the hustle and bustle of automotive service departments, service advisors are constantly under pressure to hit strict KPIs. But what happens when these rigid goals don’t match the realities of their day-to-day work? It usually leads to frustration, burnout, and sometimes even shortcuts or "gaming the system" just to check the boxes—leaving real performance improvement on the back burner.
The answer? Relative goals.
Relative goals focus on incremental progress rather than static, one-size-fits-all metrics. When paired with myKaarma's advanced reporting tools, these dynamic goals become not only achievable but also a powerful driver of engagement and continuous improvement.
The Case for Relative Goals
Relative goals are a smarter way to motivate service advisors because they emphasize personal progress and contextual fairness. Instead of chasing arbitrary benchmarks, advisors aim to surpass their own past performance or meet goals tailored to variables like customer traffic, seasonality, and economic conditions.
This personalized, adaptable approach is central to myKaarma's advanced reporting capabilities, enabling dealerships to create realistic, data-driven goals that energize advisors and foster measurable growth.
How myKaarma Reporting Supports Relative Goals
Here’s how myKaarma makes it simple to implement and manage relative goals for your team:
1. Analyze Historical Performance
myKaarma provides comprehensive historical data, including individual advisor metrics, team averages, and customer trends. This data enables you to establish personalized baselines for each advisor, such as average upsell percentages, repair order (RO) values, or customer satisfaction scores.
Example:
If an advisor’s average labor hours per RO last quarter were 1.8, a relative goal could challenge them to improve by 10%, aiming for 2.0 hours in the next quarter.
2. Track Real-Time Progress
myKaarma’s real-time reporting ensures advisors and managers can monitor progress against relative goals daily, weekly, or monthly. This transparency helps keep everyone aligned and motivated to achieve incremental improvements.
Example:
Use myKaarma’s dashboard to track an advisor’s upsell rate throughout the month. Recognize and celebrate small victories to reinforce positive habits.
3. Adapt Goals for External Factors
Traditional KPIs often fail to account for fluctuating demand or unforeseen challenges, but myKaarma helps you adjust. With tools that analyze traffic patterns, service loads, and appointment no-show rates, you can modify goals to reflect current conditions.
Example:
During slower months like the holiday season, pivot from total sales numbers to relative goals, such as increasing average RO values by a percentage.
4. Foster Advisor Accountability
By giving advisors access to their performance metrics, myKaarma empowers them to take ownership of their growth. Relative goals let advisors focus on surpassing their personal best, using detailed reports as their guide.
Example:
An advisor can review their historical customer satisfaction scores and identify areas for improvement, such as response time or communication clarity, using myKaarma’s feedback tools.
5. Encourage Team Collaboration
myKaarma doesn’t just track individual performance—it also highlights team metrics. Use this to set collaborative goals encouraging teamwork, such as improving the team’s collective retention rate.
Example:
Create a shared goal for the team to boost customer retention by 5%, fostering a spirit of collaboration while still allowing individual advisors to track their contributions.
The Bottom Line
Relative goals, powered by myKaarma’s insightful reporting, offer a transformative approach to service department success. Unlike rigid KPIs, relative goals foster a culture of continuous improvement, fairness, and accountability. By focusing on incremental progress, advisors stay motivated, customers receive better service, and dealerships achieve sustainable growth. Learn more about myKaarma's advanced reporting tools by requesting a demo from one of our product experts.