by Chuck Barker | Nov 17, 2014 | Leadership
It was a dark, dreary night last January when I left Raleigh, NC for the drive back home to the lovely Shenandoah Valley. I got off to a later than usual start a little past 9:00 pm for the four-hour drive home. Leaving Raleigh, it started raining fiercely but not so...
by Chuck Barker | Nov 17, 2014 | Leadership
Vehicle headlights only illuminate the road ahead for about 200 feet but you can, even with this limited vision, go from Maine to Florida in these incremental steps if you are willing to trust in the small steps to get to where you want to go. Similarly, we have been...
by Chuck Barker | Nov 17, 2014 | Coaching, Leadership
We have been talking about the differential between these two for some time as it relates to growing your people and the store. Interestingly enough, both managers and leaders have very distinct roles and importance in the dealership. Identifying those differences is...
by Chuck Barker | Nov 17, 2014 | Leadership
I just had the honor and distinct privilege of being the guest speaker at the Southern Honda Dealers’ Association 2010 Annual Business Conference last week. What a class bunch of dealers. Never have I met a nicer group of individuals and their spouses anywhere. I...
by Chuck Barker | Nov 17, 2014 | Leadership
Mindless managerial duties and conformity are major traps for mediocre managers and the casualties are our sales personnel. The time has come to shed the old-school bureaucratic manager and move this business into the 21st century people development arena, to not only...
by Chuck Barker | Nov 17, 2014 | Leadership
Visiting with various dealers throughout the country the last few weeks, I decided to conduct a survey identifying what they believe is needed to increase business from the front end sales department. I first asked them how things were going. “Well, we are holding our...
