HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. — Dealer technology solutions provider CDK Global has released “Greater Service Department Profitability,” a report that offers auto dealers a strategic process for refining their service departments.

The report notes that increasing profitability in the service department can be difficult, and many service directors have tried to boost productivity and profits but still fell short of their goals. The complexity of managing a service department makes it challenging to step back and chart a more structured approach to growth.

This report from CDK Global’s consulting practice details a strategic four-step method for strengthening service profits:

1. Determine how much you can grow: Evaluating technician productivity by calculating the number of hours that your technicians bill versus hours worked. Identify bottlenecks to greater productivity and set your growth goals from there.

2. Ready your shop for growth: Prepare for growth by having the right people in place, as well as the right processes and tools. Align all three areas to achieve optimal performance.

3. Focus on profitable growth by avoiding BDC pitfalls: Use your business development center to drive growth by avoiding three common pitfalls. These are incentivizing the quantity of appointments made, rather than the type of work; not adequately training your BDC employees about service terminology; and not establishing a close working relationship between the service director, advisors and BDC team members.

4. Stay the course: To ensure that you’re staying the course, review your processes in depth at least once a month to see if there is any deviation. If so, make corrections immediately to get back on track.

To download the full report, click here.