AIA Canada delivered again with their Auto Care Conference in Toronto March 10^th, 11^th, 12^th. And it was a sellout !

On Tuesday a session was geared toward the younger folks in the aftermarket industry—the Young Professionals. Their gathering was a Speed Mentoring Roundtable.

Wednesday Tony Kuczynski, Chair AIA Canada and Emily Chung, current AIA Canada President and CEO, lead off the presentations. Awards were top of the list and the Distinguished Service Award was presented to Tony Canade of the Boyd Group.

The Young Leader of the Year went to Adam Malik, editor-in-chief of Turnkey Media Solutions. He serves on the Young Professionals in the Auto Care Sector committee.

Shifting gears
Emily Chung started the conference off with “Shifting gears: The here, now and next of Canada’s auto care sector with AIA Canada. Following that was a panel discussion: No talent left behind: Building a future-ready workforce—our industry growth depends on talent. Stephanie-Cooney-Mann, GM at UAP Inc. moderated with panelists Chris Theodorates, Mr. Lube+Tires Canada; Hitesh Patel; Transtar Industries; Shannon Miller, Accelerate Auto and Saifullah Sanaye, The Mechanic and Technician Upskilling Canada.

Concurrent business operations and performance sessions followed—one presented by Murray Voth, President of RPM Training—Technician or Operations Challenge: What is holding back repair shops ? After those presentations came business operations and performance: Bridging the Talent Gap: How young professionals will future proof the auto care industry. And bridging the talent gap: how young professionals will future proof the auto care industry by Pruthvi Brahmbhatt, UAP Inc. drove this session.

Market research and data—Ryan Robinson, Deloitte LLP spoke on Canadian auto sector trends: Navigating uncertainty breaking down the trends, risks and opportunities that will define Canada’s automotive landscape. He also spoke about Trends—the Canadian Auto sector is shifting faster through technology, policy and economic forces.

A panel of CEOs and senior leaders got into the real issues shaping the auto care sector—Lorraine Sommerfield as host; panelists Nick Brunet, President, CEO, Bestbuy Distributors; Alain Primeau, President, UAP Inc. and Nick Field, VP Sales, Uni-Select Inc.

Beyond just co-op
An interactive session: ‘Beyond just co-op: Engaging with younger students was headed up by Lucas Chang. He shared recent case studies from manufacturing, construction and automotive industries in Ontario.

Emily Holtby, VP AIA Government Relations moderated ‘From the ballot to business: One year later and what it means for Canada’s auto care industry. David Coletto of Abacus Data spoke on this subject.

Thursday the vendor showcase was in full swing with new items and services to visit. The first session was Envisioning the future of the auto claims ecosystem by Don Friesdman, Entegral. He showed how stakeholders in the collision industry can work together to contribute to safe, proper repairs.

Amin Youssef of Fix Network and Wendy Dugas of Donnelly Auto Group explored how people-first leadership and proactive retention strategies drive long-term business performances.

Succession planning
Succession Planning was addressed by Shawn Wilson of Simplicity Auto Care who showed shop owners key drivers of what runs the shop owner’s business and that they should set up their business for sustainable growth.

Human resources was covered by Josh Westgate of Fanshawe College showing how to build the autobody workforce of the future.

Concurrent sessions on vehicle technology came next with Jeff Peevy of I-CAR speaking on reimagining the future of learning in collision repair—technology, efficiency and mindset shift ahead.

Ryan Mandell of Mitchell pointed out global trends shaping collision repair—claims that are what repairers must prioritize to remain competitive.

Olympic gold medalist (bobsled) Alex Kopacz talked about the elements that led him to success and how it could draw parallels between athletes and the collision repair industry.

All in all, a convention full of ‘take-aways’ !