I-CAR President and CEO Kyle Thompson joins the CollisionCast to highlight the organization's focus on talent development. Highlights of this year include the rollout of the I-CAR Academy and Registered Apprentice Program, plus the organization's strong partnerships with ASE, CREF, the Collision Career Institute, and WrenchWay.

Boost productivity, reduce turnover, and elevate morale by mastering one overlooked leadership skill: showing appreciation. Dr. Paul White, co-author of The 5 Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace, joins the CollisionCast with speaker and coach Sheryl Driggers of Collision Advice, who's also a former collision repair shop owner, to talk about how misconceptions could be hurting your retention, morale, and results. 

In business, conflict is inevitable, whether it’s from customers or your staff. As Mike Jones, founder and president of Discover Leadership, points out, conflict often arises because people operate from their own “belief systems.”

In this episode, we’ll be talking with Andrew McInnes, FCSD, Collision & Global Brand Protection Manager, Ford Motor Company, about how the OEM recently updated its position statements for all Ford and Lincoln vehicles from 1996 and later to include a powerful word change to “required,” and the reasons for that change. For more information and the links to those position statements, go to: https://www.fenderbender.com/55321726.

Do you have an “I can” attitude…or an “I will” one? You may recall the protagonist in the children’s book “The Little Engine That Could” overcoming a seemingly impossible task. But according to Mike Jones, president and master trainer at Discover Leadership, “I can” is a statement only of potential. And saying, “I will try” can set oneself up with an excuse for failure. In this special CollisionCast episode, listen to Jones’ conversation with Chris Messer, executive vice president of EndeavorB2B’s Transportation Group, to see how you can change to an “I will” attitude.

Last year, U.S. Customs and Border Protection seized over 211,000 counterfeit auto parts, a whopping doubling from the number seized the previous year. This issue goes beyond selling an unlicensed copy of an emblem. NHTSA identified five known cases of death or serious injury in 2023 and 2024 in which the vehicle was equipped with a defective counterfeit air bag.

In this episode, Bob Stewart, president of the Automotive Anti-Counterfeiting Council and also aftermarket service support and brand protection manager at General Motors, joins CollisionCast to talk about the problem and how collision repairers can help identify these counterfeit parts.

To learn more or report a suspect part, go to:

Owners of late-model Audis can better find your Audi Authorized shop with the OEM's latest offering. Mark Allen, manager of collision equipment and EV after sales service at Audi of America, joins the CollisionCast to talk about the Audi Roadside Events Platform, a telematics-based roadside assistance and collision notification platform available in all Audi vehicles from 2016 and newer. It's designed to increase brand loyalty and help drive business to Audi Authorized Collision Repair shops.

Leadership isn’t just for those with a title. Every team member has a leadership role. Whether you're a manager or a technician, success comes from shared vision, ownership, and consistent action. Great cultures are built intentionally by people who lead from the front, together. Everyone, regardless of their role, has the power (and responsibility) to lead by example. In this special episode of CollisionCast, Chris Messer, executive vice president of EndeavorB2B’s Transportation Group and Mike Jones, president and master trainer at Discover Leadership, discuss being the standard instead of just setting one.

There are several reasons to consider adding ADAS calibration, including reducing cycle time, offering a profitable service, or gaining control over quality.

Steve Dawson, regional manager in the Washington, D.C., area for Hunter Engineering, joins the CollisionCast to talk about what you might need for a facility and the return on investment you can expect, which Steve says can be recouped in as little as a few months for higher volume shops. Conservatively, a shop can generate $140,000 in annual revenue doing just one calibration per day.

We’ll also talk about training needs for your technician and why ADAS calibration is a "team sport." Everyone in the shop, including estimators and front office staff, needs a basic understanding to properly communicate with customers and insurers on the importance of calibrations and the conditions under which they’re performed.

Check out Hunter's ADAS Learning Tool and other ADAS information here.

Are you a manager, or are you a leader? Do you know the distinction? If you are setting specific outcomes and making sure projects are moving forward, not just waiting until the deadline, you’re likely a leader, someone who follows up and follows through. For over 30 years, Mike Jones, president and master trainer at Discover Leadership Training, has urged his followers to follow up and follow through. To help his followers remember this, he uses the catchy term “motherFUFTer.”

In this special episode of the CollisionCast, Jones joins Chris Messer, executive vice president of Endeavor B2B's Transportation Group, to talk about one tip to help operate your business at a higher level.