DrivingSales Exec Summit Sessions Include How to Recruit, Keep Dealership Talent

Two cousins will team up for a DrivingSales Executive Summit presentation on how car dealers can recruit and keep talented employees.

The Oct. 21-23 annual event. It features a lineup of speakers from both in and outside the auto industry.

Breakout session topics include human capital, fixed operations, customer experience, digital marketing and inventory management. Click here for more information and to register for the summit at the Bellagio Resort in Las Vegas.

The co-presenter cousins are Dave Druzynski, chief people officer at dealership software provider Auto/Mate, and Tom Druzynski, director-service operations at West Herr Auto Group in New York.

Last year, Tom Druzynski successfully filled 100 technician positions for his auto group. He will share how he did it through school partnerships, internships, referral bonuses and a 5-level mentoring initiative.

A shortage of qualified auto technicians has been a chronic nationwide problem for dealerships. It sometimes results in dealers poaching from other dealerships, something the Herr auto group avoided, says its service director.

His conference presentation will include best practices for creating a culture where employees enjoy going to work. Using Herr as an example, he will talk about creating professional programs to retain employees and develop their careers. Filling management positions with outsiders should be a last resort he says.

The summit’s keynote speakers include Oli Gardner of Unbounce, Jay Acunzo of Unthinkable Media, James Lawrence of the Iron Cowboy, Darren Shaw of Whitespark and Jared Hamilton of DrivingSales.