automotive technician

auto body technician

car sales executive

automotive service advisor

body shop estimator

Hendrick Automotive Group

What is the best part of working at the company?
Working for Hendrick Automotive Group has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my automotive career. The culture here truly stands apart. It is a fast-paced environment that expects hard work and accountability, but you are never expected to do it alone. Collaboration across teams is encouraged, and leadership is genuinely invested in helping employees succeed both professionally and personally.

One of the things I appreciate most is the servant leadership mindset throughout the organization. Managers listen, communicate, and provide the tools, training, and support needed to grow. There is a strong focus on personal development, leadership growth, and continuous improvement, not just hitting numbers.

What makes Hendrick even more special is the way the company supports its people during all seasons of life. Whether it is celebrating milestones like weddings and new babies, or supporting employees during difficult personal times, there is a real sense of family and care within the organization.

If you are looking for a company that values teamwork, personal growth, strong leadership, and a culture where people genuinely want to see each other succeed, Hendrick Automotive Group is an incredible place to build a career.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The most stressful part of working for, especially in my position, is that many of us are highly driven Type-A personalities who are very competitive and passionate about being the best at what we do. When you are surrounded by high performers, there is naturally pressure to constantly push yourself and maintain a high standard of excellence.

At the same time, that environment is also what makes the company exciting and motivating. It creates a culture where people challenge each other in a positive way, celebrate wins together, and continuously strive to improve both individually and as a team.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
One of the best parts of the culture is that hard work is recognized and celebrated. Whether it is achieving business goals, supporting teammates during challenging times, or celebrating personal milestones with coworkers, there is a strong sense of family throughout the organization. The company does a great job of balancing accountability with encouragement and support.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
A typical day for me at is very dynamic and relationship-driven. My position as a Territory Sales Manager is unique compared to many roles within the company because I work directly with multiple dealerships and interact with a wide range of people throughout the organization — from dealership leadership teams to parts managers, service advisors, and sales consultants.

No two days are exactly the same. One day may involve conducting sales training, helping dealerships develop accessory sales strategies, reviewing performance metrics, or supporting marketing initiatives, while another may focus on problem-solving, collaboration, and helping teams improve profitability and customer experience.

What I enjoy most is the opportunity to build strong relationships and help different departments work together toward common goals. It is a fast-paced role that requires adaptability, communication, and leadership, but it is also extremely rewarding to see dealerships and team members succeed.

I’ve worked in the automotive industry since 2017 and have been employed with Hendrick Automotive twice—once in Wilmington and once in Durham. While my experience in Wilmington was slightly better, my time in Durham was enough to make me decide never to work for Hendrick again.

During my interview, I was verbally told I would only be required to work one Saturday per month, which I agreed to. However, I ended up working six consecutive Saturdays. As a parent with young children, I wasn’t willing to sacrifice my family time while younger employees were given weekends off for hobbies like Airsoft. Balancing work and home life became impossible, so I left.

The compensation also didn’t justify the long hours required. I regularly worked 90+ hours per pay period, but the pay plan for advisors made it impossible to hit commission targets. I raised concerns about this multiple times, even comparing it to the pay plan I had in Wilmington, but management refused to listen. In Wilmington, I earned close to $90,000 a year with the same title and hours. In Durham, I barely made $45,000.

Another glaring issue was the uniform pay structure for Service Advisors. Main shop advisors, who handle diagnostics and warranty work, should not have the same pay plan as express advisors, who focus on maintenance tasks like oil changes and tire rotations. Express advisors handle higher volumes, while main shop advisors deal with more complex jobs. Despite these differences, the compensation didn’t reflect the workload or responsibilities.

To make matters worse, the training I received in Durham was practically nonexistent, even though I had been away from the company for over a year. Thankfully, I was already proficient in writing tickets, billing invoices, and closing repair orders—skills many of my peers lacked. I stayed on top of tasks like closing tickets and submitting payments without being reminded.

Hendrick preaches about culture, but the reality is far from it—the culture is toxic. Management at the Durham store was disorganized and incompetent. They essentially had two service managers, neither of whom were effective, and their absence during critical moments left employees to resolve issues on their own.

The general manager was equally ineffective. She lacked leadership and seemed more suited to sales than running a store. When concerns about pay were brought up, the response was dismissive—even though I had been paid nearly double at another Hendrick location with a lower cost of living.

Overall, my experience in Durham exposed severe flaws in management, pay structure, and work-life balance. While I once believed in the company, this experience left me disillusioned and unwilling to return.

A typical day at work involves signing in to the sales system and waiting in line for a customer. You need to address the customer no matter what and you are not allowed to let the customer just "browse", you must follow them to the point they feel uncomfortable. Also, regardless of what the customer says, if you did not at least get their name and phone number management would constantly threaten to write you up. The company does have a good training program for product knowledge and general sales.
The co-workers in this particular dealership could be a challenge. Some were easy to work with and supported a team environment, and others would push the knife into your back and then give it a twist.
Floor managers were responsible for showing numbers and help to close the sale. There were a few floor managers that were definitely at the top of their game, and would help you to understand different techniques, and there were others who seemed like they could care less. The desking managers were there to "create the deal" or get you the numbers that would be shown to the customer. Out of the three desking mangers, there was only one who wouldn't cut you down and make you feel horrible about your job, another one who didn't make you feel horrible but didn't actually try to help you much either, and then there was one that no matter what you did or how well you did he treated you like you were a child. He made you want to walk out the door every day.
The hardest part of the job is of course favoritism. It doesn't matter if you meet and exceed your goal, if you do not hang out in the social groups or brown nose the management, you will not succeed and you will not be happy. Also, in this environment you need to watch your pay closely to make sure that it is correct. If there is a mistake in your pay, it will take FOREVER to get management to do anything about it, if they do anything at all. You will also spend most of your life there, there is no work/life balance. They will encourage you to come in on your days off as well and if you do not, they go out of their way to make you feel horrible about it.
Unless you are a single person and have a rock solid black heart, I would suggest finding a different place to work.

I’m just going to copy and paste what a previous  employee posted because they are spot on, Where do I even get started with this job? Whew, let’s see. I’ll start by saying this... if you enjoy being heavily micromanaged and being mentally drained 5 days a week then this is the perfect job for you! The turn over is like no other. I definitely should have listened to my friend who was currently working there while I was in training when he told me that I’d hate the job. I didn’t really believe it because they glamorize the job during training to the point where you are brainwashed into thinking it’s a great family environment when in reality they only care about themselves. Management is HORRIBLE and talk to their employees any type of way. I’ve seen so many great reps leave because management views all of us as a number and they are quick to replace you. I’ve seen people cry on the job because of the stress and management just brushes it off or they’ll tell you to quit. They bribe you with bonuses and free lunches like that will make the stress of the job go away. Essentially, WE do all the work setting up success for the dealerships yet it’s still not enough. Policies change DAILY and it’s so hard to keep up with. They add more and more to your daily work load and expect for everything to be completed perfectly. And if not you’ll get an email or confrontation about it. I hated coming to work in fear that I did something wrong the day before. Not fun. Not to mention the 30 outbounds they force you to make every day. Advisors and technicians are very unprofessional so the job felt like a hot line for complaints instead of actually scheduling appointments. They make you order new uniforms like twice a year even if you didn’t even open your uniforms from the previous order. So now I have a closet full of unused hendrick gear. My paychecks were not consistent at all either. I am so glad I was able to get out and I am never looking back. I encourage you to continue your job search if you are looking into this position or company if you care about your sanity. This place drains you, service management is horrible and do not care about anyone but themselves and there pockets. 

Where do I even get started with this job? Whew, let’s see. I’ll start by saying this... if you enjoy being heavily micromanaged and being mentally drained 5 days a week then this is the perfect job for you! The turn over is like no other. I definitely should have listened to my friend who was currently working there while I was in training when he told me that I’d hate the job. I didn’t really believe it because they glamorize the job during training to the point where you are brainwashed into thinking it’s a great family environment when in reality they only care about themselves. Management is HORRIBLE and talk to their employees any type of way. I’ve seen so many great reps leave because management views all of us as a number and they are quick to replace you. I’ve seen people cry on the job because of the stress and management just brushes it off or they’ll tell you to quit. They bribe you with bonuses and free lunches like that will make the stress of the job go away. Essentially, WE do all the work setting up success for the dealerships yet it’s still not enough. Policies change DAILY and it’s so hard to keep up with. They add more and more to your daily work load and expect for everything to be completed perfectly. And if not you’ll get an email or confrontation about it. I hated coming to work in fear that I did something wrong the day before. Not fun. Not to mention the 30 outbounds they force you to make every day. Advisors and technicians are very unprofessional so the job felt like a hot line for complaints instead of actually scheduling appointments. They make you order new uniforms like twice a year even if you didn’t even open your uniforms from the previous order. So now I have a closet full of unused hendrick gear. My paychecks were not consistent at all either. I am so glad I was able to get out and I am never looking back. I encourage you to continue your job search if you are looking into this position or company if you care about your sanity.

Where do I begin. The so-called managers are only looking out for themselves and the ones above them. They do not take care of their employees, and favoritism runs rampant in this place. 
Example - one technician wanted to buy a car from them and they said it would be $11,000, another technician wanted to buy the same car and they said they would sell it to him for $9,000, the same car. That's just one of numerous examples I could give. 
They pay their technicians pennies compared to what other companies pay their technicians. The managers will talk your ear off about their boats and motorcycles, but trying to find a solution to the problem you presented them and they are useless! 
They lost over 30% of their staff last year and it was not due to Covid, it was because their managers are lazy and complacent. Most of the employees that quit went to other dealerships where they were given better positions with better pay from the start, facts. 
The managers do not take ownership and will find anyway they can to blame someone else!! Ironically, the GM has a "taking ownership" book right there in his office, yet he never takes ownership of anything wrong going on with the dealership. 
They preach and have these 7 core values posted all over the dealership, yet they abide by none of them.
They say they promote from within, but instead they would rather bring in someone new than promote from within! 
If you want to work hard yet still feel like you are just a number and like managers lying to your face and then talking about you behind your back, this is the place for you. 

This is the worst job I've ever had. I've been miserable and trying to find a new job since training ended. Everyone that's been there forever has brainwashed themselves into believing the company cares when in reality it probably did when they started but it certainly doesn't now. Everyone that's new seems to have the same glossy eyed look of confusion because of poor training and leadership support. Working here involves knowing an insane amount of information, most of which you have to reach out to multiple people to obtain. Providing a positive customer experience is almost impossible. Dealing with a negative customer experience will result in you being thrown under the bus 100% of the time. "Rules" only apply when management feels like it. Management is usually late but will call you out for being a minute late every time. Management also always leaves early. The amount of work you do is never genuinely appreciated. You are always expected to outperform yourself every month and when you don't you get coached for it. I can keep going on.

My day starts off with phone calls, before I leave my apartment, I have someone calling me concerning a vehicle. Which for me is great! My day is off to a great start. I love seeing the excitement in people's eyes when they have found that perfect vehicle that they have been dreaming about. I have learned that you have to have patience when it comes to money, not everyone is willing to give it up so easily, but you have to  know how to bring the customer intensity level down. Occasionally, free mats or a T- Shirt will do the trick! As with any sales job, there is the typical I can out sale anybody sales  guy, but that's typical. For the most part, we are all hard working sales professional doing what we can to get a piece of the pie. My managers are usually working side by side to help you nail the customer on the car, color of  the car or just a payment. Mostly I work alone, I like the one on one with the customer, it gives them piece of mind, when too many hands are involved, they seem to get a little nervous. Well, the hardest part of my job is seeing someone who really needs a vehicle get turned away due to bad credit, or they haven't any cash to put down to soak up some of the negative equity they have. I love to say, the most enjoyable part of my job is seeing that smile on the customers face as they drive away in there new vehicle, it makes me love what I do, and what I do is sale's.

a typical day at work: starts at 9am, you will either be yelled at or praised in your 10am meeting it all depends on the managers moods. When you get a customer don't expect real help but be expected to do everything perfectly. You'll watch a select couple of favorite salespeople be handed deals left and right while you struggle to survive. Then you MIGHT get to leave at 6pm if its your early night, if not you're there until 8pm as long as you don't have customer and all of the locks are checked, etc. Last day of the month expect to be there until 10pm no matter what.
What I learned: Not to trust. Although I did learn how to sell All of the people I learned from are now gone. So you'll likely be hung out to dry and have to learn the hard way if you're new to the business.
Management: A couple of them are great people, and a couple of them are snakes and down right evil human beings. The good ones are on their way out because the evil ones are slowly doing away with everyone.
Workplace culture: its toxic. dont be fooled by the "servant leadership" bs at orientation
the hardest part of the job: working 50+ hours a week and dedicating your life to something that has no respect for you.
the most enjoyable part of the job: you can make great money if you put up with the bs, keep your head down, and work hard, but even then it doesnt matter sometimes if they dont like you personally. Oh and you get free health insurance.

Thankfully, this Service Manager is no longer there, but HR and higher up never looked into this. 

You better make sure that you're NEVER sick. I ended up getting sick to the point that I had to be hospitalized. While I was in the hospital, I WAS FIRED. I had everything and then some to prove that I was in the hospital and that I couldn't return to work due to being stuck on an IV pump. That didn't matter. After HR and corporate was informed of this, they never investigated it and I was put down as "ineligible for rehire". I should also add that this happened even though I was sought out and offered the job while working at another dealership. There is no balance between work and personal life. You're expected to work extra and not get paid for it.

I know several people that were there and people that are still there. Their turnover rate, in Service, is INSANE; including service managers. The culture within the shop is absolutely awesome and pretty much everyone gets along like family. There is an obvious separation between Sales, Service, and Management as the departments really don't converse with one-another. I'm not sure about the advisers, but us techs and the porters were being paid below the industry average.

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