As a consultant to the industry for many years and the managing director of Planning Plus, Gavin McGahey’s book provides the insight into what makes a business grow.
Gavin McGahey is well know in collision repair circles. Having worked his way through the industry from panel beater to business owner to now running a consultancy & software business to assist others. Planning Plus is a well loved workflow planning & productivity system.
Forty years is a lot of intellectual property stored up, which he has been sharing with others who have hired his expertise. Now McGahey has formalised that knowledge into a book for any business owner to utilise and, as such, he is uniquely qualified to talk in the language that bodyshop owners understand.
The book’s title: ‘Know Your Numbers the Heartbeat of Your Business’, sums up the distillation of all he teaches in his consultancy. Once you are fully aware of where your business is, then you can plan its future.
With chapter headings such as: ‘You can’t fix what you don’t measure’; ‘If you fail to plan you plan to fail’; ‘Incentivise’ and ‘Every second matters’ - it becomes obvious that an intimate knowledge of your company is vital. The experience of being on both sides of the collision repair shop coin informs Gavin’s sage advice, keen analysis and practical guidance when it comes to the creation of optimal systems and processes.
Starting off with the chapter heading, ‘The car with no dashboard’, sums up what the book is about: you cannot drive a car without the use of the information a dashboard provides - the same goes for your business.
But this is more than just accountancy, McGahey writes about leadership within the business; marketing your business; negotiations with insurance companies, car owners and parts suppliers. In short, the full gamut of what is needed to push your business ahead.
McGahey believes every business has the possibility of enjoying double digit growth and that is what he lays out for owners to follow to achieve it.
Repair shop owners already earning such growth understand the importance of analysis, how to focus on the little things and make one per cent improvements here and there. Business owners with this mindset do not settle. This is because they know that once you are settled, you’re stagnant.
The book is full of many examples with every chapter containing a case study from some of McGahey’s clients who have made the jump, showing that any business can start from any position on the ladder and still improve.
Progressive shop owners ‘incentivise’ their employees and foster a team culture. A culture that is respectful of each member’s needs and values; a culture that is open and transparent so everyone knows where the business is at and where it is wanting to head; a culture that rewards everyone in the business as everyone is vital to its success.
It requires the Three C’s of Management: creating a system, clarity around the system, consistency with the system.
You may want to run your business until the day you retire but McGahey is suggesting you should always look at your business as if you are wishing to sell it. Would someone want to buy your business because it is worthy or because it could be bought cheaply? Know your numbers.
Ever pragmatic, McGahey also understands the system is not foolproof, as he notes in the book, paraphrasing the basketball great Michael Jordan: “I have made a 1000 mistakes, that is how I succeed.”
The final chapter is a neat tie-in to show that hiring a consultant to assist in getting the most out of your business is always a good financial investment.
Pre sales have been consistent and McGahey has already been receiving rave reviews: "Congrats on a great book mate! I think this is a great play book for collision repair owners" - Ben Fewtrell Max My Profit.
"Gavin’s knowledge and passion for supporting collision repair shop owners is evident. The case studies are open, honest and relatable. I appreciate that you accurately articulated what we're trying to do at Mainline. And your descriptions were completely honest, including the part about my failures! :-) I think that adds credibility to your message" - Joe Hinkens, Mainline Autobody.
To preorder your copy of 'Know your numbers' click here.