When Employees Walk Out, Keep the Know-How In

Johnathan Aguero, Blackpurl - A sudden resignation, whether from the parts counter, finance desk, or service bay, can rattle a dealership’s rhythm and siphon off know-how, just when performance matters most.  
 
Savvy owners and managers don’t fear the employee churn; they tame it by creating playbooks and corralling every process, pricing method, and customer note into shared systems that stay around when people go.  

What follows is an exploration of how to remain profitable and poised, even when key employees walk out. 

The Hidden Price Tag Of Turnover

• Gallup estimates that replacing a mid-level employee generally costs 125% - 150% of their salary in recruiting, onboarding, and lost productivity. 

• According to Hireology, a dealership might spend up to $10,000 to find, acquire, and onboard a new team member. 

 Add the ripple effects: missed upsells, schedule gaps, customer frustration–and every departure becomes a silent profit bleed. So, what is the best way to protect yourself? Make a plan. 
 

Timing is Everything 

Making a knowledge transfer plan should be high priority, but may not always feel urgent. 
 
The thing is: you can’t always predict when someone will get sick or resign. Bryan Schlangen, National Sales Manager at Midsota Trailers, has watched dozens of dealers lose staff. His advice? “Don’t wait! Don’t wait until someone gives notice to begin transferring knowledge. Build a succession and mentoring plan for key roles now.” 

The Knowledge-Transfer Playbook

A good playbook reduces the risk significantly, and it’s not hard to make. Consider this approach: 

1. Document, Don’t Depend 

Will Dyck, COO of Delco Trailers, shared with me that two of the most important plan elements he sees are “Documented processes and a capable and centralized operating system in place.” 
 
Here’s a quick way to document what you do now:

• Shoot two-minute screen-capture videos for every repeat task (make a list). 

• Store Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) in a shared cloud folder, arranged by department. 

• Build checklists for each key process. 

 
2. Build a 48-Hour On-Ramp 

Every hour between “Welcome aboard” and “Okay, I’ve got this” bleeds margin. A 48-hour on-ramp (part boot camp, part guided tour) puts logins, familiarity with role-based workspaces, and quick-win processes into the first two days, turning rookies into contributors before their first weekend.  
 
Consider these elements: 

1. Day-one checklist: login, role-based training playlist, first mocked transaction. 

2. Pair each rookie with a peer mentor for the first few weeks. 
    

3. Use a Centralized Information System

• Pricing margins, inventory reorder points, and customer histories live inside the platform, not in someone’s head. 

• Ensure that knowledge of the software is shared across your dealership. Everyone should be familiar with it, and there should be backups in place in case someone is unavailable. Choosing software that’s easy for non-technical team members to use can make this much easier. 

• A new hire gets online training, instant search, and easy workspaces tailored to their role on day one, so turnover becomes a user-permission swap, not a crisis. 

• Tip: Make it common culture for every team member to use your software–treating your dealership management platform like employee #0. And make sure your team truly uses the notes fields in your software vs. hand-written notepads only. A hand-written note works for the moment, but a note captured in your software may pay dividends for years. 

 
4. Pay for Results, Not Tenure

• Define two or three line-of-sight metrics for every role–parts margin %: billable hours per tech, trailer margin targets,and make bonuses escalate with impact, not just activity.  

5. Run Monthly “Bus-Proof” Drills

• Randomly assign one employee’s tasks to a teammate for a day; gaps expose undocumented knowledge before real life does.
  

6. Make Knowledge Transfer Part of The Culture 

As Derek Hentges, Director of Sales & Service at Diamond C Trailers pointed out, “We often wait until someone’s already out the door. A culture of mentorship and ongoing knowledge sharing should be part of the way a healthy dealership operates.” 

Derek went on to share, “Cross-training is insurance. Building margin in the team by training multiple people in each role ensures you’re not one retirement away from chaos.” 

And the process doesn’t need to be awkward. Derek observed, “Transferring knowledge shouldn’t feel like an exit interview. It should feel like legacy building. When you treat it that way, people are more invested in helping the next generation succeed.”

According to Will Holtz, Product Specialist at Blackpurl, it’s about more than knowing what to do. “...There’s a real risk of losing context, not just how something is done, but why. The best way to protect against that is to encourage knowledge sharing as a routine part of how the team works.” The goal? “Operational stability and consistency.” 

For Laurie Shearer of I-69 Trailer Center, the benefits are big, even before someone leaves. As she puts it, a culture of knowledge sharing leads to “A more adaptable, engaged, and efficient workforce” that in turn creates a more profitable business.

Ready to bank the know-how? 

Bottom line: knowledge captured today is profit insured tomorrow. Film one SOP, tag a backup, and post the first metric on the wall before next Friday. Next time someone hands in their keys, you’ll swap a user permission – instead of scrambling for lost know-how. 

To explore practical tools that support retention, streamline operations, and drive dealership success, visit Blackpurl at Blackpurl.com.