Magazine for the professional tire industry
Issue link: https://mtd.epubxp.com/i/244093
News/views Dealer-inspired program prepares the next generation of managers, owners 'I want to build a team that doesn't need me' Northwood University has introduced Tire Leadership 21, an educational program aimed at developing leadership, management and business skills for the next generation of tire dealer managers and owners. Tire Leadership 21 gives retail and commercial dealers a way to develop executives who will lead their businesses, according to Stu Zurcher, president of 20 Group operator Strategic Alliance Group and one of the industry veterans who helped create the program. "This program addresses the tire dealer's biggest problem. He wants to grow, and he needs people more than anything else," says Zurcher. In early 2013, Zurcher assembled a group of tire dealers who collaborated with Northwood University to create Tire Leadership 21. The group became the Center for Tire & Service Education (CTSE), an independent organization which advises Northwood University on Tire Leadership 21's marketing and content. "I've got great techs and great salespeople who developed into good managers but they don't know the fnancial side of the business," says Rich Brahler, a founding member of the CTSE advisory board and owner and president of Brahler's Truckers Supply Inc. in Jacksonville, Ill. His company has seven commercial locations and one retreading plant. "This is my biggest challenge to grow. It's not bricks and mortar. I've invested in trucks, equipment and training, but we do very little to take the young people in my business and make them great managers and great leaders." Brahler says Tire Leadership 21 will "show our key people that we truly want to build them up as much as we build the business. I want to build a team that doesn't need me." Historically there has been nowhere to send a potential store manager to learn the skills to effciently manage a tire and service facility, says Kim Sigman, partner and manager of Community Tire Pros & Auto Repair of Phoenix, Ariz., and a founding member of the CTSE advisory board. "This is a university-level education program geared directly to the tire and service business that will elevate all independents and allow them to thrive." The program covers topics that are essential to the success of future independent tire dealer managers and owners, according to Brian Cruickshank, program director. Faculty will come from Northwood's DeVos Graduate School of Management and subject-matter 8 (From left): Brian Cruickshank, director of Tire Leadership 21 at Northwood University, and some of the dealers who helped develop the new business skills program: Stu Zurcher and Tom Gyuriak Sr. of Strategic Alliance Group; Kim Sigman, partner and general manager of Community Tire Pros and Auto Repair; and Rich Brahler, president of Brahler's Truckers Supply Inc. experts from the tire and service industries. Subjects include fnance, accounting, business strategy, management, corporate vision, marketing and social media and team and corporate culture. "One of the keys to long-term growth and success is continuity of management," says Mike McGee, president of McGee Tire Stores Inc. in Lakeland, Fla., and a founding member of the CTSE advisory board. "That continuity has to come from employees who are engaged and invested in that business. They have to see a career, not just a job." Tire Leadership 21 is designed for managementpotential, management-track or current management professionals in a tire service environment. There are no formal educational prerequisites. Participants attend a pair of one-week, on-campus sessions. The frst session will be April 14-18 at Northwood's campus in Midland, Mich. Participants will meet again Sept. 7-12 at Northwood's campus in West Palm Beach, Fla. Between sessions, they will complete an individual project that must deliver $25,000 in annual additional revenue or savings to their employers. The 2014 program is limited to 30 participants. The $5,995 cost includes tuition, meals and class materials. Discounts are available for tire dealers sending more than one participant. Contact Cruickshank (brianc@northwood.edu) for details. To register, visit www.universityoftheaftermarket.com or call (800) 551-2882. — Ann Neal MTD January 2014