The success of your truck wash business depends heavily on how effectively your truck wash manager performs his tasks. As the old saying goes, “Employees leave managers, not companies”. This is supported by a recent research result from the Survey Solutions Employee Engagement national database as referred to in a published article  on The Advisory Board Company. The survey result shows that 85% of employees with excellent managers are more engaged versus only 17% of employees with poor managers.

What Qualities Must an Effective Truck Wash Manager Have?

Clearly, your truck wash manager can make or break your business. What then do you need to look for when hiring a truck wash manager?  Below are the top 5 qualities that you should consider when choosing the best person for this job.

1. A good truck wash manager is a good communicator

Business coach Evan Carmichael wrote in an article on his website that unless you are a good communicator you cannot be a good manager. A day in the life of a truck wash manager is filled with the need for communication: emails, calls, meetings and coaching. Thus, it is necessary for a truck wash manager to be able to send out clear messages whatever the medium may be.  As real-time feedback is very important for employees to ensure peak performance, a good truck wash manager must be able to meet with them periodically Changes, if there are any, should also be communicated to employees. A good truck wash manager communicates change by explaining the why and the how of a change that is going to happen. This way, employees can better receive changes and would be less prone to fighting it. Communicating is also listening. A good truck wash manager listens to what his employees have to say or suggest. This will make employees feel valued. Consequently, it could also be good for the business as employees may have sound suggestions to improve services or processes.

2. A good truck wash manager is a team player

A good truck wash manager knows how to wash and detail a truck and can get his hands dirty with the rest of the team. He involves his people in problem-solving and decision-making. Entrepreneur.com published an article by LinkedIn Influencer, Mark Graban. In the the article, Graban writes: “Great managers engage people in designing their work and they continue to engage them in ongoing improvement. Instead of dictating how things get done (and expecting obedience and compliance), managers need to work together with employees to define how the work is done.  Managers need to ask employees what ideas they have for improving the workplace.” A good truck wash manager, for example, will solicit input from his employees as to what the better cleaner is if there is a need for change before going ahead and ordering new supplies.

3. A good truck wash manager is flexible.

Flexibility is a valuable quality in a truck wash manager. A good truck wash manager acknowledges that his employees have different personalities and can deal with each one of them accordingly. Oftentimes, a manager can only handle employees with the same personality as his. But a good truck wash manager adjusts to his employees’ personalities, not the other way around. Perhaps, the best way to explain it is how Dr. Tony Alessandra, entrepreneur and motivational speaker, explains it: “Treat others the way they want to be treated.” Or what is popularly known as the Platinum Rule. An able manager determines how each member of staff would like to be treated. This way, he can lead and motivate them most effectively. This earns him his employees’ respect. Flexibility in a truck wash manager also allows him to adapt quickly to changes and react to conflicts in a heartbeat. These characteristics are ones that you want to rub off on employees.

4. A good truck wash manager is a life coach

Performance coaching is essential in every business. Employees have to be given feedback. Be that positive or negative.  The purpose of which is to enhance or improve their performance. A good manager does this and more. He doesn’t just give feedback on how a detailer is supposed to wash a truck. He can show how it is properly done. A good truck wash manager doesn’t just coach an employee how to properly interact with a customer – he teaches by example. It is also a fact of life that sometimes an employees’ personal life may interfere with his performance at work. A good manager knows how to subtly coach an employee with a personal problem without intruding too much. Being a life coach is a skill that is a gem in a truck wash manager.

5. A truck wash manager develops his people

A good truck wash manager has the knack for identifying the right roles for the right people. He develops his people and helps them grow in their careers. He does this through mentorship programs and plans for addressing career development interests. He is not threatened by the developing skills of the staff. He knows which tasks to delegate to whom in order to maximize employee productivity. Delegation enriches the jobs of employees by providing them with more challenges, authority and variety. This empowers employees and builds trust. One measure of a good manager is when he can take a vacation or get promoted without worrying if his people can function in his absence.

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