Car buyers say dealers do not show the same enthusiasm to staff their service centers with technically trained hands or provide on-job training as they indulge in rhetoric when selling new cars with latest technology. “Some of the new cars in the luxury segment are so advanced that even drivers need proper training, especially in the matter of using its various gadgets some of which are computerized,” a luxury car owner says.
Who should provide training and who should fund it is always the contentious issue between the brand owners and their distributors. “We usually discuss the issue at the top corporate management level and come to an understanding about the ratio in which the two parties must share the expenses,” a Korean car dealer says.
Distributors and dealers are, by and large, serious about offering on-job training to their service center staff, Ali Alireza of Haji Husein Alireza says. “The objective of any distributor is to sell as many vehicles as possible and to that extent he is ever eager to provide adequate training to his service center staff.” In the case of Japanese cars, the Saudi Japanese Automobile High Institute (SJAHI) on Jeddah-Makkah Road stands as a monumental evidence of how serious the major distributors of leading Japanese brands are in the matter of training local youth.
SJAHI is one of the landmark developments in the ongoing cooperation between Saudi Arabia that took shape in September 2001 at the initiative of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah who was then the crown prince. Constituted by the Council of Saudi Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Japanese Automobile Distributors in the Kingdom (JADIK) and Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association collaborated in SJAHI whose official inauguration took place on March 19, 2003. JADIK members include Abdul Latif Jameel Co. (distributors of Toyota and Daihatsu), Al-Hamrani United Co. (Nissan), Alesayi Motors (Mitsubishi), Abdullah Hashim Co. Ltd. (Honda), Suzuki Saudia Co. Ltd. (Suzuki), Haji Husein Alireza & Co. Ltd. (Mazda), Omar Balubaid Co. Ltd. (Subaru), Bakhashab Bros. Co. (Isuzu, Jeddah) and Abdullatif Alissa Group (Isuzu, Riyadh).
Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), which represents the Japanese government, has provided highly skilled technical experts and donated state-of-the-art machineries, tools and equipment to train young Saudis in the field of automobile maintenance.
The SJAHI graduates have joined maintenance workshops and service centers as technicians. Then, based on their performance and periodic evaluations, they progress on a JADIK designated career path — first technicians, then pro-technician, chief technician, service adviser or floor manager, service manager, area service manager and, finally, general manager of service.
The institute has been graduating young Saudis and providing job opportunities at the dealerships of all major Japanese brands. “This way, the institute is also contributing toward the Kingdom’s Saudization program,” says SJAHI Director Salim Al- Asmarei. At present there are over 400 students in the institute. The first batch of 190 trainees passed out of the institute at a graduation ceremony on Oct. 3, 2004. Every year, some 180 to 200 students graduate from the institute and they work at maintenance workshops of Japanese car dealers, he said. The institute has been sending groups of outstanding graduates to Japan to enable them to become trainers there.
Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), which represents the Japanese government, has provided highly skilled technical experts and donated state-of-the-art machineries, tools and equipment to train young Saudis in the field of automobile maintenance.
There are other exceptions like General Motors (GM) and some of the Korean car dealers who are not only providing advanced technician training but also offering the graduates employment opportunity. Recently, GM graduated 48 technicians from its Advanced Technician Training Program in Angat, Philippines. The fully trained, ready to go technicians were to be placed at GM dealers’ service centers around the Middle East, and help service centers continue delivering quality technical service. “This program is the first of its kind in the region, and will continue to provide a steady supply of skilled technicians who will deliver quality service that will exceed the expectations of our customers,” says GM Regional Training Manager Harrie van der Schoot.
To qualify for the GM Advanced Technician Training program, applicants had to meet strict pre-selection criteria, with only one out of five applicants successfully qualifying for the training. Qualification for the program depends on a number of criteria including basic automotive education, computer skills, English language proficiency and hands on experience. These basics are supplemented with 60 days of Instructor-Based Training involving hands on content as well as 50 hours of Web-Based Training to achieve the desired competency level.
Service centers participating in the program agree with GM in advance on the number of technicians they are to receive. Having proven their skills on the job, demand for these qualified technicians has increased to the point that technicians who have yet to enroll in the program have already been allocated to service centers up to 2012. These 48 fresh graduates join the 174 technicians who have already graduated in raising technical standards at GM dealerships around the region. General Motors, one of the world’s largest automakers, traces its roots back to 1908. With its global headquarters in Detroit, GM does business in some 140 countries. GM and its strategic partners produce cars and trucks in 34 countries, and sell and service these vehicles through the following brands: Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, GM Daewoo, Holden, Opel, Vauxhall and Wuling. GM’s largest national market is the United States, followed by China, Brazil, Germany, the United Kingdom, Canada and Italy. In the Middle East since the 1920s, General Motor’s vehicle brands sold in the region are Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC and HUMMER supported by a unique set of customer-focused services. GM parts and accessories are sold under the GM Parts and ACDelco brands. The regional office in Dubai covers the company’s operations in Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, the UAE and Yemen.
However, a vast majority of car buyers are of the opinion that some of the distributors and dealers focus more attention on sales training than on the technicalities of after sales service. What a luxury car brand owner says describes adequately the state of affairs. “My new car developed some engineering problem and remained with the dealer for a couple of months because he had no expertise to deal with it. Finally, a highly skilled technician was rushed by the manufacturer from abroad to fix the problem.”
