Transcript 0:00 [upbeat music] You're listening to ASOTU CON Sessions by Effective, live from ASOTU CON 2023. Welcome to this episode of ASOTU CON Sessions for Effective. 0:13 I'm Michael Cerullo, sitting down with my pal, Ed Roberts, who is the chief operating officer at Bozard Ford Lincoln. Alth- also an author, also a speaker, also a professional bicyclist- [laughs]... is what I understand. 0:29 Yes. Uh- And sometimes gravity takes effect. You, you... This is, this is what I love about you, Ed, the level of commitment. 0:36 First of all, broken leg at time of recording this, for those watching and listening in the future, and you're not missing a deal, and you're smiling as if nothing happened. 0:45 Hey, it's a speed bump, and we all have to run over speed bumps, but, uh, it's how we overcome 'em. Literally, was, was a speed bump in this particular circumstance literally involved- This, this is the speed bump. 0:56 [laughs] A figurative speed bump. Yes. You've done so many amazing things in your career in leading your organization to levels of success that some only dream about. 1:07 I have to imagine, at one point, you dreamt about where you are currently, but you are one of the few that have actually achieved it. 1:16 When did the mindset shift and/or what were you thinking about in order to get to where you are today? So I, I will tell you that it wasn't necessarily a dream, even though it kinda starts that way, I guess. 1:28 It r- You gotta really shift it to a vision. And when you can see it, then you can back into the elements that gets you there. And, uh, so started with that vision. Wh- when I started with Bozard, I just... 1:39 Th- the opportunity was, was, was limitless, and, uh, yeah, but it was, it was about changing the mindset and getting everybody to believe in that and pushing forward. 1:49 And so one of the phrases that I'm, that I'm commonly quoted around there with, with some of my folks is, at that time, Galpin Ford was the largest Ford store in the country, and, uh, I told 'em that we're gonna become Galpin of the East, and then we're gonna keep going until Galpin wants to be Bozard of the West. 2:07 So, uh, that's where it started. And, uh, then you just l- layer the elements there. You learn. Y- Y- You're gonna try things that don't work, and you gotta be quick to pull the plug and, uh, try something different. 2:18 But to say that I've tried that and not go back and try something again is what really stops everybody's growth. And, and so even if, if you try something and it doesn't work, doesn't mean that you... that it won't work. 2:29 Just means you haven't found a way for it to work yet. Mm. There's, there's a couple of things I wanna dig into deeper there. 2:34 Um, the first one is this, this concept of being aware of the playing field, but then also having to put blinders on to focus. How do you maneuver around that? 2:45 Because I think so many people get stuck on the, "Oh, but look at what they're doing. What are they doing? Go, go mystery shop. Go check them out. They seem to be doing this. 2:54 Their advertising looks a certain way," et cetera, et cetera. How do you maneuver effectively through that type of a circumstance where you're aware of the market but not letting it get in your way? 3:05 You gotta create your identity, but there, there's a lot of intentionality in- involved in that. 3:09 Because when you, when you come to the team and say, "Hey, we're gonna do something different," the first thing that comes to mind, "Well, who else is doing that? Who, who can we learn from?" 3:18 And you can either be a trend follower or a trendsetter, and in order to be a trendsetter, you have to go out and try things that nobody's trying yet. And 3:27 the easiest way that's worked for us to do that is to express what the, the end goal is, and this is a element to get there. 3:35 But if you, if you say, "Hey, let's just do this," without expressing what that end goal is, they don't really know whether it's working or not. 3:41 So when you express it from what the end desire is, they'll buy into it and start pushing in that direction. How deeply... So this is the second part. How deeply do you document the thesis of where you're trying to go? 3:56 And the, the... kind of my, my motive in, in asking this question is I feel like so many say, "Oh, that's where we wanna end up," and don't accurately define the parameters with which it shall be accomplished. 4:08 And then things go awry, and we go, "Well, we're giving up," and people give up too soon. Exactly. What does that process look like for you in getting clarity on what it's gonna take to get there? 4:19 So th- that's where the vision really comes into play, because that conversation is different with each person, uh, or each group of people because of their element of what they have to put in to contribute to it. 4:29 So you gotta paint their... paint the picture of how they're going to help us get there and show that element of what you need them to do to accomplish it. 4:37 And when you break that down for the whole circle, then as pieces start to come together, the end result ultimately becomes easy in a lot of cases. I love this. 4:45 I recently was introduced to a working zone of genius assessment. It's not a personality assessment. It shows you where you essentially thrive. 4:56 And, and it also shows you what zones of genius you conflict with or that frustrate you. 5:02 The highlight for me as I'm listening to you speak, why I'm bringing this up, is realizing that a successful organization, although you might have working zones of frustration, a, a successful organization actually requires all of that landscape. 5:16 You know, so for me, I'm a tenacity guy. I'm like, "Get the job done." But then there's wonderers who are like, "But how?" And, "How did I... " You even see in my tone, I'm like, "Ah, the wonderers." 5:26 [laughs] "The wonderers. Take action," right? I realize now, even as I look at my own organization, oh, but wonderers are required as much as people with tenacity or people that can rally the troops, so to speak. 5:39 What's your view on that in your, uh, role as the one that's, I guess, creating the vision? Well, you need the wonderers, like you said, because they're going to highlight some of the obstacles that may come into play. 5:53 Because when we look at big picture, we don't look at all the obstacles. We look at, "Okay, here's what we gotta get." 5:58 And then you need them questioning those things so that you can-Not necessarily plan for the obstacles, but accept them as they arise and, and work around them. 6:07 And the earlier you can find those, the sooner you can work around them. So you need those guys to say, "Well, what if, what if?" But what you can't have is them be the naysayers. "That won't never work." 6:17 But if they, if, if that's their thought, then that's exactly what's gonna happen 'cause it won't work. So you gotta get them all believing and, uh- Mm... and then take those elements. Don't stop. Yeah, I gotcha. 6:28 Don't stop believing. Okay. Don't stop believing. [laughs] I got it. Um, along the way... So you, you, you said, okay f- th- there's this leadership nucleus, if you will, get them believing. 6:41 How do you actually, though... I mean, how, how many employees at Bozard now? About 336 now. Whew. How do you get 300... How do you ensure that 6:52 as, as the word and the belief happens at the leadership level, that those leaders are then effectively making... Y- you know, maintaining the consistency of the belief? How do you ensure that? 7:05 Well, we're gonna talk about busy versus effective tomorrow. And, uh- [laughs] W- with those elements, in order to be effective, you really have to be able to reach out and, and, and embrace our people. Right. 7:18 And you're always going to have people that are not rowing. You want everybody rowing in the same direction. 7:24 Uh, and you're gonna have people that have an off days and they're not rowing, but you never want the ones that's pulling back. 7:30 And when you can be effective, when you can slow down your busyness and really be effective, you can identify those ones pulling you back. 7:38 And we either have to do things to get them on board or get them on board where they do fit. Right. W- and sometimes that, that could be a different place. 7:47 But identifying those and, and, and pulling them back because one naysayer, one that's, that's pulling backwards will pull others with him. Mm. And so you gotta... You have to remove it. 7:59 A- and sometimes it's clarity of the vision, and sometimes it's just the wrong person, but it is rarely the wrong person. It's, it's clarity and what their level of contribution is. Right. So. 8:10 It goes into, what's that saying? You know, people don't show up intentionally to do a bad job. Exactly. I say that all the time about our customers. 8:17 Our customers don't come in here expecting you to give them a bad experience. Interesting. Yes. Interesting. Um, I could talk to you forever. I'm not gonna do that to you. 8:27 Uh, you know, people can only take so much of my voice, is what I've been told, uh, by my wife. [laughs] Uh, so [laughs] I love it. She's heard of you a little longer. At what point do you decide, I'm gonna write a book? 8:40 The, uh... I have been pressured, so to speak, to write a book for about 20 years. Wow. Started taking notes about 10 years ago. Um, but really late last year, I was listening to a friend of mine's book and... 8:53 But at that moment, and it was just... It wasn't anything that built up to it, it was just, that became the f- the, the, the piece that pushed me over the edge. 9:01 In that moment, I says, "All right, it- it's time to deliver the message." And, uh, I called a friend of mine and says, "Hey, you inspired me. I'm gonna write a book." And, uh, and I did. 9:09 And from that, from those elements, it... I got about 270 days from the time I says, "Hey, I'm gonna write a book," till I have it in print and, and that's relatively quick. 9:20 Um, but ultimately, that was because, one, I'm relentless. Once I start something, I gotta finish it. [laughs] And- Tenacity. [laughs] And, and two, the, uh, the elements of the book was already there. Sure. 9:32 It was just about putting it on paper to make it make sense. Yeah. 9:35 A- what I love about this, Ed, is that, especially this day and age when people light up a clubhouse room 'cause they went to a single yoga class, and now they have the secret to unlocking, m- you know, whatever it is, and they write a book about it, 20 years of substance in the making, 10 notes of documenting those observations, I, I mean, it's just so amazing to consider the value. 9:59 And, and also, you know, why I just... I, I, I felt, I feel drawn into you as a, as a colleague and as a, as a new friend, 10:09 is because, you know, one of the things that I've learned about true success is that when you've achieved it, you desire nothing more and nothing brings you more joy than to help others achieve it. 10:19 That's what the goal is, is allow, allow people to grow. And that's a lot of the content of the book, is doing things like this and, and going out and seeing what obstacles people run into, and then let's put that on... 10:30 in for- in paper, on paper to, to help you overcome those obstacles. And if we... If one person grows from it, it's worth writing a book. Amazing. 10:38 And, and I th- it's been well-received, and I, I hope that more than one grows, but if it makes a difference in one person's life, that's, uh, tugs on the heartstrings enough for me. I love it. 10:48 How can those listening or watching, uh, get their hands on a copy of your book? So you can find Mile One: An Endless Journey to Effective Leadership on Amazon or on my website at mileoneleadership.com. 10:59 Ed Roberts, thanks so much for joining me on AsotuCon Sessions for Effective. Thank you, Michael. [upbeat music] Thank you for listening to this AsotuCon Session by Effective. 11:10 If you want more content like this, you can check out our other podcasts. 11:13 We have a daily show called The Automotive Troublemaker, Monday through Friday here on podcasts, also live streamed on YouTube and LinkedIn and Facebook. We also have a long form podcast called Auto Collabs. 11:25 Auto Collabs. And if you just wanna go a little deeper into this community, you should sign up for our regular email. We put our heart and soul into it. You can get it for free by going to asotu.com. 11:36 We'll see you next time. [upbeat music]
