The NADA Academy program prepares current and future dealership leaders to operate a successful and profitable automotive business while examining the latest in industry trends and technology.
The program includes either six one-week classroom sessions or six month-long live online sessions, once or twice a week, over the course of a year. Sessions are taught by industry experts, with hands-on practical application in each area of the dealership.
We recently talked to a few local NADA Academy Graduates and learned more about them, their thoughts on the Academy, and their key takeaways. The following are excerpts from our conversations.
Dan Clowes
Title: GSM/Partner
Company: Taylors Auto Max GMC Nissan
NADA Academy Graduation Date:
May 2021 — NADA Graduating Class 364
How did you get into the industry?
I have been in the auto industry since 2002. I went to Montana State University from 1998 to 2002 and graduated with a degree in history. After graduating, I couldn’t find a job in my field. The big joke is that I come from a family of engineers — my dad and my sister are graduates of Stanford — and I was supposed to follow suit.
I have always been a people person and had a knack for sales, so I answered a classified ad and started working at the Yellowstone GMC Buick Pontiac dealership. From there, I worked at Ressler Motors and then moved to Zurich Insurance Group, where I specialized in automotive dealers.
While working at Zurich, I met the Taylor family — they were one of my clients. They asked me to come and work for them, and as part of bringing me on, they agreed to sponsor me at the NADA Academy. I ended up going to work for them in 2019.
Why did you decide to attend the NADA Academy?
I have always been a proponent of career education, and attending the NADA Academy has always been a goal of mine. To me, the NADA Academy provides a master’s degree for the auto industry and gives a higher level of education you can’t get in day-to-day work.
Before the NADA Academy, I felt like I knew the sales side of the business pretty well, but I’d never turned a wrench or changed oil in my life. Yet, 60% of our employees operate in that Fixed OPS department. And, if you’re going to try to manage, lead or mentor, and don’t have the background or the experience, the only way to get that knowledge is through something like the NADA Academy.
You’ll find that, in a lot of dealerships, owners generally have come up through one of two sides: the sales side or the service side. And the comprehensive education program that NADA Academy provides teaches dealers the skills that are needed to be successful — leadership, how you read your financial statement, new and used cars, parts, service and more.
Please share one of the key takeaways you learned from the NADA Academy.
There are many takeaways, so it is hard to choose just one. I benefited a lot from the six-week leadership class. We learned how to motivate employees and get them going — how you fire them up, not fire them. Another big takeaway is that you really need to pay attention. Running a dealership is like running four, uniquely-operating small businesses encased in one. The parts department must be completely viable and profitable 100% on its own as does service, new car sales and used car sales. We learned to watch them all for their own KPI metrics. The academy teaches just how robust the business is and how many details there are to manage at the highest level, from the person who’s washing cars to the one who’s selling them all the way up to the employee running the financial statement.
Do you have any advice for your peers that might be considering going to the NADA Academy?
I would highly recommend the academy to all those looking to improve their skillset. The material reviewed is critical to producing well-rounded, full-store operators and can speed up the learning curve to manage departments outside your own professional experience and background.
Chad Notbohm
Title: General Manager
Company: Notbohm Motors
NADA Academy Graduation Date:
October 2022 — NADA Graduating Class 393
How did you get into the industry?
Back in the good ‘ol days, my father was a band and choir teacher. After some years, he realized he couldn’t make much money teaching. In 1984, he approached a couple of friends from church and purchased their Chevrolet store from them. They were advanced in years, and it was a perfect time for them to retire and help with the transition — working with my family. I was 10 at the time, and I often went to work with him. I would clean the shop and the showroom and would work on little things that needed to be done. There were eight employees at the dealership who taught me about parts, service, selling and much more. My interest in the industry took off from there and I never left.
I attended North Dakota State University (NDSU) in Fargo, ND, and received a degree in business. I worked at Gateway Chevrolet during that time in the parts department and was promoted to Service Manager. Then in 1995, they weren’t renewing franchise agreements in small towns. My father had the option to close the dealership or move. He found an opportunity in Miles City, MT, and moved. In the summer of 1999, my father asked me to come home because the business was growing and he needed help. I worked as a Service Manager until about eight or nine years ago. At that point, I became General Manager as my father wanted to start slowing down and move toward retirement.
Why did you decide to attend the NADA Academy?
We started with the Dealer Group when I was Service Manager. We then branched off and added a Fixed Ops Group. Now active in two 20 Groups, the group moderators always asked me, “Have you been through the Dealer Academy yet?” I hadn’t. I wasn’t big on traveling and being that far away from my young family at the time. Then COVID hit and I heard that they were doing the Academy online; I jumped at that opportunity.
Please share one of the key takeaways you learned from the NADA Academy.
There are so many takeaways, but I think the biggest thing was learning in-depth about the different parts of the dealership. I knew a lot about the dealership, but the approach the instructors took got really deep into many things — from financials in the back office to the financial statement plus different ways to look at service or parts. I learned so much.
Do you have any advice for your peers that might be considering going to the NADA Academy?
Go when you are ready. If you are being pushed to go, make sure you feel you have enough dealership experience and it’s the right time in your life to go.
I’m glad that I waited as long as I did. My work experience from years at the dealership and my understanding of the industry allowed me to jump in with both feet at the Academy. I was ready to learn and I retained more. I think it made for a better experience.
Mike Schneider
Title: Owner
Company: Jim Taylor Motors
NADA Academy Graduation Date:
August 2019 — NADA Graduating Class 361
How did you get into the industry?
I grew up in the car industry. My dad ran a few stores when I was young. I remember when I was in the 4th grade, my dad had a bad experience with an employee at a Ford store. I told myself then that I wanted to own a Ford store someday and do better.
That experience stuck with me, and I made ownership my goal. I had to figure out a way to become an owner, and my partner from my last company knew that. We had been good friends, and he knew that Jim Taylor of Jim Taylor Motors was looking to retire and didn’t have a solid succession plan for the store in Fort Benton, MT. My friend helped Jim and me connect. I got along great with Jim, and we figured out a way for me to buy him out and take over the dealership.
Why did you decide to attend the NADA Academy?
Two weeks after I took over and began running Jim Taylor Motors, the service director quit. I had come from the sales side of the business, and I knew the metrics of service, but my depth of knowledge in parts and service was not where it needed to be. I decided that the quickest way to gain the depth of knowledge needed was to enroll in the NADA Academy. That was a decision I will never regret. The NADA Academy really helped and gave me the tools and understanding that have carried me to where I am today.
Please share one of the key takeaways you learned from the NADA Academy.
It is difficult to say there’s just one, that diminishes the million other things I learned while attending.
Personally, I think the service and parts training was hugely beneficial. Not to take anything away from anything from service classes, but they really did a knockout job teaching parts. Also, when it came to understanding income, I had a decent grasp of that prior to attending the Academy, but I definitely added some depth of knowledge on the accounting side.
Overall, anything I was lacking, the Academy provided it for me in one way or another. They did a really good job. It’s a great training program.
Do you have any advice for your peers that might be considering going to the NADA Academy?
I would definitely say, just from my personal experience, opt for the in-person. When I started the Academy, it was in-person, and due to COVID, classes were moved online. The Academy does a good job with virtual classes, but the in-person allows you to learn a lot from the people you’re in the class with. The connections you make with other people are priceless and can benefit you for a lifetime.
The other thing would be, if you’re going to go, go. If you’re not ready to learn, if someone’s forcing you to go, don’t go. Not to generalize, but as an example, if you’re a generational person and it’s your parents making you go, you’re probably not ready. If you’re ready and you’re asking to go, and you’ll be telling your parents or the principal that you want to attend the NADA Academy. It’s one of those things you’re going to get as much as you want out of it, so be ready.
Kevin Kaltschmidt
Title: General Manager
Company: Don “K” Whitefish
NADA Academy Graduation Date:
March 2023 – Graduating Class 401
How did you get into the industry?
I’m a second-generation dealer. I started in the industry when I was eight years old, picking up cigarette butts off the sales lot for $2.00 an hour. I spent a lot of my time after school and summers working at the dealership. After high school, I joined the Marine Corps and then attended college at the University of Montana (UM) in Missoula. During college, I spent my summers working in various positions at the dealership and have been full-time for the past eight years. I have worked at almost every position and every department. We are on our fourth expansion in a short amount of time, and I am looking forward to learning more and growing with the company.
Why did you decide to attend the NADA Academy?
I had been told by 20 Group members and other people in the industry that attending the NADA Academy was the best decision they ever made. They were right. I learned more from the Academy than from my four-year business degree because of the specific and relevant information that was taught.
For me, it was important to wait until I was ready so I could get the most out of it. So, it was never really a question of if, but when I was ready. I started attending the Academy two years ago, and then COVID hit. I paused my participation and ended up going back when in-person was available again. I graduated this past March.
Please share one of the key takeaways you learned from the NADA Academy.
I have a very long list. After each class, I had about 15-plus things that I wanted to implement at my store. I think I learned the most during service week, even though I had been working in service for a long time. Understanding service department metrics and what to be looking for was eye-opening.
Overall, the relationships I’ve made from attending the Academy will benefit me for a lifetime. Class 401 had Fixed Ops Directors, an HR Manager, a Controller, Finance Directors, General Sales Managers, Dealers and other job titles as well; there were also some second-generation like me — a very good mix of different people with different skill sets. We learned as much from each other as we did from the instructors. There was a lot of power of the room.
Do you have any advice for your peers that might be considering going to the NADA Academy?
It’s a big investment of time and money, but it will definitely be a net positive. I encourage anyone to go, no matter their age. I think there are a lot of people that haven’t gone that are older than myself — I’m 35. There seems to be a kind of resistance of thinking I don’t need this, or I know enough. No matter how young or old you are, the Academy is a huge benefit to you and your business. Throughout the year-long learning process, there’s no way you can’t find things that need to be improved on and get ideas to implement. If nothing else, it’s an opportunity to evaluate your business in every department.
Attending the NADA Academy is like getting a master’s degree in automotive dealership management. But compared to attending college, the Academy costs a lot less money and takes a lot less time.
Anthony Michlig
Title: Platform Manager
Company: Butte Auto Group
NADA Graduation Date:
November 2021 — Graduating Class 379
How did you get into the industry?
After studying business communications in Western Montana, I took my first job as a salesperson at a local Chevrolet dealership. I immediately knew that I was in the right business! I moved on to larger dealer groups in multiple cities and excelled in sales, finance and desking. I learned each position and gravitated toward the entire operation versus one position. I have always been good with people and loved new cars, so it was a match! I became the Platform Manager for Butte Auto Group in 2019 and haven’t looked back!
Why did you decide to attend the NADA Academy?
I have always sought to learn from successful peers in our industry, and the NADA Academy is an organization that has taken decades of industry experience that far outweighs what any single organization or 20 Group could offer. I manage four new car dealerships, and I needed a blueprint for success. I am a leader that promotes the “always learning” motto within my organizations. When any employee seeks more knowledge, I always facilitate it happening, and this opportunity for me was no different. The Academy would became my master’s class for successfully running four dealerships.
Please share one of the key takeaways you learned from the academy.
While specific takeaways from the academy may vary depending on the individual and their role within the industry, one takeaway for me from NADA Academy is a deep understanding of the fundamentals and best practices of running a successful automotive dealership. They key in on customer-centricity. The program emphasizes the significance of building and maintaining strong relationships with customers, understanding their needs and preferences, and providing exceptional customer service. I also really enjoyed the information and tools that emphasized the importance of continuous improvement and adapting to changes in the industry. I learned about emerging trends, technology advancements and evolving customer expectations. The Academy provided insights into strategies for staying competitive in a rapidly changing market and managing various aspects of dealership operations, including sales, marketing, finance, parts and service.
Do you have any advice for your peers that might be considering going to the NADA Academy?
Any time I seek to learn and grow in the industry, I set clear goals. Whether it’s improving your skills in a particular area or gaining a comprehensive understanding of dealership operations, having clear goals will help you make the most of your time at the academy. I strive to be open-minded to what I do not know instead of closing myself off to new information. I would also attempt to be fully engaged. There are many opportunities in workshops, discussions and networking opportunities to connect with industry professionals and learn from their insights. What really cemented what I was learning was applying the knowledge and skills in real time!
