For almost a decade, technician Russell Wickham wandered the automotive wilderness, working for nine dealerships in a quest for a great place to ply his trade.
Along the way, he contended with a gamut of challenges: low pay, inadequate flat-rate hours, too much warranty work, indifferent leadership, subpar working conditions and politically charged workplaces, to name a few.
But now Wickham is finally in a good spot, employed as a lead technician by Country II, a Buick-Chevrolet-GMC-Toyota retailer in Pampa, about 60 miles northeast of Amarillo in the Texas Panhandle. It’s one of two new-vehicle dealerships owned by Country Auto Group.
Wickham certainly isn’t the only technician who has endured a bumpy ride in the industry. But he’s unique because he chronicled his experiences in a series of posts on LinkedIn. His candid commentary underscores the challenges technicians face — and it just might give fixed ops manager a reason to pause and reflect given the dearth of qualified technicians.
Wickham started writing about a year ago when a service manager at a Georgia dealership posted on LinkedIn noting how difficult it is to hire qualified technicians because so many of them have soured on the industry.
“I commented on his post,” Wickham says. “After that, someone else posted and challenged me to write something and explain what needs to change. That set me back in my seat and got me thinking about what I could to help the situation — be part of the solution instead of just fussing about it.
“So I started blogging about things I’ve seen going on in various shops and possible solutions.”
Wickham says his primary goal was to encourage technicians and fixed ops leaders to work together to improve working conditions. He says, in his experience, there’s a “real cycle of negativity” in service departments that often stems from poor communication and interaction between service managers and technicians.
“I know service managers are busy and have a lot going on,” Wickham says. “But keeping your people is important … so they need to get out of their offices and visit with their people.
“And by the same token, I encourage technicians to reach out to leadership,” he adds. “Don’t just bad-mouth them in the shop.”
Wickham was an infantryman in the U.S. Army from 2006 to 2013 and was promoted to sergeant. Then he embarked on a nine-year journey as a technician, working at 11 dealerships and independent shops: six dealerships in Tennessee, two in Arkansas and one in Texas, plus one independent shop in Tennessee and another in Texas.
There are several reasons for the job-hopping, he notes.
“After I left the Army, I told myself I’d never again work for a toxic leader,” Wickham says. “So I got in a bad habit of leaving jobs to search for the kind of job and employer that I have now.”
Wickham also says he quickly learned that jumping from one store to another was a good way to get pay raises.
“I also had no clue about things like how to pick a department that was a good cultural fit, what big corporate stores operated like, what big-city shops operated like or how to identify a good shop from a bad shop,” he adds.
“When you’re struggling to make hours because you’ve proven you can solve the hard problems, it’s always burning in the back of your mind that you’re just a job change away from better income and more balanced jobs — until the new place learns your capabilities,” Wickham says. “A negative attitude and that knowledge are not a good combination.”
Wickham’s first job at a Tennessee dealership was a great gig overall. But he says he let one constant complainer in an adjacent bay get to him. So he left, which he admits was a mistake. And then the journey began.
It was a long and frustrating trek, he says. But things changed when he was approached by Steve Gustafson, service manager at Country II. Gustafson found Wickham via WrenchWay, a recruiting service for both technicians and dealerships.
Wickham figured his blogging would scare off people.
“But they said they were very interested and asked me to come out and meet with them,” he says. “I blogged about that visit. And after visiting the store, meeting with Steve and [group Fixed Ops Director] Rich Bebout and seeing their operation, I knew I was going to go.”
Bebout says the blogs didn’t raise any red flags.
“I can relate to Russell’s frustrations because I used to be a technician myself,” he says. “Everyone is entitled to their opinions … and I understand what techs go through, so we try to be very tech-friendly here.”
Wickham started working at Country II in January and says the job is exactly what he sought for so many years.
“This is the best dealership I’ve ever worked at,” he tells Fixed Ops Journal. “As former mechanics, Rich and Steve understand what it’s like to work out in the shop and deal with things like warranty work and solving really hard repair problems.
“They make sure I get my hours in each week as long as I do my part to take care of those difficult repairs,” he continues. “They’ve also done a great job of getting me enough customer-pay work. Only about 20 to 30 percent of my work is warranty work, which is exceptional compared to many dealerships.”
Furthermore, Wickham says he works with really great people, including younger mechanics who are interested in learning.
“Everyone here is all about taking care of customers, which I really appreciate because that’s what I want to do,” he says.
Bebout says Wickham fits in great with the service team.
“He’s very meticulous,” Bebout says. “When he dives into a problem, he actually fixes it. He takes time to figure things out instead of just throwing parts at a problem.”
Wickham doesn’t know whether his LinkedIn posts have had any impact on the industry.
“I’ve had several people reach out to me and say they appreciate my blogs,” he says. “But most service technicians don’t like to get their negative worldview shook up.”
Wickham says working at Country II has turned around his own negative worldview. As such, he no longer has much to write about because his unhappiness with the industry drove him to posting on LinkedIn in the first place.
“You grow from negative experiences,” he notes. “You either let them tear you down or help build you up. It’s been a rough journey, but I learned a lot. And my attitude is 180 degrees from where it was before.
“I feel appreciated and an important part of the team where I’m at, and that, coupled with a good attitude, makes a huge difference.”