You are an under(ish) 40-year old shop owner or manager or aspiring to be one. Naturally you’ll be planning to visit the Collision Repair Expo in Melbourne to see all the latest products and learn from the extensive industry seminar program. You won’t want to miss the Paint & Panel Next Generation half-day seminar on Wednesday 5 April, sponsored by Right2Drive.
The main aim of the seminar is to meet up, bond and make contact with other Next Generation people in the industry. It’s an informal afternoon that takes place at the VACC and we promise plenty of inspiration, fun, interaction and very little just listening and looking at a screen.
The challenges in this industry continue to grow and it’s easy to get overwhelmed. Pat Farmer is a man who just doesn’t give up. He started out as an apprentice mechanic, had a career in politics and then became the ultimate ultra-marathon runner. He’s the only man on the planet to have run from the North to the South Pole, an agonising 20,919km, all the while raising money for charity and awareness about clean water.
He firmly believes: “That any one of us can achieve anything that we set our mind to, if we take it just one step at a time.” An amusing and engaging speaker, he’ll be talking about how he made it through his tough times and didn’t give up (see video at the end of this article).
Jason Trewin from I-CAR will be there to challenge your attitudes towards training and recruitment.
Damian Mullins is the big boss at sponsors Right2Drive and very enthusiastic about this event. The company is obsessed with customer satisfaction and view any scoring below a nine out of 10 as a failure on their part. He and his team will be talking about measuring and increasing customer satisfaction – and yes there will be homework on this session.
When we held Next Generation two years ago, delegates enjoyed hearing from other Next Gen business owners. We’ll be dragging a couple of young trailblazers to the stage, arm twisting is in progress – gentlemen you know who you are.
Ben FewtrellLeadership skills are a set that you develop and improve on throughout life, so it’s often a challenge to lead when you are younger than your team. Ben Fewtrell from business coaching company Max My Profits started his own business at 18 but after 10 years decided to pursue his passion for business in a different direction. A well-known keynote speaker, in the last 10 years he has become a published author, featured on Sky News, became the Director of the SME Association of Australia and transformed the lives of many business owners. He has two podcast shows which are downloaded by thousands per month. - Business Brain Food and Daily Business Tips. Fewtrell will finish the day with a high-energy session on leadership – no cruising or snoozing with this one.
What networking session would be complete without hoofing it down to the pub afterwards to chew over the day’s events, get to know more people and make plans for day one of the Expo? Well this one is no exception – we will be finishing around 5pm so there’s plenty of time for a couple of drinks before you go off to dinner and and get plenty of beauty sleep.
Tickets cost just $82.50 and include lunch at 12pm to ensure there are no grumbling stomachs in the afternoon. Click here to book.