Best Dealerships to Work For

General manager: Nate Riesen

Dealership group: Penske Automotive Group

Full-time employees: 43

Riesen on changes to employment practices because of recent industry disruptions like the inventory crisis: “We added a bonus to our sales team’s pay plan for finding cars for the dealership to purchase. This provides an additional commission opportunity for the team and has the added benefit of incentivizing our team to stay in touch with our customer base.”

Riesen on improving employee retention: “We are fostering a culture of communication and connectivity throughout all departments. We hold monthly employee council meetings, which include representation from each department and discuss areas of opportunity for both employee and customer experience improvement. The feedback is given to department managers in a safe and judgment-free forum. We have monthly luncheons, employee of the month, shout-outs and frequent dealership outings. All of these are done to bring the entire store together to foster one dealership acting as one team.” 

Riesen on offering a long-term career path: “We are upfront about the steps needed to reach a specific goal and the qualities that we are looking for in a team member. We provide reviews in a one-on-one format and discuss their progression. We are all careful not to overpromise but instead provide quality feedback to our team members.”

Riesen on diversity, equity and inclusion: “Diversity is valuable to us. Without it, we wouldn’t have the diverse perspective to customer experience that we enjoy in our monthly employee council meetings.”

Riesen on changes to promote work-life balance: “We were able to eliminate late-night hours at the dealership while still serving our customers’ needs. The obvious benefit was that our sales and sales support teams were able to get home at a decent hour to have dinner with their families. Morale and turnover have both responded appropriately.”