I want to applaud the Automotive Service Association (ASA) for being such a guiding light for this industry. ASA has tackled more issues than most shop owners are aware of, and I would like to say, "Thanks."

I was raised in the service station era in my dad's business. I started in this industry at the age of 12 and I am now 42 years old (42 and three-fourths, to be exact). I served my time in college and remained in this business. I have seen a lot of changes over the years in the production side of cars, but I have noticed that the changes within independent shops have been slow.

My dad died in May 1990 and I continued to run the business with complete entrepreneurial spirit but without any education in the area of business and people management. During this period, I kept my hands in and on the cars, and I developed a feeling that I was "chasing my tail" and not accomplishing as much as I felt I could as a business owner. I then became involved with a management consulting company in March 1996 after I had attended a seminar. My eyes were opened to a lot of things at the time that seemed to make perfect sense. I realized I didn't have a clue about how to effectively run a business. Since implementing a new system that I learned, my business volume has almost doubled.

Before I became more actively involved in outside management training, I had the arrogance to believe that I knew all there was to know about running the business, and no one was to tell me differently. I think this is a common belief of many shop owners, and they will fight you to the bitter end of their existence not to change their ways.

My shop is not a perfect shop, but it is improving constantly. There are good techs out there who might not be the "Einsteins" of auto repair, but they have the desire to improve their skills and be productive. I have learned to show my appreciation and interest in helping them to not only enjoy my craft and learn, but also to show I want them to succeed in life.

The technical schools have been in a strain to get qualified people to train. Techs these days have the opportunity to make $30,000 to $60,000 and up. Four-year colleges and universities are producing workers in other areas of study that will likely earn substantially less than these figures. The average income in Georgia is around $21,000. The amount of opportunities within our industry needs to be communicated to the outside work force.

The industry as a whole - in consumers' eyes - is not equivalent to other professions. We are an easy target because the vast majority of shops are not highly interested in improving themselves or the industry, and are not in communication with the shops and associations that strive to achieve these improvements. When I hear that ASA has 13,000 members, I think it's great news; but in Georgia alone, there are more than 6,000 independent and franchised operations in place that repair and service automobiles daily. Just think how much more we could achieve in the way of industrywide improvement if all of these shops were in tune.

These shops need to know that they can be professional, train their technicians, clean their facilities, participate in their communities, and, yes, still make money - but it must be done over the long haul. They can improve their businesses by providing "more" than the customer expects, and it doesn't have to be done for free - shops can charge a fee that provides them with compensation for their efforts.

There needs to be a grassroots movement or survey on what it will take to get the attention of shops that are not dedicated to improvement. ASA is the vehicle, but we do not need to throw senseless things out in an attempt to get their attention. Apparently, past efforts have not been enough to prompt a major influx of these shops into our "corner." Something needs to be done to change that, and it appears there is a lot to do!

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Jerry Alred is the owner of Alred's Automotive and Tire Inc., in Stone Mountain, Ga.

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