The adage about getting the right people on the bus and ensuring they are in the right seats has never been more critical in today’s car business.

Following the record-setting “best years ever” during the pandemic, the automotive industry has returned to a more familiar yet demanding terrain. Now, confronted with the specter of tariffs and pricing volatility, the market faces another wave of uncertainty. Consumer payment relief through interest rate reductions, higher trade values, and incentives has been slow to emerge, falling short of what many in the industry had hoped for. As a result, profitability is harder to come by, and at least for the near term, it seems the industry is in a slow, uphill battle to maintain profitability and market share. 

Additionally, a return to prepandemic levels of employee turnover has added another layer of pressure. Now more than ever, who is on your team, how you support them, and how you lead them cannot be left to chance if the goal is to build and retain a high-performing team. Simply put, your store’s performance is a direct reflection of your people.

Team Structure Matters More Than Ever

In this landscape, the people on your team and how you manage them are not just important but critical. Leadership can no longer rely on gut instinct, charisma or legacy practices to build strong teams. The stakes are too high.

Search online for the reasons employees leave jobs, and you will see the usual five patterns: limited career advancement, poor work-life balance, inadequate compensation, lack of recognition, and ineffective leadership. In the high-pressure world of automotive retail, where emotional endurance and consistent output are daily requirements, these factors hit harder and erode performance faster.

Ask any sales or F&I manager: Balancing performance, team morale and retention while keeping the dealership profitable is no small task. Keeping everyone’s head in the game and focused on selling cars is a big ask—and even harder to pull off day after day.

Solving this puzzle is the first major step, not just in determining who gets a seat on the team, but in defining which roles they should play and how you can grow into a more effective leader of a high-performing, resilient team.

Finding and Keeping the Right People

What does a strong performer look like in your store? Is he or she punctual? Process-driven? Resilient under pressure? Willing to work a full shift without checking out halfway through the day? How do you know they’re the right people? These are the right questions, but they are only the beginning.

Great teams are not just made up of talented individuals. They are constructed deliberately by managers who understand which traits, behaviors and motivations lead to success in specific roles. They then hire and develop accordingly.

From Gut Instinct to Intentional Insight

Resumes and references might tell you what someone has done, but they rarely tell you who the person is, how he or she responds under pressure, or whether the person is a natural fit for the way your team operates. Just as important: How do you need to communicate to connect with them?

That is why strong managers do more than hope for a good hire—they define what success looks like before they start the search. They identify the qualities and behavioral traits that matter most in the role, anticipate stress points, and consider how to lead and coach everyone more effectively from day one.

When those insights are translated into practical tools, like tailored interview questions and clear role-specific benchmarks, managers are better equipped to make thoughtful, informed decisions with greater confidence. It is about clarity, alignment and giving every team member the best chance to succeed in a role that fits them and the business.

The Data-Driven Advantage in Team-Building

Behavioral analysis tools like PDP, DISC or Predictive Index can be invaluable in answering these questions. More than personality assessment, these tools help managers make smarter, more strategic decisions about hiring, training and team development.

By leveraging behavioral data, managers can take meaningful steps to counteract common causes of turnover. This deeper understanding empowers managers to:

• Know your people by gaining a clear glimpse into what makes them tick, allowing you as a manager to put each person in the best position for both the success of the company and the success of the employee.

• Grow each team member by making a proper investment in his or her development, ensuring the role best aligns with the person’s strengths and potential. The right person in the right role pays dividends in performance, engagement and long-term retention.

• Include employees by helping them understand how their work fits into the dealership’s bigger picture.

• Inspire team members to take pride in their roles and to excel in ways that strengthen the cohesiveness of a high-performing team whose members know their roles and carry them out with enthusiasm and precision.

These four pillars are more than feel-good concepts. They lead to happier, more engaged teams, higher retention, a stronger culture, and greater overall performance.

Strong Teams, Steady Operations, Smarter Growth

Dealers who employ the available tools to first, identify the behavioral and personality traits most critical to success in each role, and second, create a culture focused on hiring intentionally and growing people, experience stronger team alignment and higher productivity, and are better prepared to respond—not react—when market conditions shift.

Great Teams Are Built, Not Hired

Solving the people puzzle is not a one-time project but a continuous process. Dealers who embrace this approach shift their focus from putting out fires to creating resilient, high-performing teams. They are not just filling roles—they are building the foundation for sustained success in today’s marketplace.

In the end, profitability does not come from the process alone. It comes from people who are bought in, well-matched to their roles, and led by someone who knows how to bring out their best. 

EDITOR’S NOTE: This article was authored and edited according to F&I and Showroom editorial standards and style. Opinions expressed may not reflect that of the publication.

Craig Almon, co-founder of PRO Consulting, brings over three decades of auto industry experience to help dealerships grow profitability through strategic leadership, market insight and team development.