Jason Lightbody is co-owner of Houska Automotive, a 40-bay repair business in Fort Collins, Colorado. A military veteran with a background in tire shop management, he joined Houska in 2010 and helped expand its tire and heavy-duty service operations. His approach to hiring automotive technicians draws on that operating experience and the company’s investment in employee development.

In this episode…

An open technician position puts pressure on the people carrying the workload. Filling the position addresses the immediate schedule, but the person joining the team also needs the skills and support to meet the shop’s repair standards. Across multiple locations, those expectations need to hold from one shop to the next.

Jason describes an earlier approach at Houska that kept production moving but brought in people with little interest in developing a career. The company changed its approach to hiring automotive technicians by seeking skilled candidates and supporting them with strong pay and benefits. He reports low turnover and recalls more than 50 applicants for one technician opening.

Several candidates were worth bringing onto the team. Houska adjusted existing roles to make room, including moving a younger technician alongside a shop foreman for additional training. Recruiting experienced people and developing current employees became part of the same staffing decision.

The commitment continues after the offer. Houska tested technicians on electrical repairs to establish a consistent process and invested in technical and leadership training for managers. For operators overseeing several locations, the practical work is defining the repair standard and giving managers the training to reinforce it.

Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn:

[02:03] Building automotive management expertise through tire and repair operations

[04:04] Using tire services to increase customer visits and retention

[11:55] Building a technician hiring strategy around compensation and development

[14:07] Establishing consistent repair standards backed by quality parts

[17:24] Using the 300% rule to guide transparent repair recommendations

[23:04] Managing shop expansion through operational lessons and complementary partnerships

[26:23] Strengthening shop teams through diverse employee perspectives

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• Jason Lightbody on LinkedIn
• Houska Automotive Website
• Tread Partners
• Gain Traction Podcast on YouTube
• Gain Traction Podcast Website
• Mike Edge on LinkedIn

Quotable Moments:

• “100% of those inspections get estimated, and 100% of those estimates get presented to the customer.”
• “We had to learn how to run a tire company.”
• “Leadership is humility.”

Action Steps:

1. Make the employment offer concrete. Update the posting you use for hiring automotive technicians with a clear pay range and benefits details. Describe the training attached to the role so applicants understand how they will develop.
2. Review staffing needs across locations before making an offer. Have each manager identify the work that requires an experienced technician and the employees who need closer supervision. Assign a foreman and schedule training for technicians moving into apprentice roles.
3. Standardize one recurring repair. Ask each location to demonstrate how its technicians perform a common electrical repair. Agree on the procedure and required materials, then review the standard at the next shop meeting.
4. Audit inspection follow-through. Review five completed repair orders per location. Check that each vehicle received an inspection and that the findings were estimated and presented to the customer. Address missing steps with the responsible manager.
5. Schedule development and invite employee input. Have each manager select one technical or leadership skill to develop and book a training session. At the next team meeting, ask a newer technician to suggest a process improvement and assign someone to follow up.

Nick Best owns B&B Tire & Auto Care, a two-location tire and auto repair business in South Carolina. A second-generation shop owner, he learned the trade through hands-on work in his father’s business, including a year operating a service truck and time performing alignments. He is a Tire Pros dealer and a member of ITDG.

His perspective on auto repair shop expansion combines experience in an established family business with the work of buying and developing a second location. Nick also participates in a 20 group with other multi-location owners.

In this episode…

A second shop needs its own operating approach. The people running it and the customers using it bring different demands. For a multi-location owner, the work of auto repair shop expansion includes deciding which processes to keep consistent and which ones to adapt.

Nick expected to carry established processes into his second location. He was able to adopt many of them, but others required another look. Success at the original shop did not settle how the next one should run. Those differences need attention as soon as another location becomes part of the business.

The ownership model also shapes the work. Nick’s father built a successful operation by staying closely involved with customers and daily activity. Nick respected that commitment while recognizing how difficult it was to take time off. He hired a business coach and began reconsidering how much of the operation needed his direct involvement.

Having children gave his staffing decisions a personal purpose. Nick still works in the shop, but additional help gives him more choice over when he is involved. He values the time that support creates for his family more than the money saved by doing the work himself.

Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn:

[00:47] Nick Best and B&B Tire & Auto Care

[05:19] Why processes need adjusting when adding a second shop

[08:30] Building a team that reduces dependence on the owner

[11:24] Understanding the responsibilities of taking over a family business

[15:14] What retired business owners would choose to do differently

[21:06] How salespeople create value through candid advice and useful information

[26:56] How parenthood changed Nick’s priorities at work and home

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• Nick Best on LinkedIn
• B&B Tire & Auto Care Website
• Tread Partners
• Gain Traction Podcast on YouTube
• Gain Traction Podcast Website
• Mike Edge on LinkedIn

Quotable Moments:

• “So my model is very different now, and it starts with the people.”
• “Little did I know that I had it really good and easy working in the shop outside of running the business because that was where everything just piles up on you.”
• “It's not worth it to sacrifice what time I can get with them.”

Action Steps:

1. Review a shared process before standardizing it across locations. Make this part of planning auto repair shop expansion. Ask each manager to walk through how jobs move from the service counter to technicians, then document an adjustment needed at that location.
2. Give a manager clear ownership of one recurring responsibility. Start with a task such as routine customer follow-up. Agree on the decisions they can make independently and when they need to involve you. Review the handoff at the end of the week.
3. Ask a peer or coach for feedback on a specific operating issue. Schedule a short conversation with another shop owner or your business coach. Bring a process that needs attention and ask for a concrete change to test at your location.
4. Get a retired owner’s perspective on time spent in the business. Contact an owner who has sold or retired. Ask what they would change about their daily involvement, then write down one responsibility to reconsider in your own operation.
5. Arrange coverage for a family commitment. Put a commitment on next week’s calendar and discuss coverage with your manager. Confirm who will handle the work normally assigned to you during that time.