National Auto Glass Conference Coverage

DAY 3 - February 13

Jackie Newman receives special achievement award

Jackie Newman, president of Redline Inc., Austin, Texas, received the Len Stolk Memorial Special Achievement Award at the 2008 National Auto Glass Conference in Tuscon Feb. 13. Writer and editor of the Repair of Laminated Automotive Glass Standard, Newman has served on the NGA’s ROLAGS committee since 2004 and was instrumental in creating the multi-module windshield repair technician training programs on myglassclass.com.

“She’s an unusual person,” said Fred Sorensen, her business partner of 25 years, in an interview. “She’s always been very visionary and at the same time has both feet on the ground. I think that’s an unusual quality.”

Newman is the first woman to receive the award, presented annually to individuals whose business ethics and professional conduct reflect the best of the U.S. auto glass industry.


NGA President and CEO Phil James, right, presents Jackie Newman with the 2008 Len Stolk Memorial Special Achievement Award.

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DAY 2 - February 12

Recessionary times ahead

“You need to be thinking about and preparing for an extended recession,” said Jeff Dietrich, a senior analyst for the Institute for Trend Research, in his auto glass industry economic forecast Feb. 12. Beginning in 2009, the recession will spill over into 2010, lasting 15-16 months, he reported. The good news: “When we come out the other side, we will be leaner, meaner and stronger. This economy will take off.”

Jeff Dietrich

Hiring practices revealed

Where do we find good help? That was the question Sika’s Carl Tompkins posed to attendees Feb. 12 during the “Managing a New Generation of Workers/Professionals” afternoon session. Among the suggestions attendees provided were:

• Advertise online as opposed to putting a classified ad in the newspaper. Although not a good tactic for finding experienced installers, it is a successful way to recruit trainees, reported an attendee.

• Use Craig’s List. Again, attendees reported this method was a good way to find support staff rather than experienced techs.

• Employee referrals. Tom Huff of Go-Glass reported his company offers existing employees a monetary bonus if they recommend a new employee who stays for more than 90 days. “That’s probably where we’ve found our best installers,” he said. “Our employees know that we have certain rules and they know their friends’ weekend habits that might not fit with our policies, so it’s kind of a natural weeding process. We have a 90-day introductory period, at which point the employee gets the bonus.” Another attendee pointed out that profit-sharing was a great incentive for employees to recommend quality people as well. The better the workforce, the better the profit, and the more money they can make.

• Recruit at high schools. One attendee reported he’d had success going to local high schools to recruit graduating seniors. He meets with guidance counselors to find the best fit, examining grade-point averages and the like before making a selection. A word of caution: Be careful to hire students over the age of 18 to avoid certain work restrictions.

• Last but not least, call your local Boy Scouts Council and look for Eagle Scouts. They understand what loyalty is, said one attendee.

Some of the suggestions that came out of the brainstorming session include:
• Bring in an outside salesperson who can get out in the field and contact new accounts for auto, flat and contract work.

• Conduct continuing education classes for insurance agents.

• Optimize your Web site.

• Offer loyalty incentives to repeat customers.

• Conduct customer satisfaction surveys. Ask your customer: How are we doing? Phone calls or trips to see customers face-to-face are impressive to them, said one attendee.

• Persevere. You have to see your customers at their locations; you can’t wait for the phone to ring, said an attendee. He also pointed out that the customer has to believe in you before he or she will believe in the product.

The global auto glass economy

About 200 auto glass repair and replacement execs gathered in Tucson Feb. 12 at the 2008 National Auto Glass Conference: A Forum for Auto Glass Executives.  The goal: To identify solutions to today’s business challenges by networking and learning from industry peers.

This begins with a look at the global economy, said keynote speaker Don Ableson, president of Ableson Consulting LLC. Auto glass suppliers must embrace many of the same principles that the U.S. automotive industry has adopted, he said.
In response to international competitors such as China, American businesses are restructuring, he pointed out. “To succeed, you must have the highest quality and the lowest price. Here in the U.S., companies that used to be the standard of the industry have been sold or consolidated when they refused to adapt to the new world order. There needs to be continual discussions between the glass suppliers and the auto industry to identify future auto glass requirements. The auto industry is evolving and will need to change even faster to meet new worldwide standards, and the auto glass supplier must embrace new and emerging technologies.” The auto glass industry can make significant efforts to help automotive companies achieve new vehicle requirements, he told the group.

Don Ableson

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