them. Yeah, well, no, I don't really. I've never needed them. I don't really care to do that. It's just a waste of time. Sara Fraser [00:35:06]: It doesn't mean anything. I don't test well or. I've never worked in a shop that required them, but if I worked in a shop that would support me in getting them, I would absolutely love to get them. Tonnika Haynes [00:35:16]: That's what. Sara Fraser [00:35:16]: So we're not listening. Tonnika Haynes [00:35:17]: It's not a yes or no. Sara Fraser [00:35:18]: Yeah, yes, I have three. Or no, I don't have any. It's. We're trying to get the. And that conversation that we have, there's no way AI would pick up the things that we pick up on. And there's no way that just having them complete a form would pick up on what we're looking for. And when we do our internal interview, it's not just the answers to the questions. There's also a whole debrief of things that aren't in the answers. Sara Fraser [00:35:40]: The unspoken things and what we're looking for. And then does that match with what we know about the shop? And so it's. I don't know how I got onto this tangent. I don't remember what we were talking about. Tonnika Haynes [00:35:50]: No, we're having fun, and we're having a time. I love it. Sara Fraser [00:35:53]: But, yeah, so in interviews, it's really. We. We were talking about people swearing and calling you honey. Yeah. Because we want to find out who they really are. And I actually shared the story during class yesterday about that interview, because sometimes we have to call each other after interviews and just, like, collect ourselves. And you had one the other day about you. I'll let you share it. Chrisi Falco [00:36:10]: But, yeah, the other day for a technician up in the Northeast. So, you know, like, the kind of bravado. And, you know, I start the interview and I ask the first question, like, you know, are you. Are you currently working? Honey, just tell me what you want to know. I'll say whatever you want me to say. Tonnika Haynes [00:36:30]: What? Chrisi Falco [00:36:31]: Wait, are you. Are we on an interview? Okay. Do you currently have a job? Wait, what? What? I'm like. I thought I was being punked, honestly. Okay. So then he tells me, and then we're. You know, we go into other things. I ask him the ASE question. Chrisi Falco [00:36:46]: He's like, ugh. You know, I mean, tell me. What do you want to hear? Do you want to hear that I have them? Cause I can say I have them. Uh, do you have them? Like, do. Like, I was so off put, like. And it's. If you know me, it's a little. Tonnika Haynes [00:37:05]: It's kind of hard to hear. Chrisi Falco [00:37:05]: It's a little hard to, like, shut me up. Tonnika Haynes [00:37:08]: Yeah. Chrisi Falco [00:37:09]: It's a little hard to leave me with nothing to say. And I'm just like, maybe. Do you. Is this thing on? Like, you know, and he was just so gruff and so northeast. And then he goes, I said to him, I said, if I met your best friend, what would they tell me they like the best about you? And he goes, are you running one of those crybaby shit shows? Cause I'm not gonna have any part of that. Tonnika Haynes [00:37:39]: Oh, okay, big dog. Chrisi Falco [00:37:42]: And I was just like, I'm already typing in our. We have a text group. That's just information for the blog, which is like, this shit's been crazy. And I'm already typing. I'm like, I don't even know what else to Say to you like, I was just crybaby shit show. Cause I asked him what his best friend would like about him. So he assumes we're some touchy feely. All the feelings and, you know, so I'm like, I just wanna make sure Tonnika Haynes [00:38:08]: you're not gonna throw a wrench at somebody when you get to work, dog. Chrisi Falco [00:38:10]: Right? And I'm like, I'm gonna be professional and I'm gonna try and finish this. And I was like, all right. So on a scale of 1 to 10. And before I could even get it out, he goes, what? I was like. I was like, how? Tonnika Haynes [00:38:23]: And these are the same people saying, the industry is terrible and shop owners don't pay. There's a shortage of jobs. There's no jobs. There's no jobs you got. He might have been an amazing tech, but dude, nobody want to work with your ass. Probably was. Chrisi Falco [00:38:36]: But for God's sakes, be a human being for five minutes so I can know. Tonnika Haynes [00:38:41]: He could have tricked you just a little bit. He ain't even trying. Chrisi Falco [00:38:43]: I mean, if he's living in the Northeast, he's going to go work in the shop in the Northeast. So his personality might fit in just fine there. But if I can't find out anything about you to put you through to that next step, like, I don't think Tonnika Haynes [00:38:56]: it's just the Northeast. People crazy everywhere, west coast crazy. Chrisi Falco [00:39:03]: It's just different brands of crazy. He was full on Northeast, Staten island crazy. Sara Fraser [00:39:09]: Like, you know, but then you have those ones that are just like, you don't even want to get off the phone. You're having such a good. And then you want to, like, go work. Like Stuart. Like, I'm like, I want to work with Stuart. Like, you know, it's just. And talk about what we were talking before about feeling intimidated or you, like you don't belong or you're afraid to step into a room. The first time I met Tanika, I was intimidated. Sara Fraser [00:39:29]: I was afraid to go talk to her. I had never met her before. And. Right. That sounds so flickering, right? And Craig o' Neill was standing next to you. And I know Craig pretty well. So, like, I took that as my comfort zone to go up and talk to you. Cause you had given the speech that was just phenomenal. Sara Fraser [00:39:44]: And I had never heard a speaker in our industry talk about things in the way that you did and coming into the industry and what it was like and walking into a room full of Bobs and, you know, just like a bunch of Bobs. Tonnika Haynes [00:39:55]: I love all my Bobs. Sara Fraser [00:39:56]: Though, ma', am, your delivery was so good. And. And I had been on this journey through Toastmasters, learning to speak better and all these things. And I was just like, I have to tell her how amazing this speech was. And so I was nervous, and so I'm terrified to go up and talk to her. And so then we get to know each other. We become friends through going to events and stuff. And so then when Tanika finally reached out and is like, okay, I need you to help me hire somebody, I was like, oh, God. Sara Fraser [00:40:20]: I'm like, this. This is not just a client. This is a friend. This is the super bowl of hiring. This is somebody who. Who's well known in the industry now, who has social media presence. Tonnika Haynes [00:40:28]: I tell you, that damn aim, I would not hire them. She was scared that was gonna happen. No. Sara Fraser [00:40:35]: But I was like, just like, we can't mess this up. Like, I can't send you somebody that's not amazing. And I even told the team that. I was like, look, this is for Tanika, Shop whoever. And I mean, every client we wanted, we want to knock it out of the park. But I was just like, the. The pressure was so on. And so. Sara Fraser [00:40:53]: Yeah. And. But also in. We're kind of finding this a lot more now in shops where we're looking for an advisor who is not just coming in to replace an advisor. They're coming in to help the shop owner get out of the counter. Tonnika Haynes [00:41:04]: We're building to get. Sara Fraser [00:41:05]: And so that's kind of been a cool experience for us to learn what we're looking for in that role versus just somebody who's coming in and working alongside another advisor. It's a little bit different. Right. Or create, you know, somebody who's willing to create systems that don't exist, or somebody that is willing to be coachable but also bring ideas. Tonnika Haynes [00:41:24]: Yes. Sara Fraser [00:41:24]: Yes. And that's so important to us. And so, yeah, when I did Stuart's preliminary interview, and I think Paul did his second, and we just adored him. And so, yeah, it was. Tonnika Haynes [00:41:34]: He is tried and true. Yeah. Yeah. He's a really good faker or just Godsend. Chrisi Falco [00:41:40]: It's also finding those people that have the capacity to own things. Sara Fraser [00:41:44]: Yeah. Chrisi Falco [00:41:45]: You know, because it's. Sara Fraser [00:41:45]: It's. Chrisi Falco [00:41:46]: It's one thing to have somebody that they feel stable. You feel supported, but to, like, be able to own it enough to chase you out of the room. Tonnika Haynes [00:41:53]: He chases me out of the room. I'm telling you, between him and Haley and now Santana, he's like, okay, boss, it's three O', clock. Okay, boss. And then I don't know if he knows that he does it, but he kind of debriefs me on the week. If I'm not there, it's like, oh, you know, we're almost gonna meet this. We didn't have a good week, but we got a lot of stuff lined up. And I don't ask him that. He just takes ownership. Tonnika Haynes [00:42:15]: Yeah, he really takes on. Chrisi Falco [00:42:16]: He's invested in you because of the way you've invested in him. Tonnika Haynes [00:42:19]: Like, I just. And that can happen. I think a lot of shop owners, one, sometimes we just don't allow it to happen. But it is happening for me. Cause someone asked me at Tectonic, they were like, you're not even in the shop anymore. I was like, they don't need me. Which is good. It feels a little funny. Tonnika Haynes [00:42:36]: But they're still doing so well. Chrisi Falco [00:42:38]: Someone's having those same growing pains. Tonnika Haynes [00:42:41]: Well, we talk about imposter syndrome, and it's like, why do I not deserve to have the business that I built do the work? Like, okay, are these guys gonna be mad at me that they don't see me every day? Oh, she don't even come up in here no more. Actually, I don't think so. But still worry for them. I worry about that. But I know that when I. If I come in at 7:01, I'm just like, oh, my God, I'm late for work. It's like your damn shock. Why are you feeling like that? So it's a whole little thing that I'm having. Tonnika Haynes [00:43:13]: Like, girl, you the boss. But I just. You know what? No. You're no longer a worker bee. And I have to remind myself, this is what you asked for. I'm the queen bee. I'm providing from these guys. These guys are great. Tonnika Haynes [00:43:24]: I'm gonna make sure the shop is clean. They got the equipment they need. I'm handling the big problems, if there's any. I'm empowering you. I'm coaching you. I'm leading from a different. Chrisi Falco [00:43:34]: You built home. Tonnika Haynes [00:43:35]: Yeah. Sara Fraser [00:43:35]: Yeah. Tonnika Haynes [00:43:36]: So I just had to remind myself of that. And a lot of shop owners do have to remind themselves of that. That, yes, it may be time for you to hire somebody and get off the counter. When I answer the phone. If we just happen. I'm there answering the phone. I was like, oh, I can't do that shit no more. Sara Fraser [00:43:50]: Oh, my God. Tonnika Haynes [00:43:50]: It was a five minute conversation about a 13 minute, $13 inspection. I was like, I was mean. Like, Tanisha cannot get on the Phone like lady, what do you want? Okay, I'm going to watch Dateline. I'm out. But I've put in the work. And any shop owner that doesn't know Sweetie, Honey Boo Boo, what else they call you. Sara Fraser [00:44:11]: Darling dumpling, Dear. Tonnika Haynes [00:44:14]: Done the work. If you've done the work, go ahead. Sara Fraser [00:44:18]: I got a couple toots. Chrisi Falco [00:44:19]: Yeah, yeah, yeah. And I also had an older gentleman and say, I don't understand why. Why a skirt's asking me all these questions. I was like, it's not 1940 anymore, sir. You can't call us. I'm wearing pants. Tonnika Haynes [00:44:31]: I'm wrenching anyway, because his back's probably hurting. Oh, yeah, you want to go there? Chrisi Falco [00:44:35]: He was 75 years old, looking for a job. Tonnika Haynes [00:44:37]: Somebody made this bad decision at a Chrisi Falco [00:44:38]: heavy line diesel shop. Tonnika Haynes [00:44:40]: Somebody made bad decisions. Chrisi Falco [00:44:41]: Oh, yeah. Tonnika Haynes [00:44:42]: But no, owners. You are allowed to leave the shop when you have done the work and when you have your processes in place and when you're still. I'm still coaching. Gotta be coachable. But mine is KPIs. Making sure everything's working, making sure I can pay my staff the way they deserve to be paid. When you got that stuff in line, then it's time for you to step away from debts, get out of your own way. Because right now, I would probably just tear my whole business up again. Tonnika Haynes [00:45:07]: I would be giving away stuff because she'll be paying, you know, pricing out of my own pocket again. And then someone's like, hey, you know, I know your daddy. And I'm like, you know my daddy. Okay, I'll give you 10% off. Like, they don't do that. Because they're like, right, no, Ms. Tanque said, no, we gotta get these numbers this week because, no, we're not getting in trouble with her. So leadership is hard. Tonnika Haynes [00:45:27]: Leadership is wonderful. And hiring is the hardest thing in the whole world. And I have not done a good job at that. And so I'm so glad that you started your business. Sara Fraser [00:45:35]: Thank you. Tonnika Haynes [00:45:36]: And that you bought this lovely young toots along. Sara Fraser [00:45:41]: I mean, what you're talking about is Chrissy's looking at me because we're going through that. And I've heard my dad for years say that leadership, being a good leader, is about providing the environment and the tools for the work to be done, not doing the work yourself. And because this is something that I started and built and was so involved in every step along the way as it's grown, I can't do that. And I have to let go. And I have an amazing team A phenomenon. Phenomenal team of people who I trust to really, who have the same passion as I do, who have the same vision, who bring really great ideas, and it's. It's been cool to be able to step back and actually take a vacation this year without my computer. Like, that was a goal I had. Sara Fraser [00:46:20]: Well, I guess that was actually last year, but that was a goal at the beginning of the year and in August I finally did it. And. But I have never related more to the shop owner who doesn't want to get out of the bay because I, I love what I do. And it's important to me to still be involved in interviews, especially because I teach a lot about that too. And. And soon, hopefully somebody else will be teaching on that. And. Yeah, it's been really exciting to watch our team grow. Sara Fraser [00:46:43]: We have a new employee joining us this coming week, and we're really excited. And she has a technical background and an advisor background. And that's what's really important to us too, is like, we're not hiring recruiters. We're not hiring people who have worked in the hiring space. We're hiring people who've worked in our industry who understand our industry, who understand the roles that we're putting these people into. And so it's. It's really exciting. But, yeah, I've the. Sara Fraser [00:47:04]: The whole, like, listening to you, like, you gotta step back. Like, yeah, I have to let my people do the things that they're really good at. And. And I know what I'm not good at. And like, you were talking about following up and I'm not a details person. And Chrissy's phenomenal at that. So, like, just being able to say, okay, you know, somebody gave me their business card yesterday. I passed it over to Chrissy. Sara Fraser [00:47:21]: Make sure we touch, you know, make sure we touch base with this person and, and having that team of people that just embrace your vision and that really want to build with you, not just like, okay, tell me what to do and I'll do it. Right, Right. Yeah. Tonnika Haynes [00:47:37]: Right. Sara Fraser [00:47:37]: So it's been amazing. Chrisi Falco [00:47:39]: Well, you've also created an incredible space for ideas and for growth. So, you know, we have this team of people and we have a Monday morning meeting. And, you know, even with Bill on there, there's no idea that's ever looked at as dumb or wrong or not worth the time or, you know, there's never been a forum inside the company where you feel like you don't have a voice and you can't say, I don't really think that that's the best idea. Like. Cause it's all, like, everybody's voice matters, which is a really unique thing to have inside of a company, especially a company that's growing really fast. And, you know, sometimes we're like, ooh, my God. Sara Fraser [00:48:22]: Really? Chrisi Falco [00:48:22]: How many people? Tonnika Haynes [00:48:23]: You know, that is so crazy good. Like, I'm looking. Same thing. Growth. Amazing. But if you just put the right people in the right place, we've grown 24% already this year. Like, I'm just like, do I deserve this? Yes. Sara Fraser [00:48:36]: Yes, you do. Yes, you do, too. Thank you. Thank you. It's. And I think that's why we love what we do too, so much, is that we get to see that. We get to see that we. Not only did we get to change Stuart's life by putting him with somebody who is an amazing boss and has a phenomenal shop, but, like, he's lift, you know, lightened your burden and created a space. Sara Fraser [00:48:54]: And just. I don't like to say we're recruiters. We're matchmakers. Right? It's the connection. It's finding that connection that makes sense. Chrisi Falco [00:49:02]: And that's how we knew that Kat was the right person to bring on. Because we talked about, like, Sarah always says that we kiss all the frogs for you. You know, we go on all the Sara Fraser [00:49:12]: bad first dates for you. Chrisi Falco [00:49:14]: And when we were doing her second interview, she's like, well, she's like, if I could just reduce the frog percentage out there. And I was like, I instantly know we love you. Like, you're in. Sara Fraser [00:49:26]: Absolutely. Tonnika Haynes [00:49:27]: All right, so they probably already know, but, ladies, if someone needs to hire, how do they get in touch with you? Sara Fraser [00:49:33]: You can check out our website, which is autoignitemanagement.com. you can email either one of us. Sarah S A R A autoignitemanagement.com or Chrissy C H R I S I auto ignite management.com. you can. That's. That's really the best way. I'm like, you could call me, but I'm a millennial, so I won't answer the phone. You'd have to text me first, so. Sara Fraser [00:49:55]: Yeah. Yeah. Tonnika Haynes [00:49:56]: Well, thank you so much for having. Sara Fraser [00:49:58]: Thank you. Tonnika Haynes [00:49:59]: Well, not having me, but for letting me have you. Sara Fraser [00:50:01]: Thank you for having us. Tonnika Haynes [00:50:03]: This was fun. Like, whatever y' all talk about. I don't know. Sara Fraser [00:50:06]: We could probably talk all day. We've got things to talk about, so Tonnika Haynes [00:50:09]: I gotta get in the head of Brandon Steckler next. I'm excited about this. Sara Fraser [00:50:12]: Oh, boy. Tonnika Haynes [00:50:14]: Downshift with Tanika is where we slow down long enough to have real conversations hosted by myself. Second second generation shop owner Tanika Haynes. This goes beyond your car count your KPIs. We want to talk about leadership, legacy, mindset and the messy, beautiful journey of building something that lasts. You will hear stories from shop owners, technicians and other industry leaders who are figuring it all out by themselves in real time. This is a space for growth, tough love, laughter and leveling up.