Service advisors are the bridge between customers and technicians. They translate concerns, set expectations, and often decide whether a repair gets approved. Brittany Schindler, General Manager at Rod’s Japanese Auto Care and the AAPEX 2021 Service Advisor of the Year, believes the best way to help advisors succeed is training, and lots of it.
In episode 16 of Maximum Octane, Kim Hickey talks with Brittany about why she trains every employee to be a leader, how she makes sure training actually pays off, the “giant toolbox” she built for her advisors, and why scripts and role-playing work.
What You Will Learn
- Brittany comments on industries competing between them to attract internal customers
- About Brittany’s love for training and its positive impact on every internal customer performance
- Why Brittany treats every internal customer as a leader
- About why Brittany decided to build a giant toolbox for the company’s Service Advisors
- The importance of scripts and role-playing in training
Questions Asked in This Episode
- You are huge on training. It’s one of the most important things we can do for internal customers, and it also benefits external customers. What are some of the things that you do with training? And why is it so important to you?
- When you send anybody in your company for training to ensure they got something out of it, what are the things?
- You train everybody to be a leader. Could you talk a bit about that?
Industries Are Competing for Workers
Brittany opens with an observation about the workforce. People are switching jobs more often, and the competition is no longer just between repair shops. It is between entire industries. A talented young technician might choose a career in HVAC, manufacturing, or technology instead of auto repair. Shops need to offer something that stands out, and development opportunities are a big part of that.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics outlook for automotive service technicians and mechanics shows how many openings the industry needs to fill each year, which makes retention through training even more important.
Young people today have more career options than ever, and many skilled trades are actively recruiting the same mechanically inclined students. HVAC, electrical, plumbing, manufacturing, and aviation maintenance all compete for similar talent. Many of those industries promote clear career paths, structured training, and certifications. Auto repair shops that offer similar structure and growth opportunities stand a better chance of winning that competition.
Why Training Is So Important to Brittany
Kim notes that Brittany is “huge on training,” and Brittany explains why. Training improves performance, builds confidence, and shows employees that the company is invested in their future. It also benefits customers, who get better explanations, more accurate estimates, and a more consistent experience.
Training also signals respect. When a shop invests in an employee’s development, it communicates that the person has a future there. That message matters greatly to employees deciding whether to stay or leave. Many technicians cite a lack of training as a reason for changing jobs, especially as vehicle technology evolves and they worry about falling behind.
Making Sure Training Pays Off
Sending someone to a class is only the first step. Kim asks Brittany what she does to make sure employees actually get something out of training. Her approach involves following up after each session, asking what was learned, and making sure new ideas are applied in the shop. Without that follow-up, even the best training fades quickly.
ATI’s The Training Effect: The Power of an Effective Program on Your Shop and 5 Steps to Know if Service Advisor Training Is Worth the Investment offer frameworks for measuring training results.
A simple follow-up process might include three steps. First, before the training, discuss what the employee hopes to learn and how it applies to their role. Second, after the training, ask them to share key takeaways with the team in a short meeting. Third, set a goal to apply one new skill within the next month, and check in on progress. That process turns training from an event into a habit of continuous improvement and helps the shop see a return on its investment.
Managers play a big role in whether training sticks. If an advisor returns from a class excited about a new way to present estimates and the manager dismisses it, the lesson dies on the spot. When the manager asks for a demonstration, supports a trial run, and reviews the results together, the employee learns that new skills are welcome. That support is what separates shops that see a return from training and shops that feel it was a waste of money.
Training Everyone to Be a Leader
One of Brittany’s core beliefs is that leadership training should not be reserved for managers. She treats every internal customer as a leader. When technicians, porters, and advisors all understand leadership principles, they take more ownership, communicate better, and solve problems without waiting for direction.
This connects directly to Al Oramas’s story in Turning Our Internal Customers Into Inspiring Leaders.
Leadership skills such as communication, problem-solving, accountability, and initiative are valuable in every role. A lube technician who notices a customer’s worn tires and mentions it to the advisor is showing leadership. An advisor who calms an upset customer without escalating is showing leadership. When everyone sees themselves as a leader in their own area, the shop runs more smoothly and the owner is freed from constant oversight.
The Giant Toolbox for Service Advisors
Around the 19 minute mark, Brittany explains why she built a “giant toolbox” for the shop’s service advisors. Just as technicians rely on tools to do their jobs, advisors need resources: explanations of common repairs, answers to frequent objections, process checklists, and reference materials. A shared toolbox helps new advisors get up to speed and helps experienced advisors stay consistent.
A digital toolbox can be organized in a shared drive or within shop management software. It might include templates for estimates, scripts for common conversations, photos and explanations of common failures, warranty information, maintenance schedules, and a list of frequently asked questions. New advisors can use it as a training manual, while experienced advisors use it as a quick reference during busy days.
The toolbox works best when advisors help build it. When an advisor finds a clear way to explain a timing belt replacement or a strong answer to “Can I just do the cheaper part?”, adding it to the shared resource helps the whole team. Assigning one person to keep the toolbox organized and up to date prevents it from becoming a cluttered folder no one opens.
Scripts and Role-Playing
Brittany closes with the importance of scripts and role-playing. Scripts give advisors a reliable structure for key conversations, such as greeting customers, presenting estimates, and handling price concerns. Role-playing lets them practice those conversations in a safe setting before facing a real customer. Practice builds confidence, and confidence leads to better results.
ATI’s How to Master the Customer Intake Dialogue and How to Thrive Under Pressure While Presenting an Estimate are good starting points for building scripts.
Some advisors resist scripts because they worry about sounding robotic. The goal of a script is not to read lines word for word. It is to make sure key points are covered consistently and to give advisors confidence in difficult conversations. Once the structure becomes familiar, advisors can deliver it in their own voice. Role-playing builds that familiarity in a safe setting, where mistakes cost nothing and feedback can be immediate.
Good role-play sessions are short, focused, and frequent. Fifteen minutes once a week, centered on a single scenario such as a price objection or a customer who wants to “think about it,” is more effective than an occasional two-hour training. Rotating roles so advisors play both the customer and the advisor helps them understand how their words land.
Recognition and Advisor Development
Brittany’s recognition as the AAPEX Service Advisor of the Year highlights how valuable great advisors are to a shop’s success. Advisors influence customer satisfaction, average repair order, closing ratio, and online reviews. Investing in their development often produces faster returns than almost any other training investment.
Shops can support advisor growth by setting clear performance goals, providing regular coaching, celebrating improvements, and offering a path to service manager or general manager roles. Advisors who see a future in the business are more likely to stay, and their experience becomes a valuable asset for training the next generation.
Where New Advisors Struggle Most
New service advisors tend to struggle in predictable areas: explaining technical findings in plain language, presenting large estimates confidently, managing the schedule when the shop is busy, and handling upset customers. A training plan that addresses each of these areas, with scripts, role-play, shadowing experienced advisors, and regular feedback, shortens the learning curve dramatically. Many shops pair new advisors with a mentor for their first 90 days, reviewing calls and estimates together each week. That investment pays off in fewer mistakes, better customer experiences, and advisors who stay longer because they feel supported.
Measuring the Impact of Advisor Training
Shops can see whether advisor training is working by tracking a few numbers before and after. Closing ratio, average repair order, the share of recommended work that is approved, and customer satisfaction scores all respond to better communication. Listening to recorded calls or observing estimate presentations adds a qualitative view that numbers alone cannot provide.
Change usually shows up gradually. An advisor who practices handling price objections might close a few more jobs each week, which adds up over a quarter. Reviewing results together in a regular one-on-one keeps the advisor motivated and shows exactly which skills to work on next.
Build Your Own Advisor Toolbox
- Write simple explanations for your 10 most common repairs.
- Document responses to the five objections advisors hear most.
- Schedule a weekly 15 minute role-play session for your front counter team.
- After every training, ask employees to share one idea they will apply.
For more on great service advising, listen to Jodi and Darren Knepper in Hire the Right Service Advisor and Level Up Your Auto Repair Shop and Michelle Wood in The One Skill AI Will Never Learn.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I train a new service advisor at an auto repair shop?
Combine structure with practice. Give the new advisor written processes for check-in, estimates, and follow-up, plus simple explanations of common repairs. Have them shadow an experienced advisor before handling customers alone. Hold short role-play sessions each week on common situations, and review real calls and estimates together. Pairing them with a mentor for the first few months helps them build confidence and avoid costly mistakes.
Do service advisor scripts really work?
Yes, when they are used as a structure rather than lines to memorize. A script makes sure key steps happen every time, such as confirming the customer’s concern, explaining inspection findings, and setting a clear next step. Advisors should learn the flow and then deliver it in their own words. Shops that combine scripts with regular practice usually see more consistent customer experiences and stronger results at the counter.
How do you role-play service advisor scenarios?
Pick one realistic situation, such as a customer surprised by a large estimate. One person plays the customer and another plays the advisor, while a third observes. Keep it short, about ten to fifteen minutes, then discuss what worked and what could improve. Switch roles so everyone experiences both sides. Practicing regularly, rather than occasionally, builds the confidence advisors need when the real conversation happens.
How can I tell if training is worth the money for my shop?
Set clear expectations before the training and measure afterward. Decide which skills or numbers the training should improve, such as closing ratio, comeback rate, or diagnostic accuracy. After the session, ask the employee to share key takeaways and apply at least one new skill. Review the related numbers over the following months. Training that is followed up and applied usually pays for itself, while training that is never discussed again rarely does.
Why should every employee get leadership training?
Leadership skills such as communication, problem-solving, and taking initiative help in every role. A technician who speaks up about a safety issue or an advisor who calms an upset customer is leading in that moment. When the whole team learns these skills, people take more ownership and need less supervision. It also builds a bench of future managers who already understand how the shop works.
Resources and Links From This Episode
- Rod’s Japanese Auto Care website
- Rod’s Japanese Auto Care Facebook
- Rod’s Japanese Auto Care Instagram
