NADA Foundation Launches Workforce Initiative Interactive Website for Aspiring Service Techs - Includes Auto Lab USA Proposal E-Mail

SAN FRANCISCO (Jan. 25, 2018) ; The National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) Foundation has announced the next phase of its Workforce Initiative, which includes the launch of a new consumer-facing website – www.nadafoundation.org – to promote the value of service technician jobs and provide the first and only centralized source of all OEM and industry training programs and scholarship opportunities for aspiring technicians.

The NADA Foundation has also announced an initial round of donations for its multi-faceted Workforce Initiative, including: $50,000 from the National Auto Auction Association (NAAA); $50,000 from PACCAR; and $25,000 from Porsche. NADA Foundation has donated an additional $250,000 to the effort.

The auto retail industry is facing a critical shortage of service technicians, which will only get worse in the coming years if not addressed. America's technical colleges and training programs graduate approximately 37,000 new service technicians annually. Yet the industry needs to replace roughly 76,000 technicians every year just to keep pace with retirements and new jobs in the sector – leaving an annual shortage of 39,000 trained technicians

To close this gap, the NADA Foundation's Workforce Initiative aims to promote the benefits of these jobs and make it far easier for interested individuals to learn about the training opportunities that are available to them locally.

Before today, there was no coordinated, industry-wide, brand-neutral effort to increase the number of trained technicians we're integrating into our workforce. But thanks to the NADA Foundation Workforce Initiative and the launch of nadafoundation.org, there finally is,�?? said 2019 NADA Chairman Charlie Gilchrist. “Promoting the tremendous benefits of service technician jobs and making it easier for interested students to find out about the training and scholarship opportunities available to them where they live is vital to addressing the service technician shortage that every dealer is facing.�??

We need an initiative the entire auto industry can get behind, so I'm extremely proud of this effort," Gilchrist added. "Our workforce is our absolute best asset as dealers, but we have to recruit, train and retain the best people if we want to continue providing our customers with the best experience possible.�??

The average dealership technician in the United States today makes $61,067 in salary, plus benefits, and has great opportunities for personal growth and career advancement. Experienced technicians at franchised dealerships can make more than $100,000 annually and service managers can make even more.

In addition to the website and interactive map of training and training and scholarship opportunities, the Workforce Initiative includes:

• New video stories where real technicians talk about both their work and the lifestyle provided by their career.
• An integrated digital marketing effort to increase enrollments in automotive tech training programs; especially at OEM-sponsored programs, which place thousands of students each year into dealership careers.
• A robust presence at national train-the-trainer conferences and events, to promote the benefits of technician careers with high school guidance counselors, community colleges, military separation officers at bases, and at major conferences like SEMA.
• Actionable economic research to determine how to best recruit and retain techs.
• The possible creation of a nationwide network of career fair events to bring students, career centers and dealers together for employment in their communities.

One of the immediate the goals of the Workforce Initiative is to fill OEM training programs to capacity. To date, many seats in those OEM training programs go unfilled each year even though full-time employment is virtually guaranteed upon graduation.

The National Auto Auction Association, which represents America's used-car auctions and faces a similar technician shortage, supports the initiative. "Our focus is on identifying ways to recruit and retain the best employees. We are encouraged by the NADA Foundation who has invested time and resources in an online platform that will give us the tools we need to be effective in connecting with the education and training institutions," said Frank Hackett, CEO of NAAA.

Until the launch of nadafoundation.org, there was nowhere for a prospective technician to find out where their closest training program was located. For example, Toyota's T-10 website shows where the Toyota programs are, and GM's ASEP website shows where the GM programs are. But each ignore the other, leaving prospective students confused," explained NADA President and CEO Peter Welch. "Our new website brings together all OEM training programs onto the same map, through data provided by our friends at Auto Service Excellence (ASE). Now anyone can now find out where the closest ASE training program is located, public or private, regardless of manufacturer."

The auto retail industry has a fantastic story to tell about the tremendous careers we provide" said Welch. "We just need to get together and start telling it to the right people.

>E Mail sent to NADA

Subject: Auto Lab USA, The Auto Channel, NADA...Recruiting Tecnicians

Date: Thu, 28 Jun 2018 13:22:07 -0400

From: Bob Gordon

To: publicaffairs@nada.org

Hello;

I am hoping that this is going to the correct person at NADA.

I read with great interest the story headlined Wanted: A Shortage of Qualified Automotive Technicians Has Left Service Departments Scrambling To Find New Talent in a recent edition of the NADA web communication.

We couldn’t agree more; over the past years as the lack of technicians problem has gotten worse, our team has fine-tuned a media concept that is based on core elements used in a successful 27 year old weekly radio show; Auto Lab; which has and continues to air on a full power broadcast radio station every Saturday in New York City, attracting listeners who have one common theme, their automobile and their interest in cars and the auto industry.

Our top line solution is to clone this local show, AutoLab, into hundreds of local auto-centric shows that will be listened to in cities throughout the U.S. under the umbrella; Autolab USA.

USA will become the recognized national media platform that brings together all of the local market elements needed to reach and enthuse a population that will become America's future's auto technicians; stimulate enthusiasm for careers in the auto industry, reinforce the necessity to maintain your vehicle and sell-in the partnership between academia and franchised auto dealers.

USA program participants will include:

Local Auto Dealers Service, Parts, Sales

Local Community College Auto Education Staff

Local High School Auto Education Staff

Local Automotive Vocational-Technical School Staff

Local Automotive Oriented Media

I have attached a PowerPoint presentation that will give you more details and implementation for NADA's participation in AutoLab USA.

This is a confidential proposal, please protect it, I would like to schedule a meeting to discuss moving ahead.

Thank you for your interest.

Bob Gordon, President

The Auto Channel, LLC

332 West Broadway, Suite 1220

Louisville, KY 40202

M 502 386 8316