Auto Collabs

Tomi Mikula says he receives death threats almost every week.

He's moved homes to protect his privacy, built a business that challenges how dealerships sell cars, and believes the industry's biggest problems start with the way salespeople are paid. But to understand why he's willing to fight so hard, you have to understand where he came from.

The founder of Delivrd joins Paul J Daly and Kyle Mountsier in-person for an unusually personal conversation about growing up homeless, surviving a childhood without anyone looking out for him, and eventually becoming a successful dealership finance manager. After years of mastering the F&I process, Tomi realized he wanted to change the very system that had made him successful. Today, Delivrd negotiates hundreds of car deals each month, and Tomi has become one of the industry's most outspoken consumer advocates.

The conversation gets into some serious disagreements about dealership franchise laws, commission-based compensation, one-price selling, and whether the traditional F&I office should even exist. Tomi also shares his vision for a dealership where competing brands sit under one roof, salespeople earn six-figure salaries, and the customer experience comes first. And underneath all of it is a surprisingly personal question: what kind of legacy do you leave when you grew up without one?

Chapters

00:00 Death threats, homelessness, and the fight to change car buying

02:01 How Tomi's childhood shaped his mission

04:45 The death threats that forced him to move

06:59 What happens if Delivrd actually succeeds?

12:17 Why Tomi wants to eliminate commission-based car sales

17:26 How automakers and franchise laws shape the problem

22:17 Why dealership training is falling short

25:35 The day Tomi decided to leave F&I

29:09 What really happens on Delivrd's dealership calls

34:03 What the old Tomi would think of Delivrd

37:49 Why he believes the F&I office needs to change

39:28 The case for $100K salaries in automotive sales

41:56 Can the industry become a place people want to work?

45:11 Tomi designs his ideal dealership

49:58 Why customers might pay more for trustworthy advice

53:41 When dealerships fight back on social media

56:27 The legacy Tomi wants to leave

Links

Tomi Mikula: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomislavmikula/

Delivrd: https://www.delivrdto.me/

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What if the biggest thing holding back the automotive industry is the people leading it?

Former Toyota executive Jack Hollis has spent decades building relationships with dealers, developing teams, and watching some of the best leaders in the business do things differently. And he believes the gap between great dealership cultures and struggling ones comes down to something surprisingly simple: whether leaders actually care about their people.

The conversation starts with his unlikely journey from professional baseball to Toyota and quickly turns into a candid examination of dealership leadership. Jack explains why trust becomes harder to find as you climb the corporate ladder, why culture and strategy must work together, and how a chance encounter with a former colleague on an airplane reminded him what decades of leadership really leave behind.

The conversation gets especially pointed when Jack challenges the way businesses try to manufacture culture with ping pong tables, employee perks, and flashy lounges. He also joins Kyle in confronting a bigger question: what would it take to make automotive retail an industry people genuinely fight to join? Along the way, the hosts wrestle with the limits of technology, the importance of relationships, and the uncomfortable responsibility leaders have to change themselves first.

Chapters

00:00 Jack Hollis on the biggest misconception about culture

02:57 From professional baseball to an unlikely career at Toyota

05:47 Why OEMs and dealers struggle to understand each other

10:32 Why leadership gets lonelier the higher you climb

15:39 Can culture really drive the bottom line?

17:00 The airplane encounter that brought Jack to tears

19:27 Why ping pong tables and employee perks can't create culture

22:02 How to spot authentic leadership inside a dealership

23:56 Does the auto industry have a bigger leadership problem?

26:34 Jack's challenge to automotive leaders

27:04 Why technology can't fix broken relationships

Links

ASOTU CON West: https://www.asotuconwest.com/

Jack Hollis: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hollisjack/

Accrual Equity Partners: https://www.accrualequitypartners.com/

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What if the biggest opportunity for AI in dealerships is giving your people more time to actually be people?

Mike Gilson, CEO of Conversica, joins Paul J Daly, Kyle Mountsier, and Michael Cirillo to explore what happens when artificial intelligence moves beyond automated messages and starts connecting the scattered information dealerships already have about their customers.

Mike brings an unexpected perspective to the conversation: competitive rowing. The sport taught him that even the strongest individuals can't win without alignment, discipline, and a shared rhythm. Those lessons are shaping how he leads through an AI revolution where technology is moving faster than most organizations can adapt. For Mike, the challenge is cutting through the noise and understanding what actually makes a business better.

The conversation gets into the messy reality of dealership data, from disconnected CRMs and DMS platforms to customer histories that live across five different screens. Mike explains why industry-specific context matters, how AI could uncover opportunities that traditional software misses, and why the human relationship might become even more valuable as technology advances. And when AI agents start shopping for cars on behalf of customers, how should dealerships respond?

Along the way, Michael raises the uncomfortable possibility of AI being weaponized against businesses, Kyle challenges what dealership employees will actually be responsible for in the years ahead, and Paul brings the discussion back to the customer experience. The result is a conversation about technology, trust, and how to make the distance between a customer and a meaningful relationship shorter.

Chapters

00:00 Why your best salesperson is juggling five screens

00:29 Michael imagines an AI-powered arms race

02:08 What competitive rowing taught Mike about teams

06:25 Leading when AI is moving faster than your business

09:48 Getting dealers to care about meaningful AI

11:36 When everyone thinks AI makes them the expert

13:23 Why dealership context is everything

17:08 Connecting the customer data your systems can't

19:28 What dealership employees will still own

22:38 Preparing for customers who shop with AI agents

25:10 Why relationships could become even more valuable

Links

Mike Gilson: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-gilson-b3857918/

Conversica: https://www.conversica.com/

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What happens when you've spent nearly 30 years seeing the automotive industry from every side of the table?

You start realizing that some of the biggest dealership problems have less to do with technology and more to do with how people understand each other.

Dan Gaughan, General Manager at AutoHub, joins Auto Collabs to share what he's learned working across Toyota, dealership operations, automotiveMastermind, and now automotive technology. Along the way, he's developed a perspective on leadership, communication, and why the best solutions often come from understanding someone else's challenges.

The conversation gets into the friction surrounding trade valuations, the importance of consistent customer experiences across departments, and a dealership group that spends six weeks introducing new hires to every part of the business. Dan also shares why he believes leaders should spend more time working on their businesses, how genuine listening changes dealer-vendor relationships, and why developing people ultimately drives performance.

And because it's Auto Collabs, there's also a Taylor Swift hoodie, a questionable coffee-and-chewing-gum diet, and some unexpected career advice along the way.

Chapters

00:00 Why trade valuations create so much friction

01:33 Dan's Taylor Swift hoodie and family story

04:11 From Toyota to dealerships to automotive tech

08:02 Why dealers and vendors struggle to understand each other

11:14 Real conversations, leadership, and growing people

13:40 Making the dealership customer experience consistent

16:15 What successful dealers do differently with training

19:15 Why employees need to understand every department

21:11 Working on the business instead of in it

22:42 Simplifying service drive acquisition with AutoHub

25:51 How experience across the industry creates better leaders

Links

Dan Gaughan: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-g-692b81100/

AutoHub: https://www.autohub.io/

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What do cruise ships and car dealerships have in common? More than you'd think, especially when it comes to making people feel welcome.

Andy Steinhauser, Director of Sponsorship and Business Development for the LA Auto Show, joins Paul J Daly, Kyle Mountsier, and Michael Cirillo to share how nearly nine years working on cruise ships shaped his approach to hospitality, leadership, and creating memorable experiences. From managing an 85-person team at sea to helping bring one of America's largest auto shows to life, Andy has learned a thing or two about getting people excited.

The conversation starts with four simple hospitality standards from Andy's Royal Caribbean days: greet and smile, own the problem, look the part, and deliver the wow. The guys dig into what those principles could mean for automotive retail before turning their attention to Automobility LA and the opportunities it creates for dealers, automakers, and industry partners to connect.

They also get into the changing automotive landscape, the balance between EVs, hybrids, and gas-powered vehicles, and why getting people into the same room still matters in a relationship-driven industry.

Plus, Paul and Kyle share what surprised them most about attending Automobility LA for the first time, and the crew debates whether working at a dealership is basically like being stuck on a cruise ship.

Timestamped Takeaways

00:00 – Intro with Paul J Daly, Kyle Mountsier and Michael Cirillo

02:21 – Andy's unexpected path from Georgia to cruise ships

04:35 – Becoming a cruise director at 28

05:47 – What cruise ships teach us about automotive hospitality

09:10 – How Automobility LA brings the industry together

12:46 – Why dealers should experience the competition firsthand

14:17 – The unexpected value of being in the right room

16:51 – Creating experiences beyond traditional sponsorships

19:49 – Finding the balance between EVs, hybrids, and gas vehicles

21:32 – How auto shows help drive dealership sales

23:02 – Connecting ASOTUCON West and Automobility LA

24:53 – Is working at a dealership basically a cruise ship?

Links

LA Auto Show and Automobility LA: https://laautoshow.com/media-and-industry-day/

ASOTU CON West: https://asotuconwest.com/

Andy Steinhauser: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andysteinhauser/

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A mobile service van can look like an expensive side project—right up until it starts bringing back customers the dealership hasn’t seen in years.

Amir Alahwal shares how Mercedes-Benz of Temecula turned mobile service into a real retention strategy after losing a significant after-sales loyalty bonus. The launch wasn’t easy. The service team was skeptical, adoption was slow, and Amir admits they didn’t really know what they were doing at first. But instead of judging the program by instinct, he went to the data. By September, the store had booked 37 mobile appointments in its biggest month yet, and 70% of the customers served remotely had not been back to the dealership in at least a year—some since 2021.

That approach fits Amir’s career. He entered automotive in 2016 wearing his high-school prom suit to interview for a job that didn’t technically exist, started as a receptionist, and eventually learned to see the dealership across departments instead of through one silo. Later, he was asked to build a consolidated receptionist call center and hire a team while still in his early twenties—an experience he says taught him to be “universally resourceful.”

Paul, Kyle, and Michael dig into what happens when data challenges experienced operators, why mobile service can change both retention and trust, and the surprisingly useful lesson hiding inside one almost-perfect four-star review.

YOU'LL HEAR ABOUT

CHAPTERS

00:00 Data over feelings, a prom suit, and becoming “universally resourceful”

02:43 Amir’s unconventional start in automotive

04:19 From Wells Fargo to a dealership that wasn’t hiring

06:34 Why receptionist became one of Amir’s best training grounds

08:16 The advantage of seeing the dealership beyond one department

10:11 Building nontraditional roles—and a receptionist call center

12:01 How a lost loyalty bonus led to mobile service

14:13 Launching the first van without knowing exactly what would work

15:17 The numbers that changed the team’s mind

18:07 Getting buy-in when experienced operators are skeptical

19:21 Why managing by feelings can be dangerous

20:27 Winning back a customer who moved 50 miles away

22:26 How mobile service changes the dealership retention path

23:12 Removing service-lane friction and building trust

24:25 Finding the right technician for mobile service

26:12 Why the four-star review may have been better than five

27:19 The hosts start imagining what mobile service could become

LINKS

Amir Alahwal: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amiralahwal/

ASOTU CON West: https://asotuconwest.com/

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Amazon has trained consumers to expect convenience, transparency, and fulfillment. But when it comes to selling cars, Carlos Mojica sees one important difference: Amazon still needs the dealer.

Carlos, Senior Manager of Retail Development at LaFontaine Automotive Group, joins Paul Daly and Michael Cirillo to explain why a group with 43 stores across Michigan decided to lean into Amazon Autos instead of treating it like a threat. He walks through the customer experience—from syndicated inventory and financing to deposits, vehicle holds, and delivery—and explains why LaFontaine views Amazon as an addition to its marketing ecosystem rather than a replacement for existing channels.

The conversation also gets into the comparison with Carvana, why Carlos believes Amazon’s model is fundamentally dealer-driven, and what LaFontaine learned from its first Amazon transaction. That customer arrived to find the vehicle actually there, with the transaction matching what they had completed online down to the penny.

And Carlos isn’t expecting Amazon to suddenly become LaFontaine’s biggest source of traffic. He sees something potentially broader: Amazon can put dealer inventory in front of shoppers on a marketplace they already trust—and give the dealership another way to meet customers wherever they’re comfortable buying.

CHAPTERS

0:00 Intro

00:55 How Carlos found his way into automotive retail

03:03 Learning internet sales before it became the norm

04:23 Growing with LaFontaine from 10 stores to 43

05:35 What has—and hasn’t—changed about internet leads

06:52 Why LaFontaine leaned into Amazon Autos

09:53 How an Amazon Autos transaction actually works

12:29 Why Amazon is an addition, not a replacement

13:11 Is Amazon a threat to dealerships?

16:34 What happens when the Amazon brand meets the dealer brand

19:38 What LaFontaine learned from its first Amazon transaction

20:13 Why Amazon traffic isn't the whole point

21:19 Turning Amazon presence into a dealership trust signal

LINKS

Carlos Mojica: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carlitomojicajr/

LaFontaine Automotive Group: https://www.familydeal.com/

Amazon Autos: https://www.autos.amazon/

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Carlos Mojica's appearance on Auto Collabs is sponsored by Amazon Autos.

Your Dealership AI Is Only 90% Right. That’s the Problem.

AI can make messy data look usable. But AJ McGowan says that gets a lot more dangerous when you expect AI to actually run dealership workflows.

AJ, VP of Research and Development at Reynolds and Reynolds, joins Paul, Kyle, and Michael for a conversation about what changes when dealership AI moves beyond chatbots and analysis into truly agentic systems. His argument cuts against an increasingly common assumption: just because AI can figure out relationships between disconnected data doesn’t mean you should make it solve that problem every time. At scale, fuzzy matches become a trust problem—and a 90% answer isn’t good enough when software starts taking action.

AJ explains how Reynolds is approaching that challenge with Rey, an AI software agent designed to work across the Reynolds ecosystem, pursue a user’s goal, and pull together information from multiple systems. Today, Rey is being used to answer questions and perform analysis. The bigger step ahead is giving an agent the ability to affect action.

Along the way, AJ traces his builder mentality all the way back to coding a game in first grade and building computers for his parents’ friends in sixth grade. It’s a fitting origin story for a conversation about why the next era of dealership technology will still require something surprisingly old-school: understanding the fundamentals well enough to know when AI’s answer can actually be trusted.

YOU'LL HEAR ABOUT

CHAPTERS

0:00 Intro with Paul J Daly and Michael Cirillo

03:40 AJ’s first software project—and his sixth-grade computer business

06:31 How AI changed the way technologists build

08:13 Compressing 15 days of learning into 15 minutes

11:25 How quickly are dealers actually adopting AI?

12:18 Why unified dealership data matters more with agentic AI

14:29 DAGs, data structure, and whether AI can handle the mess

16:42 Why AJ thinks messy data is still a problem

19:31 The danger of the 90% AI answer

20:29 What Reynolds’ Rey AI can actually do today

23:01 When AI starts taking action inside the dealership

24:31 The next big step for dealership AI—and why reps still matter

LINKS

AJ McGowan: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ajmcg/

Reynolds and Reynolds: https://www.reyrey.com/

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Zach Doran believes dealer relationships are built long before there’s a problem to solve.

As president of the Ohio Auto Dealers Association, he’s pushing the organization beyond traditional advocacy and member services by creating more reasons for dealers to engage, connect, and see the value of the association before they ever need to call with their “hair on fire.”

That approach shows up in some unconventional ways. OADA has brought younger dealers to Washington, D.C., hosted wake-surfing days, built Concert for a Cause, and created new opportunities for members to connect outside the moments when something has already gone wrong.

Zach also takes Paul Daly and Kyle Mountsier inside one of OADA’s smartest communication plays: a quarterly publication that collects the charitable and civic work Ohio dealerships are already doing, then puts those stories directly in front of dealers and elected officials across the state. What started with the association hunting down most of the stories has grown into dealers actively submitting their own work because they want to be included.

Along the way, they get into Zach’s unexpected path to leading OADA, succeeding his father, the entrepreneurial energy of car dealers, and what it takes to make an event with more than 4,000 people and over $100,000 raised for charity feel like the beginning instead of the finish line.

YOU’LL HEAR ABOUT

CHAPTERS

0:00 Intro with Paul J Daly and Kyle Mountsier

2:13 Concert for a Cause raises more than $100K

4:21 Why Columbus dealers rallied around the event

7:24 Zach’s unexpected path into the association world

10:57 Rising to the occasion when dealers are counting on you

12:49 Engage dealers before their “hair is on fire”

16:40 Turning dealership community work into a bigger story

19:01 Putting dealer impact directly in front of elected officials

LINKS

Zach Doran: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zach-doran-a320a791/

Ohio Auto Dealers Association: https://www.oada.com/aws/OADA/pt/sp/home_page

OADA Members Spotlight: https://www.oada.com/aws/OADA/pt/sd/news_article/628849/_PARENT/layout_details/false

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Everyone is talking about how AI search is changing changing how dealerships are evaluated, how reputation gets interpreted, and which marketing metrics still tell the full story.

Chad Graves of Reunion Marketing joins Paul and Kyle to unpack what’s happening as ChatGPT, Gemini, and other AI tools become part of the vehicle research process. Chad’s view is that GEO, AEO, and the rest of the acronym soup still sit on top of strong SEO fundamentals, but the environment around those fundamentals has changed dramatically. AI systems are pulling from more sources, interpreting sentiment, and forming real opinions about dealerships.

That shift also creates a measurement problem. If shoppers can research the vehicle, compare options, understand your reputation, and get most of their questions answered without ever submitting a lead, cost per lead and total lead volume may become weaker standalone indicators of marketing performance.

The conversation also gets into brand, community involvement, reviews, About Us pages, and why dealerships need to do a better job telling the stories that are already true about them. Chad closes with a few lessons Reunion has picked up from working in home services, where operators are often more aggressive about specialization, lead routing, response time, and end-to-end ROI.

Timestamped Takeaways

0:00 Intro with Paul J Daly and Kyle Mountsier

03:22 Is GEO real, or is it just SEO with another acronym?

05:14 When AI starts forming an opinion about your dealership

07:12 Search is fragmenting beyond ChatGPT

09:35 The attribution problem dealers aren’t ready for

11:05 What happens when the shopper never submits a lead

13:26 Are leads becoming the wrong marketing barometer?

14:33 Why your About Us page suddenly matters more

16:40 The dealership stories marketers never knew existed

18:31 What automotive can learn from home services

19:34 Why top HVAC operators route opportunities differently

21:22 The data visibility auto marketers wish they had

23:46 What Reunion is learning about AI, search, and other industries

LINKS

Chad Graves: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-graves-a3506b45/

Reunion Marketing: https://reunionmarketing.com/

Auto Collabs: https://daily.asotu.com/auto-collabs

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