Thinking Up to Drill Down
As technology empowers us to drill down into ever-deeper layers of data and detail, it is important that dealership management retain the ability to regularly think up. Pilots, when learning to fly on instruments, are reminded of the continuing value of looking out the window from time to time. Data serves us well when it enhances situational awareness, but fixation on the instrument panel can imperil dealerships as well as airplanes.
We’ll identify some risks of forgetting to “look out the window” and present a balanced prescription to help those who pilot dealerships manage their situational awareness of key success elements such as buyers, inventories and people. Purposely thinking up while simultaneously drilling down can improve a dealership’s utilization of data and confer competitive advantage over organizations with greater size or financial resources.
About Eric T. Dreisbach
Eric is a 35-year veteran of the Retail Automobile Business. He got his start working in the body shop of his fathers Cadillac dealership in Detroit. But the love of flying took hold and Eric decided to pursue his dream of becoming a pilot. After graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Eric became a flight instructor and commercial pilot earning several ratings along the way.
In 1986, he decided to go back to his roots and joined his father in the Cadillac store. He held various positions in the dealership starting with Fleet Sales to becoming the Vice President, Controller, and Treasurer, and helped the family operation grow to include 5 dealership locations. In 1998, Eric purchased his own Pontiac Oldsmobile store in western Michigan where he successfully operated until the ultimate departure of the Oldsmobile and Pontiac franchises. After spending a several years selling and installing DMS systems, Eric was hired by the NADA as an Academy Instructor and he travels across the country teaching and facilitating automotive courses to dealers, manufacturers and allied companies. Eric’s favorite part of his job with NADA is helping dealers to improve their operations and profitability.