A Case Analysis on Walker Auto Sales and Service

By: Jessel Anoc

I. Facts

Walker Auto Sales and Services was Started by Walter Sullivan in 1983. The

current site of operations is located at a busy urban highway intersection. Extensive

renovation of the 30 yr. old building was done. Walter Sullivan is well known in the

community. The company has both front-end (sales department) and back-end

(service department) operations. Sales department is composed of: a sales manager,

seven salespeople, an office manager, and a secretary. 

The company is a full dealership for a major domestic automobile brand.

Walker Auto Sales and Service provide three main services: new car sales, used car

sales, and repair and maintenance services. Because of its competitive nature of the

market, the company had been made survey, focus groups, and analysis to measure

the company’s service and to provide high level of customer satisfaction.

II. Definition of the Problem/ Statement of the Problem

This study aims to answer the following questions:

1. The structures of the organization to its different duties.

2. The different things to be done in the organization

III. Objectives

 To know the after sales service perception of customers

 To ascertain the satisfaction level and its influences

 To measure the impact of the above analysis on future sales

 To study whether customer satisfied with their service

IV. Alternative Courses of Action

Here are the lists of courses of action the WASS can take to solve its problem:

The organization chart for Walker Auto Sales and Services is shown in Figure 7.9.

 In this organizational structure, all functions are managed independently.

However, the value-creation processes of an automobile dealership, the sale

and delivery of new and used cars and car servicing, would be cross-

functional. This tends to insulate too many of the workers from the customers

and limits and quality of the customer service. It also tends to create the silo

effect with one group of workers not working cooperatively with one another.

In this case, management should divide the different duties to the right

personnel. Each worker should present together as one to prevent chaos as

well as to do work according to their assigned task in order.

 Action plans that Darren might consider developing must tailor the systems to

the needs of various types of customers. He must ensure that he develops

 appropriate infrastructure, practices and tools to support his vision. These

might include:

a. Customer relationship management

b. Leadership and strategic planning

c. Human resources management

d. Process management

e. Information and knowledge management

For example, car buyers have different needs from those who are coming in for shop service

to their cars. For car buyers to be able to obtain a wide range of vehicles and options to

evaluate, have access to available salespeople, enjoy a prompt greeting, and feel comfortable

and un-pressured in reaching a buying decision, Darren must plan on exercising leadership

and strategic planning to develop the required infrastructure. Because customers expect

salespeople to be courteous, to be knowledgeable about the cars, to respect their time, and to

honor verbal promises, courteous salespeople must be hired and trained to support customer

relationship management, develop good processes, and work to improve systems through

information and knowledge management. For repair and maintenance service, customers

want to have the work explained appropriately, to be fully informed of any additional

necessary work, and to have all work reviewed on completion. They want good time

estimates and communications with the service department. Thus repair service people must

not only be technically being good to their duties but somehow to completely cater the good

behaviour to customer and to the whole organization.

V. Recommendation

The Walker Auto and Sale Service encounter challenges that may reflect to the

business. In order to solve this problem, it is recommended that WASS Company

should:
 Pursue a business that places a high level of competence

 Restructure the organization so that it is flexible, innovative and appropriate

 The needs to become the dealership of choice in its market

 Reshape the organization to be as one family so that unity could be the reason

to company’s excellences.