Jake Hales
Jake Hales, Digital Operations Manager at Gee Automotive will be hosting three insightful sessions at Digital Dealer Conference & Expo 2025! He will be presenting two 20-minute talks at Car Wars Booth #625 titled “Customer Experience is a Team Sport – Aligning People, Phones, and Process” and “Measure What Matters – Turning Phone Metrics into Growth.” Hales also has a full a 90-minute session at Islander I on Day 2 titled “Using AI Tools to Become an Elite Sales Manager – Tools and Techniques for the Next Level.”
Customer Experience is a Team Sport – Aligning People, Phones, and Process
Customer experience isn’t just one person’s job; it’s the result of a team working seamlessly together. In this session, Hales will dive into how aligning your people, phones, and processes creates a consistent, high-quality experience that drives loyalty and sales. Learn practical strategies for breaking down silos and making sure every call counts.
Key Takeaways:
- Learn strategies to break down silos across departments and promote cross-functional collaboration on the phone
- Understand how alignment between people, phones, and processes creates a seamless, consistent customer experience
- Identify practical steps to ensure every call contributes to customer loyalty and dealership growth
Measure What Matters – Turning Phone Metrics into Growth
Tracking phone metrics is only useful if you know which ones actually drive growth. In this session, Hales will break down the key phone data points dealerships should focus on and how to turn those insights into actionable strategies that boost sales and customer satisfaction. Learn how to move beyond vanity metrics and create measurable impact.
Key Takeaways:
- Learn how to distinguish between vanity metrics and actionable data that lead to meaningful improvements
- Understand which phone metrics truly influence sales performance and customer satisfaction
- Discover how to turn phone insights into strategies that drive measurable growth and team accountability
Using AI Tools to Become an Elite Sales Manager – Tools and Techniques for the Next Level
Feeling overwhelmed? You’re not alone and the pitch of AI doesn’t feel like it has actually reduced your workload. In this session, you will be exposed to and utilize AI tools in a hands-on environment to organize your day, reduce your workload, and identify KPI opportunities that will give the most behavior-change with the team in the shortest amount of time with the greatest revenue gain.
Sound too good to be true? It won’t necessarily be easy as change is harder than the status quo. Together we will formulate an hour of your day that will bring you beyond desking the deal, becoming a targeted coach, and broadening your knowledge to current tools and sophisticated dealership variable operations.
Key Takeaways:
- Both use and walk away with a list of AI tools designed to improve your efficiency and enhance your skills and your team’s skills. Share best practices amongst the dealership attendees.
- A simple coaching technique that rapidly drives behavior change in the dealership. Bring home a plan for an hour of your day each day to broaden the influence of your role well beyond desking deals.
- Dig into your available data, identifying your data sources and KPIs that will drive the most bang for the buck–where to focus to get the most out of time invested.
About Jake Hales
With 25 years in the Automotive Industry and 18 years operational consulting experience, Jake Hales has experience ranging from retail sales, OEM consulting, vendor sales and software implementation to Operational Consulting. Clients have included Lithia, AutoNation, Hertz, Larry H. Miller, and Toyota. Jake frequently sits on Vendor Advisory Boards and speaks at industry conferences. Today, Jake actively implements corporate initiatives store-to-store with Gee Automotive Companies. Jake enjoys swimming and RVing with his wife of 25 years and 2 sons.
Explore DDCE2025
#DDCE2025, coming to the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas on October 14 and 15, is the event that brings the auto retail community together. Attendees are able to cultivate business relationships and growth through its expo hall, networking activities, and insightful sessions that attract dealership and OEM professionals from across the U.S. who are seeking new ways of enhancing dealer operations.
The show has been redesigned in 2025 to offer a more focused experience over two days, with restructured sessions and expanded expo hall time. The new format gives attendees the time and space to focus on what matters most to them.
“We’re excited for attendees to experience the innovative updates Digital Dealer has put in place,” said Group Show Director Jaymie Nielsen. “All content is thoughtfully scheduled with no overlap and includes dedicated expo hours to maximize engagement.”
Digital Dealer Conference & Expo will include:
- Dedicated Expo Hall hours to discover new solutions, make connections with peers, and fast-track your buying decisions.
- 25-minute expert led talks that provide a deep understanding of the topics and trends dominating the industry today, all in an easy-to-digest package.
- 90-minute hands-on, immersive sessions so you leave with a clear understanding of not just what to do but how to execute it.
- The Ultimate AI Hackathon, an exhilarating workshop designed by Brent Wees of idea.meet.plan where teams battle it out to create innovative AI-driven marketing solutions.
- And more!
Digital Dealer offers full conference and expo badge options, as well as an expo hall-only option for Dealerships/OEMs. There is also Non-Exhibitor Conference & Expo Pass.
Two days. Endless value. Check it out and save your spot!
Click here to register now.
Related Stories: