It’s hard to believe we’ll soon be closing our books on 2019. Before you start making New Year’s resolutions, I encourage adding an ATD resolution to the top of your list. It’s not just our own personal fitness that we should think about; our dealership’s fitness must be a top priority too. How can we stay lean and nimble for the challenges our industry has coming in the year ahead?
If you want health and resilience in 2020, ATD has world-class programs that provide intense training for truck dealers and your employees. Our premier group training starts with the ATD Academy at our headquarters in Tysons, Va. The Academy and its Plus program offer a year-long curriculum that includes six intensive, week-long courses taught by the best instructors in the industry. Students get instruction on financial management, business leadership and fixed and variable operations—the foundations of a healthy dealership. There are also great opportunities for OEM and allied industry staff to participate in the Academy.
If you can’t come to us, ATD can come to you--just like a personal trainer. Take advantage of our in-dealership consulting, where our first-rate advisors can give you an analysis of issues of concern specific to your business. And I encourage you to train with our heavyweights in the ATD 20 Group program. This is where you’ll learn from your peers and our exceptional 20 Group consultants, whose number-one mission is to drive success for your dealership. The program has three group meetings annually where you’ll have access to OEM-specific resources like performance guidelines by franchise, financial comparisons of your dealership and a collection of best practices.
Committing yourself to ATD means that you’re never alone on this journey. There are many ways to reach out and stay in rhythm—try our tailored online webinars, which are presented by industry-leading subject matter experts. These online seminars focus on solutions for today’s ever-evolving dealerships. They incorporate real-life scenarios that help mitigate risks and capitalize on strengths. ATD members can view past webinars on-demand at no charge. Finally, the ATD Driven guides are complementary and provide a wealth of business knowledge to help you constantly improve your dealership performance.
The goal of any fitness regimen should be to improve endurance and reduce health risks so you can live a long and healthy life. Manage your dealership’s fitness goals by attending ATD Show 2020 in Las Vegas, where you’ll be able to discuss mutual challenges facing our nation’s dealers. There will also be opportunities to train at the ATD Show with our renowned workshops and ATD Industry Roundtable. Take advantage of the many resources that are designed to give you a successful and profitable business for many years to come.
ATD is excited to take our members forward into 2020, and I urge you to adopt a regimen that will increase the longevity of your business. I wish you, your employees and families a healthy and happy holiday season!
Jodie Teuton is vice president of Kenworth of Louisiana, a full-service dealership with locations in Baton Rouge, Houma, Lafayette, Lake Charles, Monroe, New Orleans and Shreveport; full-service Hino dealerships in Baton Rouge and Monroe; and Southland Truck Leasing at all dealership locations. ATD, a division of the National Automobile Dealers Association, represents more than 1,800 heavy- and medium-duty truck dealerships.
