EPISODE RECAP & SUMMARY
Some say business is all about winners and losers, but others imagine a world where everyone wins — from customers to employees to the company. The most forward-thinking auto dealers are not just imagining this world; they are creating it.
Liza Borches, President and CEO of Carter Myers Automotive, is one of those leaders.
Liza prioritizes employee-owned dealerships and champions initiatives to improve gender diversity through training and mentorship programs. Their unique recruitment approaches and commitment to company culture continue to attract diverse talent and enhance customer experiences.
With a history of dealers in the family, Liza knows her way around helping a dealership thrive — and now that includes increased opportunity for diverse talent.
Achieving success in customer service through personalized and authentic experiences
After completing a full succession plan to step up after her father in the family business, Borches hit the ground running and hasn’t looked back.
One of those initiatives has been leaning into personalization for customers and crafting authentic experiences.
“We've got more depth to our team. We've got stronger leaders who I know know CMA, so I feel more confident expanding,” Borches said. “But we also target certain markets — not looking to go in Northern Virginia, not looking for major metros — while you can buy a big store and have a huge net profit out of the large metro store, that doesn’t support the culture that we have created, the community involvement that is a hallmark of CMA and in our DNA.”
Borches has learned that a dealership should be a decent-sized store while still being small enough where people and relationships matter.
A core value that trace back to Borches' grandfather is: People First and Everyone Wins.
People First
You may have heard of the term “customer first,” but at CMA, it’s people first. The most important part of having a great customer experience is also having a great associate experience.
Associates should be proud of the place they work. They should believe their values align with the company values — they must want to give that discretionary effort to take great care of customers.
Everyone Wins
CMA is always thinking of solutions where the customer wins, the associates win, and the company wins. When all three of those win, the community wins.
“When our associates are doing a fantastic job taking great care of our customers, customers are willing to pay us a profit. Profit is the measure of how much value we create for them, so they're willing to pay us a profit that creates a livelihood for our associates,” Borches said.
That type of value strengthens a company and allows CMA to give more back to the ESOP, which offers a future retirement for its associates, and then more into the community.
With these two core values, CMA thrives as a community staple.
The role of equal opportunity and employee education in supporting a stronger, healthier dealership
Less than 25% of associates are women across the automotive industry. If we look at the general manager level, it's less than 10%, and at the dealership owner executive level, it's less than 5% — Borches wants to change that, and she’s just getting started.
“To make our industry as strong as it can be, we need all genders, all races, all ages, all ethnic backgrounds, all experience levels — we need diversity in an organic way, not from checking a box,” Borches said. “We need all of those folks to make sure that we can get the best solutions to keep our industry growing for another 100-plus years.”
With the support of a colleague, Borches launched a training program for the 25 women at CMA to support their career path within the automotive industry.
“Each month we would do a live coaching call that I would help lead with Danelle and tie these lessons back to automotive because the training she does is around leadership and personal development, and then I bring that home and tie it into what happens in our dealerships, how to help these women navigate situations,” Borches said. “How can they tie what they learned around emotional intelligence to a situation they had last week?”
With a consistent support system tailored for women in automotive — and built through relevant feedback — the future of the industry is more apt to flourish into a diverse and well-rounded environment where anyone willing to put in the work can thrive and build a career.
The role of a community-focused social media presence in diverse talent acquisition
CMA applies three main approaches to acquiring diverse talent:
- Community Outreach
- Social Media Presence
- Competitive Referral Compensation
Community Outreach
Through their Talent Acquisition Specialist brand ambassadorship, the word of CMA community impact and culture spreads far and wide, getting people excited about the opportunities within CMA.
Social Media Presence
CMA has a strong movement on social media with all of their associates, sharing a common goal and purpose — a clear mission that everyone rallies behind to showcase CMA's roots and ambitions, which is to move lives forward.
Competitive Referral Compensation
CMA has an average of 70% referral-based new hires in their monthly new-hire orientations — these new hires typically have some type of relationship with existing CMA associates, and that’s not by accident.
“We pay very well for our associates to refer people because they're never going to refer someone with a bad attitude or poor work ethic because you don't want to work next to someone like that,” Borches said. “So we pay a very nice referral fee to our teams.”
With these three initiatives, there is a constant flow of new talent fired up for CMA, ready to build a career in the automotive industry because they know they are in good hands and will be a part of the bigger picture, giving back to the community.
Stay tuned for new episodes every other week on the Leadership in the Dealership Podcast.
