The IBIS conference Montreaux in Switzerland gave some fascinating global insights into where the repair industry is heading. Delegates from over 25 countries attended the conference as well as over 30 Australian repairers taking part in a European study tour with Suncorp.
The standout speaker of the first day for many was a teleconference interview with Tony Aquila, the founder of Solera, owners of Audatex. Solera was only founded in 2005 and is hte world's leading provider of software and services to the automobile insurance claims processing industry. It has over 75,000 customers in nearly 60 countries. Aquila talked about the challenges facing the industry including the changing attitudes of young people to motoring, citing studies which the 'car is no who we are'. With the dcline int he repair market, he said that business would be more under pressure with more brands to deal with, from emerging markets and recommended specalisation as the cost and complexity of repairing all models continues to rise. "It's tough to compete when you have more overheads," he said.
He recommended expanding across country borders and having a strong balance sheet so that businesses can invest in alternate ways to generate revenue, looking at services that are currently outsourced. Significant investment in training, Aquila said, is essential as the change curve in teh industry is so steep. His parting words were to "keep your business humble, hungry and hunting."
Suncorp also took to the lecturn with Terese Wood, executive general manager, personal insurance claims and Craig Summers, head of motor claims explaining Suncorp's strategy with Capital SMART and Q-Plus, as well as its 'Road Map to a Shared Future', with its repairer network an its stewardship of creating a national repair standard in Australia.
The 'factory production line' approach to repairs, referring to the joint Suncorp venture Q-Plus, was heralded by conference director David Lingham as ground breaking and surely indication as to how repairs may be carried out globally in the future.
Paul Gange, president of independent franchise repair chain Fix Auto, USA< which is strong in the American, Canadian and UK markets, gave an inspiring presentation on 'The illusion of enthusiastic employees'. He talked about strategies to create a genuinely enthusiastic workforce and how to inspire lasting change in an organisation. His buzz words for this were: reframe, relate, repeat. The most powerful of these is repetition, which can train new behaviour, consistently restating the purpose of change. Its objectives and desired results, Gange said, is incredibly effective.
The smart phone is already beginning to revolutionise many aspects of our lives. Chris Denison from Ingenin - who will be wriitng on this subject for Paint and Panel - explained how the phone will be central to accident management and how it could take customer 'control' away from insurers. There was a presentation on the enormous Chinese repair market. A full report on this market has been published on the Paint and Panel website.
The second day kicked off with a look at the supply chain - distributors, suppliers and insurance companies. Richard Steer from JCA Coatings GB gave an insight into the difficulties of keeping a workforce trained in all the latet technology and highlighted the necessity of allowing the whole supply chain to keep their margins in order to supply not only the product but the training to use the product. There was a recommendation for bodyshops to also market their business to suppliers so that, when new products that can reduce cycle times are introduced, it is those businesses who have kept open lines of communication about business progress that can gain the advantage of trialing these products first.
Next up was an entertaining presentation from Marco Senger from Germany, explaining the very different repair market in his country. Bvdp is a German affinity group which negotiates with insurance companies on its members' behalf for the best repairer outcome. It describes itself as a co-operative accident management solution. "We are not interested in senseless battles because there will only be losers."
Using their membership bargaining power, they negotiate the best outcomes for members with the motto: "Cooperation is better business than conflict."
Brock Bulbuck of US repair giant Boyd Group gave a presentation on growing a multi-site repair chain quickly and on what he looked for in the businesses the company takes over. A group discussion around this topic closed the conference.
Comments from Australian repairers attending the conferece
"It confirmed everything we've heard about what's happening to the industry. It was good to hear about how they do it in other countries - and there's no doubt that Austrlaia will follow. You just have to stay ahead of the game. It has also been great to network with all the Australian repairers."
- Darren Holmes, Holmes Smash Repairs, Toowoomba, QLD
"Good to see what is going on in the rest of the world, to hear where they came from, where they are now and where they are going. The section on the growth of the MSO (multi site operators) in the US was very interesting - although I don't think that will happen in Australia."
- Ray Iverson, Trend Smash Repairs, Brisbane, QLD
"IBIS is a valuable business tool. Good to hear from so many worldwide leaders in the industry."
- Brenda Hughes, Mark McHugh Bodywork, QLD
"IBIS is the only first hand experience of the present and future of the global bodyshop industry. A must for any forward thinking bodyshop owner. Well organised and prepared."
- Tom Campaniello, Mount Pleasant Crash Repairs, SA
"Some of the presentations were irrelevant - but you can't be all things to all people and there were representatives from all aspects of the repair industry. But I've come away with some good ideas which will hopefully put money in my pocket."
- Victor Reilly, Bucket Repairs, Melbourne, VIC
"I got to meet the global marketing manager of Mirka - which you don't get to do everyday - and she's arranged to put the full range in a coule of our group's shops for us to try!"
- John Walker, Walker Smash Repairs, SA