Service Manager/Director

Valley Ford Truck•Cleveland, OH

About The Position

Valley Ford Truck is seeking an experienced, results-driven Service Manager to lead its commercial truck service department. The role oversees daily service operations and leads and develops service advisors, technicians, and support personnel while driving operational efficiency, customer satisfaction, and profitability. The department specializes in commercial truck maintenance, diagnostics, and repairs across Ford, Isuzu, and Hino manufacturers. The position calls for a hands-on leader familiar with commercial fleet customers and focused on dependable service, reducing vehicle downtime, and building long-term customer relationships. The Service Manager manages service operations, department financial performance, technician development and productivity, commercial fleet relationships, warranty processes, repair quality, compliance, and customer experience. The role works with dealership management and other departments to support broader dealership objectives and continuously improve service department performance.

Requirements

Proven leadership experience in automotive, medium-duty, heavy-duty, or commercial truck service operations.
Demonstrated ability to manage employees, set performance expectations, and drive measurable results.
Strong understanding of service department financial performance, labor sales, gross profit, and expense management.
Experience managing technician productivity, shop workflow, and repair order processes.
Excellent customer service, communication, problem-solving, and organizational skills.
Strong computer skills and ability to use dealership management systems, service reporting tools, and performance metrics.
Ability to manage competing priorities in a fast-paced commercial service environment.

Nice To Haves

Previous Service Manager or Assistant Service Manager experience at a commercial truck dealership.
Experience with Ford Commercial Vehicles and/or Ford commercial truck service operations.
Familiarity with Isuzu and Hino medium-duty trucks.
Knowledge of manufacturer warranty procedures, fleet maintenance programs, and commercial vehicle repair processes.
Experience managing both flat-rate and hourly technicians.

Responsibilities

Oversee daily service department operations, workflow, scheduling, and timely completion of customer repairs.
Lead, motivate, coach, and develop service advisors, technicians, and support personnel; establish performance expectations, accountability standards, and measurable objectives.
Manage technician workloads, shop capacity, dispatching, and repair order flow to maximize productivity and efficiency.
Maintain a clean, safe, organized, and professional service environment.
Collaborate with dealership management and other departments to support dealership objectives.
Manage departmental revenue, gross profit, expenses, and operating performance against established financial objectives.
Monitor performance indicators including labor sales, effective labor rate, gross profit percentage, technician productivity and efficiency, hours per repair order, and customer-pay sales.
Develop strategies to improve labor sales, technician efficiency, labor gross profit, and departmental profitability.
Review financial statements and operating reports to identify opportunities for improvement.
Ensure accurate labor time reporting, repair order documentation, warranty submissions, and internal accounting practices.
Identify opportunities to increase customer-pay, warranty, maintenance, and fleet service business.
Recruit, hire, train, and retain qualified technicians and service personnel.
Monitor technician productivity, efficiency, work quality, and performance against objectives.
Ensure technicians have suitable training, equipment, tooling, and technical resources.
Support technical development across Ford, Isuzu, and Hino commercial truck platforms.
Identify shop capacity constraints, workflow inefficiencies, and equipment needs affecting production.
Promote quality repairs, first-time fixes, teamwork, and continuous improvement.
Work with shop leadership to manage repair priorities, reduce delays, and maintain consistent production.
Build and maintain relationships with commercial fleet accounts, business owners, fleet managers, and individual customers.
Ensure timely customer communication, accurate repair estimates, clear explanations of required repairs, and updates on vehicle status.
Develop strategies to reduce vehicle downtime and improve commercial customer turnaround times.
Grow fleet maintenance agreements, preventive maintenance programs, and recurring commercial service business.
Resolve escalated customer concerns professionally and promptly; support retention through dependable service, transparent communication, and consistent repair quality.
Pursue opportunities to expand mobile service and on-site fleet support where appropriate.
Ensure compliance with Ford, Isuzu, and Hino warranty policies, procedures, and documentation requirements.
Oversee warranty repairs for accurate submissions, timely processing, and reimbursement.
Ensure repairs meet manufacturer specifications and dealership quality standards.
Monitor comeback repairs, complaints, and quality concerns and implement corrective actions as needed.
Maintain compliance with workplace safety requirements, environmental regulations, and dealership policies.
Ensure proper documentation and handling of customer vehicles, repair orders, and service records.
Establish high standards for customer satisfaction, service quality, and communication.
Monitor customer satisfaction results, complaints, and service performance trends.
Develop and implement processes to improve customer experience and operational consistency.
Conduct performance reviews and coaching sessions with service department personnel.
Identify ways to streamline processes, improve accountability, and increase department capacity.
Proactively identify operational challenges before they affect customers or profitability.