Auto repair shops that thrive today do so for one core reason—they operate as a team, not a collection of individuals. And that team doesn’t become strong by accident. It’s built on communication, shared standards, and one very misunderstood element: training that actually sticks.
We’re not talking about training as a one-off event or a technical seminar your techs attend twice a year. We’re talking about building a culture inside your shop where training is practical, expected, respected—and most importantly—applied.
Let’s dig into how real training becomes real results—without drifting into leadership theory or self-development clichés. Just the brass tacks of training that works.
Step One: Training Has a Home
In many shops, training exists like a visitor: it drops by occasionally, shakes a few hands, and leaves. But in high-performing shops, training is a permanent resident. It has a place. A plan. A rhythm. So ask yourself: where does training live in your shop? If your answer is “we fit it in when we can,” you’re already behind.
Establish a predictable structure. It can be weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly, but it must be non-negotiable. This shows your team that training isn’t something extra—it’s part of how the shop runs.
Use a schedule. Even if it's just 30 minutes on a Friday morning, make it visible. Write it on the whiteboard. Add it to your shop management system. It needs to exist in the same way you would schedule a vehicle drop-off or a parts delivery.
Step Two: One Topic at a Time
Nothing derails training faster than information overload. Covering too much at once is like throwing a repair manual at someone and expecting them to absorb it by osmosis.
Instead, commit to one specific topic per session.
Examples:
- Getting everyone on the same page with diagnostics.
- Eliminating comebacks on brake work.
- Using scan tools the right way without wasting time.
One topic. That’s it. Then, make that topic shop-wide. If the techs are training on diagnostic flowcharts, your advisors should know what that means and how it affects estimates and timelines. Everyone doesn’t need to be in the same room, but everyone should be on the same page.
Step Three: You Don’t Have to Be the Trainer
One of the biggest mistakes shop owners make is believing they have to lead every training themselves. You don’t. In fact, you shouldn’t.
You have experienced techs, estimators, and service advisors on your team. Let them lead. Assign training topics to your A-tech. Have your parts manager lead a session on vendor accountability.
This does two things:
- It distributes responsibility, making training a team function—not a top-down directive.
- It forces your people to internalize the material enough to explain it. And we all know: if you can teach it, you know it.
Step Four: Training Should Touch the Car (or the Screen)
People learn best by doing. That’s not a theory—it’s practical fact, especially in auto repair. So, ditch the lecture format.
Training should involve hands-on application, even if it’s a “soft skills” topic. Talking about inspection standards? Go out into the bays, do a mock inspection and compare notes. Reviewing estimate accuracy? Pull up a real repair order and break it down together. Training on scan tool updates? Plug the tool into a vehicle and walk through the update process live. Don’t just talk about improvement. Demonstrate it.
This applies even in front office roles. Advisors can role-play customer drop-offs. Your parts person can walk everyone through how they verify parts on high-RO jobs. Get people moving, seeing, and doing—not just listening.
Step Five: Post-Training Follow-Up
Here’s where 90% of shops fall flat. You have a good training meeting. People seem engaged. But two weeks later—nothing changed. Why? Because no one followed up.
Training without accountability is just a feel-good session. Build in post-training action items. If you covered digital inspections, have each tech submit five DVI reports over the next week that meet the new standard. If you trained on scan tool use, verify that it’s being used properly during check-ins. And then? Check it. Ask your foreman or lead tech to report back. Assign one advisor to review DVI quality and give feedback. Follow-through is what takes training from “good idea” to “shop habit.”
Step Six: Create a Feedback Loop
Not every training will be a slam dunk. That’s okay. What matters is that you learn from each session and get better.
Ask your team:
- What worked about that training?
- What was confusing?
- What do we need to reinforce?
- What topic can we cover next time?
Not only will this give you better training topics, it will also help your team feel invested in the process. You’re not forcing training on them—you’re building it with them.
Pro tip: Keep a dry erase board or a Google Doc in your office with running training suggestions. Review it monthly. Let the team know when their ideas make the schedule.
Step Seven: Celebrate Improvement
People like recognition. Not cheesy, not performative—real recognition. If someone applies what they learned in training and improves their work, say so. Publicly. “Hey, shout out to Tim—his DVIs last week were top-notch. That’s what we talked about in training, and he nailed it.” This reinforces that training matters. It also quietly nudges others to take it seriously.
You can also make this fun by:
- Offering a small bonus for “best applied training win.”
- Having a leaderboard for advisor role-plays.
- Creating a friendly competition between bays after a calibration training.
Bottom line: show people that you notice when they grow.
Step Eight: Document What You Teach
Training happens. Then what? In the best shops, training turns into documentation.
If you’ve explained how you want something done, write it down. If you’ve shown the right way to tighten wheels, turn it into a simple checklist.
Over time, these documents become your shop’s knowledge base. Not only does this prevent retraining from scratch, but it gives new hires something to learn from—and it reinforces consistency across the team.
Step Nine: Know When Training Isn’t the Answer
Yes, this is an article about training, but let’s be honest: not every problem in the shop is a training issue.
If someone refuses to follow procedures they’ve already been trained on—multiple times—it’s not a training gap. It’s a performance issue. And if the same problem keeps showing up across the shop, that’s not a training failure. That’s a systems issue.
Good training culture doesn’t solve everything. It reveals where the real problems are hiding. Be willing to act on that insight.
It’s All About Consistency
You need commitment. You need consistency. And you need a team that knows training isn’t something we “get through”—it’s how we get better. So, take a look at how your shop trains today. Then ask yourself the real question: Is training just an event in our shop—or part of who we are?
About the Author
Jim Saeli
Jim Saeli is a senior speaker, workshop instructor, and shop inspector manager for DRIVE. With more than 40 years of industry experience under his belt, including owning his own shop, Jim is dedicated to helping every shop owner grow their business and improve their lives. He’s an expert in management, marketing, and employee relations.