ABM Q4 - Flipbook - Page 31
OPINION
RETAIL
already in the sector
elsewhere, there is a risk that valuable
sector knowledge leaves with them.
Make experience easier
The challenge is not a lack of experience
within the aftermarket; it is that
specialist experience is it always obvious
or easy to identify digitally.
Consider this on a candidate profile:
'Experienced sales professional
responsible for developing key accounts
and achieving sales targets.' It could
describe thousands of people.
Compare that with: 'National account
manager – 12 years’ automotive
aftermarket experience managing
motor factor, buying group and national
distributor accounts. £8m portfolio with
14% growth over two years.'
Suddenly, we know the industry,
customers, scale and achievement.
If you have spent 15 years selling
braking and chassis products through the
independent aftermarket, say so. If your
customers include motor factors, buying
groups, national distributors, fleets,
garages or OEMs, make that clear.
And do not just describe what you did;
show what you achieved. Responsibilities
tell us what you were employed to do.
Achievements tell us how well you did it.
Impact for employers
For aftermarket businesses, retaining
experienced people starts with making
career progression easier to see.
Look inside as well as out. Before a role
gets advertised, ask whether someone
already in the business could grow into it.
Write job specs that reward specifics.
If you filter on generic titles like 'sales
manager', you could miss a national
account manager with 12 years in motor
factors and buying groups.
Searching by customer type, product
category, sector experience and scale
can reveal candidates whose job title
alone does not tell the full story.
Make progression visible, not
assumed. A career path that only exists
→ Kerrie Richards
is director at Glen Callum Associates
in a manager’s head does not help
retention. Businesses should have open
conversations about development,
responsibility and future opportunities
before valuable staff look elsewhere.
None of this replaces good pay and a
positive culture. But if the aftermarket
wants to retain its experienced people,
businesses must be proactive.
Part of the conversation
If the aftermarket genuinely wants to
address its skills challenge, attracting
new people is only half the equation.
Where businesses can provide career
progression, retaining good people
should be the priority. But when someone
does decide it is time to move, retaining
their knowledge and experience within
the wider aftermarket still matters.
Candidates have a role to play by
making their specialist knowledge and
achievements clear. Recruiters and
employers have a role too: looking
beyond applications, identifying talent
within our sector and making career
opportunities visible.
Used well, AI could help the
aftermarket uncover more of the talent
it already has. AI alone will not solve
the aftermarket's skills challenge, but it
is changing how talent is identified and
connected with opportunities.
That makes it increasingly important
for both businesses and individuals to
ensure aftermarket skills, experience and
career opportunities are visible.
Q4 2026
AUTOMOTIVE BUSINESS
31
