March 31, 2025 • 18 mins
- Bob Kuehl, Mike Van Ryn, and Matt Snyder announce this year's Rising Tech awards.
- Evan Cross and Michael Cisek join the show
- Bob Kuehl unveils dates for Service President's Circle Awards Ceremony
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Matt Snyder (00:05):
There's a lot of competition to earn this award.
So I want Mike and Evan to bothknow that this is a pretty big
deal for you.
Bob Kuehl (00:12):
Yeah.
Sam D'Arc (00:16):
Welcome everyone to the driving vision podcast
brought to you by the ZigglerAuto Group. I'm your host, Sam
Dark. Be sure to subscribe tothe podcast. Like it if you do,
and leave a comment. Hey,Welcome to the special edition
of the Driving Vision Future ofZach today podcast.
It's exciting because Mike VanRhine, Head of Training
Development, VP TrainingDevelopment across the Auto
(00:38):
Group. This is a day ofrecognition, Mike. Right?
Mike Van Ryn (00:40):
Mike It We love recognizing top performers
across the Ziegler Auto Group,and this is just one more way
that we do that, Sam.
Sam D'Arc (00:46):
Bob Keel, VP of Fixed Operations, in charge of the
Service Operations across theZiegler Auto Group. This is cool
because we turn from variableback to fixed. Fixed in the
world of automotive meanseverything having to do a
servicing a vehicle. And Bob, weget to recognize two technicians
that are up and coming today.
Bob Kuehl (01:06):
Yes, this is a great thing that we started doing.
Matt Snyder had the idea back in2019. And of course, we
recognize our President's Circleof Technicians throughout the
group. And then we have tworising stars every year And
we'll let Matt get into thenomination process. But this is
pretty exciting.
And I'm proud of both of youguys for sure. Michael and
Sam D'Arc (01:26):
Bob Keel, before we all jump off, you're going to
make a special announcement thathas to do with the date around
our upcoming President's Clubrecognition program where you
actually get to go to theAutobahn and drive with a race
car driver. But more on that ina moment. So, Matt Snyder, how
do you qualify for this RisingTechnician Award?
Matt Snyder (01:43):
Well, you have to be recommended by your service
manager. So I send out an emailto all the service managers in
the organization with certainparameters that they need to
look at for recommending aRising Technician. This is
someone that they feel has thecapacity to be an awesome
technician down the road, maybebe part of that president's
(02:03):
circle. So this is to recognizeup and coming technicians who
really have shown that theirskill set's gonna be one that
we're gonna be looking for inthe future for sure.
Sam D'Arc (02:15):
And it's interesting because technicians across all
of automotive are one of themost sought after positions that
are out there. So our twowinners this year who will be
recognized at our upcoming eventare Michael Cizek from Mercedes
Benz Hoffman Estates, and wehave Evan Cross from our store
in Lowell, Michigan. HaveMercedes Benz represented, and
(02:37):
we have Ford represented. So,Michael, first to you, what does
it mean to you to be recognizedwithin the Ziglar Auto Group in
this way?
Speaker 5 (02:44):
Oh, man. It's such an honor. You know, I come to work
every day, ready to work, readyto get dirty. And, it really
means a lot showing theirrecognition. Really shows that
all my training and everythingthat I've done to this point
really means something to me.
Sam D'Arc (03:02):
And Evan, congratulations to you. What
does it mean to you to win therecognition?
Speaker 6 (03:06):
It's a great honor to win the award. So it feels
really good to be recognizedlike this. Means a whole lot
from from the team here, fromyou guys. Couldn't do it without
all the help from from the teamhere. Couldn't do it without
everyone giving me their supportand truly, truly means a lot.
(03:26):
Thank you.
Sam D'Arc (03:26):
So, it's great to have both of you on. It's great
to be able to recognize youboth. There are a lot of career
paths you could take in life,right? People could become, you
could become a lawyer. You couldbecome a doctor.
You could become a fireman, anattorney. You could do whatever.
You could teach school. Evan,what made you decide first to
you, then to Michael? What madeyou decide, Hey, I want to
become a technician at an autostore?
(03:48):
Four of all.
Speaker 6 (03:49):
Just kind of had to choose a path. Found the thing I
like most, like wrenching oncars always. Got good at it.
Then then Matt one day came tome, offered me a job here with
Ziggler.
Sam D'Arc (04:02):
That's awesome. What do you like most, Evan, about
working on vehicles? Whatappeals to you most about that
particular skill set?
Speaker 6 (04:08):
More of the the problem solving. More of you get
you get one thing, and you kindof just go across, figure out
all the problems, figure out howto fix it, and then what can
also fail because of that?
Sam D'Arc (04:22):
It is a problem solving. And you know what's
interesting in our world todaywith all the vehicles that are
being sold, all the vehiclesthat are on the road, vehicles
are getting older by age.There's more need for
technicians today than thereever have been, which Bob will
come to you on that in just amoment. But Michael, what
brought you into automotive?What brought you to Mercedes
(04:43):
Benz?
Speaker 5 (04:43):
So ever since high school, I've been into kind of
working on cars, friends, hedgesin our driveways. I didn't
really realize that it was gonnabe more my group path until the
shop forego of this dealership,Keith Romero, came out to me.
Kinda helped me look at theshop, kinda take a tour. And
(05:04):
then from then on, that's when Iwas really interested in doing
it. And I started grad schoolingto kinda accelerate that
process, learn as much as I canall year.
Sam D'Arc (05:13):
So how long have you been turning wrenches, as they
say? How long have you beendoing the technician role?
Speaker 5 (05:19):
Just being my first actual career with automotive.
I've been here twenty two, twoyears, three years.
Matt Snyder (05:27):
So Sam, one of the parameters to qualify for this
award is you can't have been atechnician for more than two
years. So you can't be atechnician at a dealership down
the road for two years and thencoming over us to start fresh.
So if you look at the scope ofthis thing with how many you
think about how many LoopTechExpressTex we have across 41
(05:48):
stores. There's a lot of them.Yeah.
And to think then that servicemanagers all have an opportunity
to recognize someone that theyfeel is going has the potential
to be an awesome technician downthe road. And then these two are
the ones that are selected. Ijust want Michael and Evan to
know that this is a big deal.This is like the equivalent of
(06:12):
Allstate and beyond. Basically,when this award's going out,
it's no different than your highschool football coach
recommending you for allconference, and then you're
evaluated on that from all theother coaches.
So, there's an evaluationprocess here where we look at
their hours that they've turned.That's not the only thing we
look at but work ethic, how manycertifications they've gotten
(06:35):
with their manufacturers inMichigan, how many state
certifications, And so there's alot of competition to earn this
award somewhat. Michael and Evanboth know that this is a pretty
big deal for you.
Sam D'Arc (06:45):
Congrats to you both, which actually leads me to my
next I was curious on the amountof time only, Michael, because
you're at a Benz store. Likeboth Benz and Ford are super
complicated vehicles. Benz issuper high end. What's your
favorite thing that you do inthe course of a day in this new
role that you've proved?
Speaker 5 (07:04):
Certainly, I've always liked the interior work.
You know, I love kind of takingintricate little parts, you
know, apart and reassembling.That's always kind of been,
like, something I enjoy doing.But, I mean, generally, I I
really like the vehicles. Youknow?
I don't really have a specificjob that I that I love more than
the others, but it's it'sdefinitely really fun to to work
(07:26):
on these cars just as Yeah.Yeah.
Sam D'Arc (07:28):
That's cool. What's your favorite Mercedes Benz,
Michael?
Speaker 5 (07:32):
Oh, we had a SLS, Black Series that came in, did a
service that we had. That wasthat was fun. I like the the
Gullwing Dory. Nice.
Sam D'Arc (07:42):
So, Evan, what's your favorite Ford that you work on?
Speaker 6 (07:46):
Oh, that I work on?
Sam D'Arc (07:47):
Or or favorite Ford. Yeah.
Speaker 6 (07:50):
I don't know. The Ford GT is pretty cool, but
that's the obvious choice.
Sam D'Arc (07:54):
You know what? In talking to to both Evan and
Michael, Bob and Matt, when youthink about this is a cool
program to recognize young andup and coming technicians, and
it's an important area.Technicians are one of the
toughest areas to recruit in theautomotive because it's not the
first thing people think about.Obviously, Evan and Michael have
shown proficiency. They lovetaking things apart.
(08:14):
They love working on vehicles,but not everybody has that
desire. We've found a way tofind those that have that desire
and help them not only come onboard the auto group, but learn
on the job. Bob, why aretechnicians in such high demand
in automotive today?
Bob Kuehl (08:30):
Well, technicians are in such high demand because they
have been neglected for twentyyears. I mean, we cut out all
the high school programs, we cutout all that stuff, we pushed
everybody towards the computerworld. And I just wanna thank
both of you for coming to workfor us. I think you'll be your
awesome team members and thanksfor coming to us. You could have
gone anywhere.
We're going to do our best tomake a great career for you guys
(08:52):
and a great career path. We'regoing to get you all the
training you need and all thetraining you want. And when Sam
had talked earlier about,there's a lot of different
career paths you can take. Oneof the reasons this award is so
important to me is in the late'80s, I was you guys. I was an
apprentice here in Kalamazoo.
That's cool. Yeah. And I workedmy way through the body shop,
then into the servicedepartment, and I've been
(09:12):
fortunate enough to work my wayup into management because that
was my end goal. But there is ahuge open road of opportunity
for you guys with our group,with this trade, and it truly is
a skill set that not a lot ofpeople have. And, you know,
we're going to develop you guysas far as you want to go.
And I just want to say thank youchoosing us. We're going have a
(09:33):
culture that you're never goingto want to leave and you're
going to have one job your wholelife and this is going be it.
Sam D'Arc (09:37):
I love that. So Mike Van Rhine is part of our culture
training and development. Healways talks about the
importance of having a greatmentor and as someone new in a
role wanting to grow and developand become great. One of the
things Bob mentioned that youhave as a resource are mentors
around you that will help you todevelop. First, Michael, then
Evan, Michael, who's yourmentor?
(09:58):
Like, do you look towards whenyou think about achieving
automotive excellence? And bythe way, Bob Keel can't be a
mentor yet. He's in charge ofall of them. Who there in your
store or in your world aroundyou, Michael?
Speaker 5 (10:10):
Oh, personally, in my store, I've had two mentors up
to this point, Jeff Austin, aswell as Cal Server. And both of
them have kinda showed me twopaths working on vehicles, and I
feel like that's honestly all Icould ask for in terms of my
training. I got to kinda seeboth sides of how people work,
but in general, everyone in thestories was kind of a mentor to
(10:31):
me, and I learned a lot fromeverybody around me. So kind of
taking all those workenvironment around me and how
how to see other people would doYeah. What what kinda helps me
be as efficient as I can and andstay on task.
Sam D'Arc (10:46):
That's awesome. All right, Evan, who's your mentor?
Speaker 6 (10:49):
Oh, my mentor in this shop, probably probably the shop
foreman, Dan Drowned, took meunder his wing probably for,
like, six six to eight months,showed me showed me everything
he knew or almost, and then kindof bickered back and forth. But
Very cool. Everything got done.We both learned along the way.
Sam D'Arc (11:09):
Wait. When you say bickered back and forth, one of
the things we love to talk aboutis we compete at a high level to
make each other better. Is thatpart of it or was it, something
else?
Speaker 6 (11:17):
No. Yeah. It was mainly part of that. It was
mainly how to do the thing andhow to get it done slightly
faster.
Mike Van Ryn (11:25):
You know, last week, we had a Walter Bond as a
guest speaker and he talkedabout the importance of not not
being a manager, not even beinga leader, but but being a coach
and a mentor to our teams andgreat great shout outs there
both of you guys to your mentorsand also want to give a shout
out to you know, Kevin, Magnusfrom Lowell, right? Your service
manager and then to Keith, Abel,Bob from the Mercedes store, all
(11:47):
three of those guys, mentors foryou as well. Great leadership
starts with mentoring.
Sam D'Arc (11:54):
That's awesome. All right, last couple of questions
and then we're going to go toBob's announcement. So
automotive is turning digital.It's turning, technology. AI is
the buzzword today.
And you both Michael and Evan,the course of your career will
work on vehicles possibly thatare fully autonomous, not just
partially autonomous. What areyou doing today or what are you
(12:17):
seeing that evolving as we gofrom kind of the old less tech
to more tech? Does anythingexcite you, Michael, about that?
Or, you know, do you seeyourself as having kind of a leg
up as an automotive technician,not having known anything but
technology at Michael?
Speaker 5 (12:33):
Yeah. I think in in regards to that, things are
getting more complicated as wellas simpler. They're kind of hand
in hand now with with thetechnology that's out now. We
have a lot more control unitsand a lot of other things taken
care of.
Sam D'Arc (12:48):
Because Michael, there will be a day where you'll
sit in your bay at Mercedes BenzHoffman Estates, and you'll
probably press a summon button.That's a Tesla term, but it
could belong to Mercedes Benzand the car will drive itself
into the bay, hoist itself upand say, I'm ready to be worked
on. Right? That could happen.And you're preparing yourself
today by understanding thetechnology and knowing how to
(13:10):
work on it in a way that mosttechnicians don't have to.
Are you seeing some of thetechnology? Are you learning
some of that technology piece?
Speaker 5 (13:17):
Yeah, I see it every day. Vehicles that I look at as
well as nearby in other people'sstalls, a lot more electric
vehicles coming in, and it'sdefinitely a different path you
gotta take with those anddiagnosing what's not your
typical vehicle that you mightsee driving down the road.
Sam D'Arc (13:35):
Evan, what are you doing to prepare for AI
technology?
Speaker 6 (13:39):
Pretty much just whatever whatever the the
manufacturer teaches us tells ushow to how to program all of it.
Then with all of that, makes itmakes it slightly harder, but
then other things easier to fix.
Sam D'Arc (13:55):
Well, it is an exciting world that you both are
going into in the world oftechnology and being a
technician. You're going to leadthis organization, the Ziegler
Auto Group, into the next stageof whatever comes. We can't
predict it all. Bob, do you haveany big predictions as it
relates to AI before you giveyour announcement?
Bob Kuehl (14:12):
I really don't. AI is becoming more and more of a part
of this business as we go on.Heck, when I got involved in
this business, we're stillworking on carburetors. So, but
AI is going to have aninfluence, no question, not only
from the vehicle aspect, butfrom the way we actually wait on
the customer and recruit thatcustomer and keep them in. So
(14:34):
it's going be interesting theway it goes for sure.
Sam D'Arc (14:37):
Yeah. Yeah. All right. So Mike Van Rhine, we're
about to have an announcementfrom Bob Kiel about the date and
the time of our big awardcelebration. Anything you want
to share, Mike, before Bobshares his big announcement?
Mike Van Ryn (14:50):
Mike
congratulations to both Michaeland Evan. You guys hold your
head high and like Matt said,this is a big deal and we're
super proud of both of you andwe can't wait to fast forward
and see where you're at in thenext few years.
Sam D'Arc (15:04):
For creating this program, setting it up,
monitoring it, and working oneon one with both these
gentlemen, Michael and Evan, andhelping them progress throughout
their career. Our recruiting armis a hugely important arm here
at the Ziegler Auto Group, andyou play a key role into
bringing new talent into thegroup and helping ensure our
viability well down into thefuture. So Bob Keel, you have a
(15:26):
big announcement. Autobahn,first of all, Evan and Michael
get to go?
Bob Kuehl (15:31):
Absolutely, they do. Big announcement, first off, I
want to say again, Evan andMichael, thank you for choosing
us and doing a great job. We areproud of you and can't wait to
see how you guys grow. We arefortunate that you've chosen us
to come to work for us and we'regonna make sure your career is
long and fruitful. So the bigannouncement is we will be
(15:51):
taking the President's Circlewinners, 20 technicians, 10
advisors, and two rising starsto the Autobahn.
June 20 Fifth at 10AM, we'llspend a day on the slalom
course, on the go kart track.We'll have a big lunch, so it'll
be a good time. We've done thata few times. We have a lot of
fun when we're doing that. Somark that on your calendars.
(16:13):
I'll be sending an email todayor tomorrow to the balance of
the recipients that get to gowith us and looking forward to a
great day.
Sam D'Arc (16:20):
I don't know if it'll happen this time, but the
Ziegler Auto Group, we have anaffiliation with NASCAR and we
have a driver, Carson Hossevar,who's Portage born and raised.
In the past, we've been able tohave that driver come and drive
with us. I don't know, Bob, isthere any word about whether
Carson will be there?
Bob Kuehl (16:36):
Yeah, we're not there at that point yet. He may very
well be if the schedule works.Now, the good thing is it's on a
Wednesday and with the way theschedule works out, Wednesday is
a lot more open than it everused to be for the drivers. So
more to come on that for sure.
Sam D'Arc (16:50):
All right. So Michael, Evan, who's the better
driver when you think about gokarting and we go out on the
track? Not only are you risingtalent within the Ziglar Auto
Group in the technician world,but can you drive?
Speaker 6 (17:02):
I mean, I think so. I hit a few deer though. Okay.
Sam D'Arc (17:06):
So Bob, Bob, your job, your one and only job is to
make sure no deer come onto thetrack when Evan's on the track.
Because the last thing we wantis to have, like, recognize
these gentlemen and then hadthem get in an accident that,
Michael driving. Yes? No? Maybeso?
Speaker 5 (17:23):
Yeah. Drive every day. So definitely another
passion of mine. Like I likehim.
Matt Snyder (17:27):
I think they're both gonna be surprised with
this driving. So we'll see.
Sam D'Arc (17:31):
Awesome. Matt Snyder. Alright. Hey, everybody. Again,
congratulations to our winners.
We're gonna give Van Rhine, VPof Talent Development, last word
today. Just grateful to haveeverybody here on board. At the
Ziggo Auto Group, we compete tomake each other better. This is
an incredible example of doingjust that. Bob Keel, thank you
for being on Matt Snyder.
Congrats to Michael and Evan.Mike, you get the last word.
Mike Van Ryn (17:54):
Well, thanks, Sam, for your leadership and
organizing this. I appreciateeverybody on the call today.
Again, congratulations toMichael from Mercedes and Evan
from Wolfhard. Have a great
Sam D'Arc (18:07):
special thanks to all who contributed to this week's
podcast. Until next week, howare you driving vision today?
There's a lot of competition to earn this award.
So I want Mike and Evan to bothknow that this is a pretty big
deal for you.
Bob Kuehl (00:12):
Yeah.
Sam D'Arc (00:16):
Welcome everyone to the driving vision podcast
brought to you by the ZigglerAuto Group. I'm your host, Sam
Dark. Be sure to subscribe tothe podcast. Like it if you do,
and leave a comment. Hey,Welcome to the special edition
of the Driving Vision Future ofZach today podcast.
It's exciting because Mike VanRhine, Head of Training
Development, VP TrainingDevelopment across the Auto
(00:38):
Group. This is a day ofrecognition, Mike. Right?
Mike Van Ryn (00:40):
Mike It We love recognizing top performers
across the Ziegler Auto Group,and this is just one more way
that we do that, Sam.
Sam D'Arc (00:46):
Bob Keel, VP of Fixed Operations, in charge of the
Service Operations across theZiegler Auto Group. This is cool
because we turn from variableback to fixed. Fixed in the
world of automotive meanseverything having to do a
servicing a vehicle. And Bob, weget to recognize two technicians
that are up and coming today.
Bob Kuehl (01:06):
Yes, this is a great thing that we started doing.
Matt Snyder had the idea back in2019. And of course, we
recognize our President's Circleof Technicians throughout the
group. And then we have tworising stars every year And
we'll let Matt get into thenomination process. But this is
pretty exciting.
And I'm proud of both of youguys for sure. Michael and
Sam D'Arc (01:26):
Bob Keel, before we all jump off, you're going to
make a special announcement thathas to do with the date around
our upcoming President's Clubrecognition program where you
actually get to go to theAutobahn and drive with a race
car driver. But more on that ina moment. So, Matt Snyder, how
do you qualify for this RisingTechnician Award?
Matt Snyder (01:43):
Well, you have to be recommended by your service
manager. So I send out an emailto all the service managers in
the organization with certainparameters that they need to
look at for recommending aRising Technician. This is
someone that they feel has thecapacity to be an awesome
technician down the road, maybebe part of that president's
(02:03):
circle. So this is to recognizeup and coming technicians who
really have shown that theirskill set's gonna be one that
we're gonna be looking for inthe future for sure.
Sam D'Arc (02:15):
And it's interesting because technicians across all
of automotive are one of themost sought after positions that
are out there. So our twowinners this year who will be
recognized at our upcoming eventare Michael Cizek from Mercedes
Benz Hoffman Estates, and wehave Evan Cross from our store
in Lowell, Michigan. HaveMercedes Benz represented, and
(02:37):
we have Ford represented. So,Michael, first to you, what does
it mean to you to be recognizedwithin the Ziglar Auto Group in
this way?
Speaker 5 (02:44):
Oh, man. It's such an honor. You know, I come to work
every day, ready to work, readyto get dirty. And, it really
means a lot showing theirrecognition. Really shows that
all my training and everythingthat I've done to this point
really means something to me.
Sam D'Arc (03:02):
And Evan, congratulations to you. What
does it mean to you to win therecognition?
Speaker 6 (03:06):
It's a great honor to win the award. So it feels
really good to be recognizedlike this. Means a whole lot
from from the team here, fromyou guys. Couldn't do it without
all the help from from the teamhere. Couldn't do it without
everyone giving me their supportand truly, truly means a lot.
(03:26):
Thank you.
Sam D'Arc (03:26):
So, it's great to have both of you on. It's great
to be able to recognize youboth. There are a lot of career
paths you could take in life,right? People could become, you
could become a lawyer. You couldbecome a doctor.
You could become a fireman, anattorney. You could do whatever.
You could teach school. Evan,what made you decide first to
you, then to Michael? What madeyou decide, Hey, I want to
become a technician at an autostore?
(03:48):
Four of all.
Speaker 6 (03:49):
Just kind of had to choose a path. Found the thing I
like most, like wrenching oncars always. Got good at it.
Then then Matt one day came tome, offered me a job here with
Ziggler.
Sam D'Arc (04:02):
That's awesome. What do you like most, Evan, about
working on vehicles? Whatappeals to you most about that
particular skill set?
Speaker 6 (04:08):
More of the the problem solving. More of you get
you get one thing, and you kindof just go across, figure out
all the problems, figure out howto fix it, and then what can
also fail because of that?
Sam D'Arc (04:22):
It is a problem solving. And you know what's
interesting in our world todaywith all the vehicles that are
being sold, all the vehiclesthat are on the road, vehicles
are getting older by age.There's more need for
technicians today than thereever have been, which Bob will
come to you on that in just amoment. But Michael, what
brought you into automotive?What brought you to Mercedes
(04:43):
Benz?
Speaker 5 (04:43):
So ever since high school, I've been into kind of
working on cars, friends, hedgesin our driveways. I didn't
really realize that it was gonnabe more my group path until the
shop forego of this dealership,Keith Romero, came out to me.
Kinda helped me look at theshop, kinda take a tour. And
(05:04):
then from then on, that's when Iwas really interested in doing
it. And I started grad schoolingto kinda accelerate that
process, learn as much as I canall year.
Sam D'Arc (05:13):
So how long have you been turning wrenches, as they
say? How long have you beendoing the technician role?
Speaker 5 (05:19):
Just being my first actual career with automotive.
I've been here twenty two, twoyears, three years.
Matt Snyder (05:27):
So Sam, one of the parameters to qualify for this
award is you can't have been atechnician for more than two
years. So you can't be atechnician at a dealership down
the road for two years and thencoming over us to start fresh.
So if you look at the scope ofthis thing with how many you
think about how many LoopTechExpressTex we have across 41
(05:48):
stores. There's a lot of them.Yeah.
And to think then that servicemanagers all have an opportunity
to recognize someone that theyfeel is going has the potential
to be an awesome technician downthe road. And then these two are
the ones that are selected. Ijust want Michael and Evan to
know that this is a big deal.This is like the equivalent of
(06:12):
Allstate and beyond. Basically,when this award's going out,
it's no different than your highschool football coach
recommending you for allconference, and then you're
evaluated on that from all theother coaches.
So, there's an evaluationprocess here where we look at
their hours that they've turned.That's not the only thing we
look at but work ethic, how manycertifications they've gotten
(06:35):
with their manufacturers inMichigan, how many state
certifications, And so there's alot of competition to earn this
award somewhat. Michael and Evanboth know that this is a pretty
big deal for you.
Sam D'Arc (06:45):
Congrats to you both, which actually leads me to my
next I was curious on the amountof time only, Michael, because
you're at a Benz store. Likeboth Benz and Ford are super
complicated vehicles. Benz issuper high end. What's your
favorite thing that you do inthe course of a day in this new
role that you've proved?
Speaker 5 (07:04):
Certainly, I've always liked the interior work.
You know, I love kind of takingintricate little parts, you
know, apart and reassembling.That's always kind of been,
like, something I enjoy doing.But, I mean, generally, I I
really like the vehicles. Youknow?
I don't really have a specificjob that I that I love more than
the others, but it's it'sdefinitely really fun to to work
(07:26):
on these cars just as Yeah.Yeah.
Sam D'Arc (07:28):
That's cool. What's your favorite Mercedes Benz,
Michael?
Speaker 5 (07:32):
Oh, we had a SLS, Black Series that came in, did a
service that we had. That wasthat was fun. I like the the
Gullwing Dory. Nice.
Sam D'Arc (07:42):
So, Evan, what's your favorite Ford that you work on?
Speaker 6 (07:46):
Oh, that I work on?
Sam D'Arc (07:47):
Or or favorite Ford. Yeah.
Speaker 6 (07:50):
I don't know. The Ford GT is pretty cool, but
that's the obvious choice.
Sam D'Arc (07:54):
You know what? In talking to to both Evan and
Michael, Bob and Matt, when youthink about this is a cool
program to recognize young andup and coming technicians, and
it's an important area.Technicians are one of the
toughest areas to recruit in theautomotive because it's not the
first thing people think about.Obviously, Evan and Michael have
shown proficiency. They lovetaking things apart.
(08:14):
They love working on vehicles,but not everybody has that
desire. We've found a way tofind those that have that desire
and help them not only come onboard the auto group, but learn
on the job. Bob, why aretechnicians in such high demand
in automotive today?
Bob Kuehl (08:30):
Well, technicians are in such high demand because they
have been neglected for twentyyears. I mean, we cut out all
the high school programs, we cutout all that stuff, we pushed
everybody towards the computerworld. And I just wanna thank
both of you for coming to workfor us. I think you'll be your
awesome team members and thanksfor coming to us. You could have
gone anywhere.
We're going to do our best tomake a great career for you guys
(08:52):
and a great career path. We'regoing to get you all the
training you need and all thetraining you want. And when Sam
had talked earlier about,there's a lot of different
career paths you can take. Oneof the reasons this award is so
important to me is in the late'80s, I was you guys. I was an
apprentice here in Kalamazoo.
That's cool. Yeah. And I workedmy way through the body shop,
then into the servicedepartment, and I've been
(09:12):
fortunate enough to work my wayup into management because that
was my end goal. But there is ahuge open road of opportunity
for you guys with our group,with this trade, and it truly is
a skill set that not a lot ofpeople have. And, you know,
we're going to develop you guysas far as you want to go.
And I just want to say thank youchoosing us. We're going have a
(09:33):
culture that you're never goingto want to leave and you're
going to have one job your wholelife and this is going be it.
Sam D'Arc (09:37):
I love that. So Mike Van Rhine is part of our culture
training and development. Healways talks about the
importance of having a greatmentor and as someone new in a
role wanting to grow and developand become great. One of the
things Bob mentioned that youhave as a resource are mentors
around you that will help you todevelop. First, Michael, then
Evan, Michael, who's yourmentor?
(09:58):
Like, do you look towards whenyou think about achieving
automotive excellence? And bythe way, Bob Keel can't be a
mentor yet. He's in charge ofall of them. Who there in your
store or in your world aroundyou, Michael?
Speaker 5 (10:10):
Oh, personally, in my store, I've had two mentors up
to this point, Jeff Austin, aswell as Cal Server. And both of
them have kinda showed me twopaths working on vehicles, and I
feel like that's honestly all Icould ask for in terms of my
training. I got to kinda seeboth sides of how people work,
but in general, everyone in thestories was kind of a mentor to
(10:31):
me, and I learned a lot fromeverybody around me. So kind of
taking all those workenvironment around me and how
how to see other people would doYeah. What what kinda helps me
be as efficient as I can and andstay on task.
Sam D'Arc (10:46):
That's awesome. All right, Evan, who's your mentor?
Speaker 6 (10:49):
Oh, my mentor in this shop, probably probably the shop
foreman, Dan Drowned, took meunder his wing probably for,
like, six six to eight months,showed me showed me everything
he knew or almost, and then kindof bickered back and forth. But
Very cool. Everything got done.We both learned along the way.
Sam D'Arc (11:09):
Wait. When you say bickered back and forth, one of
the things we love to talk aboutis we compete at a high level to
make each other better. Is thatpart of it or was it, something
else?
Speaker 6 (11:17):
No. Yeah. It was mainly part of that. It was
mainly how to do the thing andhow to get it done slightly
faster.
Mike Van Ryn (11:25):
You know, last week, we had a Walter Bond as a
guest speaker and he talkedabout the importance of not not
being a manager, not even beinga leader, but but being a coach
and a mentor to our teams andgreat great shout outs there
both of you guys to your mentorsand also want to give a shout
out to you know, Kevin, Magnusfrom Lowell, right? Your service
manager and then to Keith, Abel,Bob from the Mercedes store, all
(11:47):
three of those guys, mentors foryou as well. Great leadership
starts with mentoring.
Sam D'Arc (11:54):
That's awesome. All right, last couple of questions
and then we're going to go toBob's announcement. So
automotive is turning digital.It's turning, technology. AI is
the buzzword today.
And you both Michael and Evan,the course of your career will
work on vehicles possibly thatare fully autonomous, not just
partially autonomous. What areyou doing today or what are you
(12:17):
seeing that evolving as we gofrom kind of the old less tech
to more tech? Does anythingexcite you, Michael, about that?
Or, you know, do you seeyourself as having kind of a leg
up as an automotive technician,not having known anything but
technology at Michael?
Speaker 5 (12:33):
Yeah. I think in in regards to that, things are
getting more complicated as wellas simpler. They're kind of hand
in hand now with with thetechnology that's out now. We
have a lot more control unitsand a lot of other things taken
care of.
Sam D'Arc (12:48):
Because Michael, there will be a day where you'll
sit in your bay at Mercedes BenzHoffman Estates, and you'll
probably press a summon button.That's a Tesla term, but it
could belong to Mercedes Benzand the car will drive itself
into the bay, hoist itself upand say, I'm ready to be worked
on. Right? That could happen.And you're preparing yourself
today by understanding thetechnology and knowing how to
(13:10):
work on it in a way that mosttechnicians don't have to.
Are you seeing some of thetechnology? Are you learning
some of that technology piece?
Speaker 5 (13:17):
Yeah, I see it every day. Vehicles that I look at as
well as nearby in other people'sstalls, a lot more electric
vehicles coming in, and it'sdefinitely a different path you
gotta take with those anddiagnosing what's not your
typical vehicle that you mightsee driving down the road.
Sam D'Arc (13:35):
Evan, what are you doing to prepare for AI
technology?
Speaker 6 (13:39):
Pretty much just whatever whatever the the
manufacturer teaches us tells ushow to how to program all of it.
Then with all of that, makes itmakes it slightly harder, but
then other things easier to fix.
Sam D'Arc (13:55):
Well, it is an exciting world that you both are
going into in the world oftechnology and being a
technician. You're going to leadthis organization, the Ziegler
Auto Group, into the next stageof whatever comes. We can't
predict it all. Bob, do you haveany big predictions as it
relates to AI before you giveyour announcement?
Bob Kuehl (14:12):
I really don't. AI is becoming more and more of a part
of this business as we go on.Heck, when I got involved in
this business, we're stillworking on carburetors. So, but
AI is going to have aninfluence, no question, not only
from the vehicle aspect, butfrom the way we actually wait on
the customer and recruit thatcustomer and keep them in. So
(14:34):
it's going be interesting theway it goes for sure.
Sam D'Arc (14:37):
Yeah. Yeah. All right. So Mike Van Rhine, we're
about to have an announcementfrom Bob Kiel about the date and
the time of our big awardcelebration. Anything you want
to share, Mike, before Bobshares his big announcement?
Mike Van Ryn (14:50):
Mike
congratulations to both Michaeland Evan. You guys hold your
head high and like Matt said,this is a big deal and we're
super proud of both of you andwe can't wait to fast forward
and see where you're at in thenext few years.
Sam D'Arc (15:04):
For creating this program, setting it up,
monitoring it, and working oneon one with both these
gentlemen, Michael and Evan, andhelping them progress throughout
their career. Our recruiting armis a hugely important arm here
at the Ziegler Auto Group, andyou play a key role into
bringing new talent into thegroup and helping ensure our
viability well down into thefuture. So Bob Keel, you have a
(15:26):
big announcement. Autobahn,first of all, Evan and Michael
get to go?
Bob Kuehl (15:31):
Absolutely, they do. Big announcement, first off, I
want to say again, Evan andMichael, thank you for choosing
us and doing a great job. We areproud of you and can't wait to
see how you guys grow. We arefortunate that you've chosen us
to come to work for us and we'regonna make sure your career is
long and fruitful. So the bigannouncement is we will be
(15:51):
taking the President's Circlewinners, 20 technicians, 10
advisors, and two rising starsto the Autobahn.
June 20 Fifth at 10AM, we'llspend a day on the slalom
course, on the go kart track.We'll have a big lunch, so it'll
be a good time. We've done thata few times. We have a lot of
fun when we're doing that. Somark that on your calendars.
(16:13):
I'll be sending an email todayor tomorrow to the balance of
the recipients that get to gowith us and looking forward to a
great day.
Sam D'Arc (16:20):
I don't know if it'll happen this time, but the
Ziegler Auto Group, we have anaffiliation with NASCAR and we
have a driver, Carson Hossevar,who's Portage born and raised.
In the past, we've been able tohave that driver come and drive
with us. I don't know, Bob, isthere any word about whether
Carson will be there?
Bob Kuehl (16:36):
Yeah, we're not there at that point yet. He may very
well be if the schedule works.Now, the good thing is it's on a
Wednesday and with the way theschedule works out, Wednesday is
a lot more open than it everused to be for the drivers. So
more to come on that for sure.
Sam D'Arc (16:50):
All right. So Michael, Evan, who's the better
driver when you think about gokarting and we go out on the
track? Not only are you risingtalent within the Ziglar Auto
Group in the technician world,but can you drive?
Speaker 6 (17:02):
I mean, I think so. I hit a few deer though. Okay.
Sam D'Arc (17:06):
So Bob, Bob, your job, your one and only job is to
make sure no deer come onto thetrack when Evan's on the track.
Because the last thing we wantis to have, like, recognize
these gentlemen and then hadthem get in an accident that,
Michael driving. Yes? No? Maybeso?
Speaker 5 (17:23):
Yeah. Drive every day. So definitely another
passion of mine. Like I likehim.
Matt Snyder (17:27):
I think they're both gonna be surprised with
this driving. So we'll see.
Sam D'Arc (17:31):
Awesome. Matt Snyder. Alright. Hey, everybody. Again,
congratulations to our winners.
We're gonna give Van Rhine, VPof Talent Development, last word
today. Just grateful to haveeverybody here on board. At the
Ziggo Auto Group, we compete tomake each other better. This is
an incredible example of doingjust that. Bob Keel, thank you
for being on Matt Snyder.
Congrats to Michael and Evan.Mike, you get the last word.
Mike Van Ryn (17:54):
Well, thanks, Sam, for your leadership and
organizing this. I appreciateeverybody on the call today.
Again, congratulations toMichael from Mercedes and Evan
from Wolfhard. Have a great
Sam D'Arc (18:07):
special thanks to all who contributed to this week's
podcast. Until next week, howare you driving vision today?
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