When you're running a multi-location shop, it's important to find ways to connect with all staff members from the business. For Gary Pontious Jr., general manager of Toledo Auto Care in Ohio, connecting with the shop's staff members is essential in maintaining his company's culture.
“I believe that we do have good relationships [with our staff],” Pontious says. “We’ve worked very hard in developing a [good] company culture.”
While the two shops are both seated in Toledo, Ohio, Pontious has an off-site location that puts distance between both businesses.
"We have a centrally located administrative office, so I work from the hub," Pontious says. "I visit the stores most days, but not necessarily everyday."
In order to combat the distance, Pontious has set up a routine for checking in with staff members and ensuring that everything is working properly at the business.
"I take everybody out to lunch quarterly to get in their world and continue a relationship with them," Pontious says. "One thing that I've found challenging is maintaining that relationship with them because you're not there at the store all the time."
Each morning at Toledo Auto Care, both locations will conduct a team huddle beginning at 8 a.m. that’s led by the team leader. The meeting is important because it focuses on bringing the staff back to the shop’s core values and celebrates ways in which the staff recently reflected those values.
“They’ll meet with technicians and discuss work that’s coming in and coming over, and they’ll reinforce the culture in some way or another,” Pontious says.
At Toledo Auto Care, each shop is equipped with a team leader or a key manager for the business that works alongside Pontious. In addition to checking in with staff, Pontious will set up monthly meetings with team leaders to talk about KPIs from the previous month and go over overall processes that need to be fixed or cleaned up.
