warehouse/driver

driver

service advisor

warehouse associate

warehouse lead

Dealer Tire

You'll see positive reviews from the corporate clan in Cleveland. But beware if you're going to be working as an outside account manager. 

I lived in Texas and covered most of southern Texas and Louisiana. I had over 40 dealers I handled from New Orleans to San Antonio. They expect you to spend 60% face-time in your dealers, submit a daily detailed report, and travel from account to account. Hardly anytime to do all of this in just a day. Expect to spend 10-12 hours a day completing everything required of you. Almost no work-life balance with these guys and they will tell you this isn't a 40 hour work week position. 

The worst part? Imagine hitting all of your sales goals over 100%, developing relationships at all your dealers, working with all your OEM reps, and traveling an average of 2000 miles a month to cover a territory. You'd think this would make them happy? No! They will pull reports and point out ridiculous "KPI's (key performance indicators)" they want to measure you on. How many GM's did you visit? How many business plans did you present this quarter? Did you do a target activity review of every account? These are a few of the ridiculous, time consuming and in many cases, unnecessary reports you must do. You'd think hitting your goals and delivering results would be good enough. After all, they deposit money in the bank, not how many GM contacts you had, right?

And don't expect to just check a box on your daily report. You have to copy everyone on your email at the end of the day. You have to go into detail of what you talked about, what products you discussed, what programs you went over, who you visited with, what was the results, how is it going to impact the dealer, what are the next steps, who will be accountable for implementation...blah, blah, blah. You then have to copy about 10 people on the detailed daily report. It will go to your direct manager, his manager, your inside sales partner, the parts and service managers at the dealership, the fixed operations manager, the GM at the dealership, the OEM rep that covers that dealership and sometimes even people you've never met or worked with like regional people at whatever company they are trying to impress. If not, they will fire you over this "KPI" you didn't do. I'm proof of that.

The starting pay is 60K a year....I got no raises in the 3 years I was there. If you decide to work here, be sure you get the money you want up front. You do get monthly commissions but where they pull the numbers you're supposed to hit is sometimes a joke. You'd think increasing your sales by 20% year over year would be outstanding right? Especially in an industry that grow by 5-6 percent at the most year after year. Nope!  They only tell you by quarter what your sales goal is. If you have an outstanding sales quarter at hit 105% you'll make commissions of about 6K for that quarter. Not bad right? Well, expect them to adjust the next quarter to keep your commissions at $0 to even it out a bit. It happens all the time to everybody. 

You never know what your yearly number is to hit. At the beginning of every year they bring in everyone for a dog and pony show and explain where we are going with our new "XYZ" sales approach. They will have a number that is usually 15%-20 growth. You'd think with this they'd have it broke down to every car line, division, territory and account manager so everyone knew what their individual goal was, right? Nope!

As I said before it's rolled out quarterly and fluctuates however necessary so nobody gets too big an advantage. A lot of politics too. It's about who you know and can win over than your sales results. I hit 100% for over 3 years combined but I wasn't a valued asset because I didn't check boxes next to a GM's name on my daily call sheet. It's their way of getting rid of people who they feel get the job done but don't conform to their micro-managed style of managing. Imagine getting rid of someone who did their job, delivered results, had dealers praise their consultative approach, yet was let go because out of 45 dealers, I didn't have a GM contact at 16 of them? By the way, all 16 of those locations had very happy parts, service and sometime fixed ops managers that were very happy with my work there and a GM relationship was not needed nor required to get the goal done. That's a fact!!!

It is a risky position because you are an outsider (contractor) and if you don't have the support from the Service Manager, Operations Manager, and Service Advisors then you are in trouble no matter how good you are. The Dealership I was at was supposed to be a busy location that was seeing 150-200 cars a day in the drive. The most was around 112 and as few as 50 a day. It took a while to get some of the service advisors to get on board with the program but out of 11 that were there when I started, only 9 were left (4 quit during February 2019 alone) and only 3 were on board that believed in the program. One SA fought me the whole time and if I blinked wrong he would report me to management. He even physically threatened me because I spoke to one of his customers. He threatened to put a size 12 boot up my a##. The dealership sales were down 30% or more so you would think having someone there to help drive tire and alignment sales would make them happy to have some help. Nope. Your typical day goes like this. You measure as many tires that you can and log them into an IPad. When you find problems, then you talk to the customer about his or her options before they go talk to a SA. You try to do this as quickly as possible but sometimes the SA takes the customer away before you finish your measurements. Then you have to go in and try to talk to the customer at the same time as the SA is talking to them. If the SA isn't on board, then they will do what they can to ignore you or brush you off. If they are, then they will invite you into the conversation. Dealing with personalities is a challenge. Having the SM and OM supporting the program would help. They claim they are but their actions proved different. You can't do it alone. I was written up for "following 2 customers from the drive to the service area" and for using a "digital measuring tool" to measure tread depth.
In February I measured a total of 4720 cars and truck tires. Because there were 3 cars that the SA (the one who threatened me) questioned I was told not to use it. It was a struggle to convince those that needed it the most realize that I shouldn't be a threat because I was helping the SA's and dealership make money. But at this dealership, there are many other problems that are causing to lose sales. I was released because I didn't meet my numbers. I was only at this dealership for 5 weeks and during that time we more than doubled or tire sales and more than doubled the alignment sales. I did my best.

The founding partners are transparent and implemented a solid business philosophy.  Their accomplishments are admirable and they are the catalysts to keep the company successful.    The top sales management is primarily grandfathered into their positions which makes sophisticated change difficult. They claim an open door policy but be very careful about questioning processes and strategy.   Although they speak of sophisticated processes they resist true change which makes it difficult for talented individuals to succeed.  If you are in sales you have the opportunity to make a decent salary.  Do not question the goal methodology even if it does not make sense.  The key to advancement in sales is changing positions once you have been successful for a brief period of time.  The goal methodology makes it impossible to maintain double digit sales growth year over year (% growth in sales).  Once your assigned accounts plateau you will not be valued.  In sales you will be overwhelmed with administrative tasks.  This excess administrative work is to prove to the companies accounts that they are actually working.  Excessive reporting is currently more important than quality work or customer service. Maybe this is a response to excessive complaints however the solution is improving or upgrading the product. It seemed like other departments were very rewarding and fun.  The company business model can be successful however it is no longer a secret.  Change must occur in order to maintain growth.  Directors in other departments are top notch and employee's seem happy.

Typical day at work is inspecting customer tires and giving recommendations.  I learned how a dealership works.  This seems basic and easy but it’s not even close.  The people at corporate are nice and want to give you everything you need to advance, but sadly the people they have put in place as Regional and Market Managers are all disgruntled and uneducated ex Discount Tire employees who have infected Dealer Tire with their low brow cult like attitude and very degrading and arrogant behavior that puts public degradation of subordinates top priority over helping them grow.
The concept of supplying support for the dealers is on fragile ground as is, as soon as they figure out paying for the Tire Service Advisor is a waste of money the whole charade comes undone.  The fact that they’ve kept it up this long is evidence of the wasteful spending on the dealers part.
You will be held responsible for the ordering of tires by the dealership, yet you have no control over ordering or inventory.  You will be met with contempt by all dealership employees and in some cases be subject to an extremely toxic and hostile environment.  You will have zero support from management and even after breaking records and getting “attaboy” calls from the VP they will turn on you in a heartbeat to make room for yet another ex Discount employee who they can push around.
Time off is nice but your Manager will berate you and guilt trip you for taking it.
If you love tires and selling and making a difference to your customers then it’s great.
But unless you’re an ex employee of Discount Tire you don’t stand a chance against the double standard that runs rampant in this company.
You’ve been warned

The work/life balance is amazing, and you are not penalized for taking your time off. Upper management encourages you to take time off, especially for family. A week after I started working for Dealer Tire, my mother passed away unexpectedly. My Market Manager was absolutely amazing; He put in for bereavement leave for me and also allowed me to take an extra day off to be with my family without being penalized. They sent flowers to the funeral home for my mother's service that were stunning! I have never felt like I "belonged" in my entire career until then. The first month is all hands-on training with some of the BEST trainers. They give you the tools you need to succeed and if you ever have any questions, you can call anyone in the company, and they will guide you through it. Management always takes time if you need to talk. In the dealership you are treated as one of their employees, even though you technically don't work for them. There is much room for advancement in the company - there is also possibilities of switching to one of their other sister companies if you want to expand your horizon. The pay is competitive and there is potential to make more if you hit goals. One of the hardest parts of the job is that sometimes it gets lonely (this in a (1) TSA location) - but you can always reach out to someone on your market team if you need to talk. I have learned to be the best me I can be - honest, ethical and responsible.  There is no micro-managing, and management will step in to help if they see you struggling. We are not only a team, but we are also a family. We all help each other succeed.

Dealer Tire is actually pretty great as a company. They pay very well and love to promote from within. The benefits are incredible and upper management really seems to care about their employees. However, lower management seems to be too overwhelmed to deal with problems at individual dealerships. While I was exceeding my sales goal every month, my dealership had so much traffic that I needed a second TSA to help me meet my inspection goals. Management knew this from the start, but said it wasn’t a priority. When they finally hired someone, it wasn’t a good fit. My new coworker talked down to me, did not interact professionally with customers, provided incorrect information and refused to learn from it, refused to do the required daily/monthly reports and tasks (he insisted he did not receive training for any of these things, despite receiving the same training as me), hid in the bathroom for long periods of time when it was busy, and often took long personal calls and shopped online using the company laptop. When I brought these issues up to my manager, he was dismissive and basically just said we needed to get along. Sales also dropped drastically immediately after my coworker started (a trend he noticed as well), so my bonuses disappeared. After I had enough and quit, my manager called my boyfriend since I had blocked his number and said I should have just talked to him instead of leaving, which I had tried to do on multiple occasions. 

Overall, I miss Dealer Tire and wish I didn’t feel the need to leave. Under different circumstances, I would love to work for them again. I really felt like I could have had a great career there.

Dealer Tire has a culture that is in pursuit of customer support and retention within car dealerships.  The corporate office, located in Cleveland, has a very modern feel and is striving to make an impact within the industry.  Most individuals in upper management are more than worthy to be in their position, however there is a good amount of fat that needs to be trimmed.

A large majority of the jobs located across the country are remote and have no direct interaction with other employees or management within Dealer Tire.  Because of this, a lot of political nonsense is effecting the growth of the company.  Some people are qualified within the company and some are not.  If you are willing to travel, kiss toosh, and can handle smoke up your rear...give this company a shot.  Be prepared to achieve goals that are merely chosen and not created from true data.  Be prepared feel like you are alone at times and get used to communication via phone and email.  You will be pawn for the dealership and unless the management of the dealership is directly working with you, you will be chasing the sale...all day, every day.  There are plenty of jobs out there worse than this one but be prepared for extreme monotony.  The company sells its growth but with that growth has been terrible choices in promotions within the Tire Store division.  Watch closely and listen closer to what people are willing to say in order to smooth you over each day.  Compensation can be plentiful but goals are often unrealistic.

Ignore the false, phony, tricky buy you in of good comp and benefits. IT'S NOT WORTH IT. Not by a LONG SHOT. Working for this company is beyond human torture. It is degrading, exasperating, infuriating, depressing, and an utter misery. If you just started; GET OUT WHILE YOU CAN. If you're still there, you know what I am talking about. If you are thinking of working here--D O N ' T !

This company is ruled by the the worst penny-ante tinhorn dictators at the mid management level who are unfit to run a lemonade stand on a hot August day.

This company and your whole job is permeated by 100% LIES. LIES to customers. LIES to each other. LIES to your own data. LIES to the public. LIES, LIES, LIES. You will be lied about. You will be lied to. You will hear lies about others. Senior management will ladle out the most hideous, distorted lies and utter fabrications to convince their customers---the major car companies---that they are working well for them.

They are not.

You will be tested, constantly judged, back-stabbed by everyone, and thrown under the first bus that passes by. You are totally and completely expendable. When you are hired, you are like one cigarette in the hands of a major chain-smoker: One being smoked, one on deck, on simmering in the ashtray. You will be hired, and so too will your replacement and their replacement so when you get tossed it's a mere replacement of socks or paperclips. Socks and paperclips are treated better than employees here. STAY AWAY LIKE IT'S THE PLAGUE. Because it is.

The work on a daily basis in all areas of this location is simple but the leadership backed up by the management team make things harder than they need to be. They have a huge issue with favoritism and slacker worship. The ones that do the lease amount of work or barely work at all get the better schedules and always have work life balance. This location has mandatory scheduled Saturday work which they have a problem being honest about. They tell you its one Saturday a month once you get hired but you'll find yourself working multiple Saturdays a month. Management speaks to you like they care about you but they could care less about your mental or physical health as long as it doesn't cost them money. The team leads operate of pettiness and buck passing. They'll take credit for good ideas before they'll take accountability for their short comings. There are only 30 minutes lunches and no other breaks. If caught taking time to smile or be human you will be punished accordingly. They'll ask you to work overtime for the sake of the business but then take the hours back so you don't get paid for them. The bright side of this location is there are at least 3 people that will try to make your day better other than that you're on your own. Keep notes, use your company email to log your encounters with leadership, and don't let them abuse your work ethic.  

The company is alright to work for but it has drawbacks. This dept is split to handle Dealer Tire's and 1 other subsidiaries payables (this one). Management doesn't have the support they need to make quick decisions. This impacts moral. Employees in this dept. feel stuck/burnt out. Currently, there is no formal team lead or payables manager between the specialist and the director. It is expected that you function as your own. The other specialists help when asked, otherwise you're left by yourself. Upper management can come across as terse, tense, and irritable at times. The daily meetings have turned to mostly remote/video after the pandemic. Most times no one speaks up. If you do speak up, keep it light hearted. Any issues with suppliers? Never just bring it up as an FYI. Always have a: this is the issue, this is why/what/how it happened, who was involved,  what did you do to help resolve, why are you mentioning it, and current status.

Try to only do your job description. If you stand out as more capable than that and don't set the boundry, management will keep piling work on you.

If you want to stand out and can handle the pressure of the extra work, this place is a good place to climb the ladder.

Learn to leave the job at work here.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Warehouse/driver 17 salaries reported	$19.67 per hour
Driver 5 salaries reported	$20.41 per hour
Service advisor 43 salaries reported	$28.30 per hour
Warehouse associate 9 salaries reported	$21.82 per hour
Warehouse lead 1 salary reported	$28.50 per hour

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