How Should a General Manager Handle Approving a Policy Exception Without Losing Discipline?
A general manager should approve a policy exception only when the business case is documented, the decision is made transparently with staff present, and a comp...
How Should a General Manager Handle Preparing for a Factory Operational Review?
A factory operational review (also called a factory visit or audit) demands that you prepare a data-driven narrative across inventory, service metrics, F&I perf...
How a General Manager Should Make a Hiring Decision Between Two Good Candidates
When you're caught between two solid candidates, the decision usually comes down to culture fit, long-term growth trajectory, and which person plugs the exact h...
How to Run a Daily DOC Review in Under 10 Minutes (GM Playbook)
A general manager can run an effective daily DOC review in under ten minutes by pre-staging the data before the meeting, using a standardized one-page format th...
How Should a General Manager Handle Setting the Marketing Budget for a Slow Month?
The best approach is to maintain baseline marketing spend during slow months instead of cutting it to zero, but shift your budget toward cost-per-lead channels ...
How Should a General Manager Handle a Negative Google Review the Right Way
A general manager should respond to negative Google reviews within 24–48 hours by staying professional, acknowledging the customer's specific concern, offering ...
How Should a General Manager Handle Resolving a Customer Escalation That Reached Your Desk?
When a customer escalation lands on your desk as a GM, your first move is to separate the legitimate service failure from the emotional heat, then own the fix w...
How Should a General Manager Run a Monthly Manager Roundtable?
A general manager should structure a monthly manager roundtable with a fixed agenda that rotates between metrics review (sales, service, F&I performance), cross...
How Should a General Manager Review the Composite Against the Factory Benchmark?
A general manager should review the composite against the factory benchmark by pulling your dealership's actual performance data (gross profit per RO, hours per...
How Should a Finance Manager Handle Setting Reserve Within Dealer Policy?
Setting reserve within dealer policy means establishing a preset amount of money that finance managers retain from each deal's backend profit—typically 10-25% o...
How to Read a Credit Bureau Report: Finance Manager's First-Time Guide
A finance manager reading a credit bureau for the first time should start by understanding the three main sections—personal information, credit history, and pub...
How Should a Finance Manager Handle a Customer Who Wants to Cancel a Product?
A finance manager should listen first, understand the reason for cancellation, review the contract terms and cooling-off period, present alternatives if applica...