A few months back I posed the question, “Can you pass a compliance audit?” The response was heartening. Most of you believe you have the appropriate processes in place, some of you submitted relevant questions, a few of you requested we help you

Even after celebrating out tenth anniversary as a compliance consulting company, we continue to see new issues that surprise us. For example, one dealer gave the keys to a repo agent, who had what appeared to be a legitimate order from one of the cap

All dealerships have the opportunity this month to shape a better and more profitable 2012 by taking some decisive action. For the past few months these articles have focused on reducing costs, checking in on your profitability, identifying a strateg

Is the insurance policy sitting on your desk correct? Are all the “Is” dotted and “Ts” crossed? Did all the changes you negotiated and corrections you made actually end up in the policy? I have reviewed hundreds of policy sets every year and

It’s no secret in the auto industry that profits on new vehicle sales have been nonexistent the past several years. In fact, according to the National Automobile Dealers Association, automotive retailers have lost money on new vehicle sales for fiv

I was working in a dealership’s conference room recently when a sales manager brought three “greenpeas” in for special training. His first question was: “How many cars do you have to sell a month to stick around here?” All three mumbled “

The economy over the past few years have presented some pretty significant challenges to the sales and profitability side of the dealership business. Most dealerships responded to the 2008-2009 recession with an array of effective headcount reduction

Dealers are exceptional at tracking their financials. They often recite from memory their monthly new car PVRs and net income, sometimes to the penny! They know their net to gross and net to sales ratios, as well as key balance sheet figures such as

Even as the United States began to emerge from recession in 2010, many economists were wary. With a tepid recovery at best, many economists warned that the United States could be headed for a double-dip recession. This summer’s debt ceiling debate,