The automotive industry is one of the most competitive industries in the world. Sure, that can make business difficult, but it also comes with some huge positives – innovation, focus, and ultimately; improving customer service. This competition exists well beyond selling vehicles at one dealership versus another, it exists internally as dealerships and their staff push themselves to be better, every day.
Cue the story of Spencer Boyenko, a 23-year-old Service Advisor at FFUN Motor Group’s Saskatoon North Hyundai location. Growing up on a farm in Vonda, Saskatchewan, 30 minutes outside of Saskatoon, Spencer was an outgoing kid, but wasn’t quite sure what to do with himself after graduating high school. After dabbling in a couple of odd jobs, he applied as a Wash Bay, Service Drive-Through Tech at Kia of Saskatoon. Showing initiative and raising his hand as looking for more, Spencer was promoted to an Advisor at our North Hyundai location. With the help of FFUN’s training programs, a lot of hard work and guidance from some senior staff, in just two short years, Spencer began to stand-out from the crowd with customer service scores well above average.Hyundai Canadian Headquarters
Last month, his accomplishments garnered him a recommendation from Hyundai’s Zone Manager to submit an application to take part in the 2018 Hyundai National Customer Experience Championship. (Yes, there is a championship for service advisors. We told you we’re competitive!). After completing numerous training courses and passing three exams, Spencer was notified he was one of twelve people across Canada – and the only advisor from Saskatchewan and Manitoba – to be chosen to compete at the event in Markham, Ontario.
Spencer boarded a plane for the 3-day event with no idea what to expect. Placed amongst the twelve other contestants, most double his age, he knew he was in for some tough competition. The goal of this contest is to get Hyundai brand representatives to deliver the best customer service in the automotive field. The first days consisted of training modules, with each attendee sharing their own experiences, tips and tricks on dealing with customers and difficult situations. The final day, the testing began, including numerous customer role playing scenarios where you were required to ask the right questions, spark the problems and kindly deal with all customer requests. Once all contestants had completed their scenarios, they gathered around a screen where the results were announced. Low and behold, Spencer’s name appeared on the screen, along with an advisor from Quebec, Frederic Blais, as the National winners. It was announced that the two of them would be heading to South Korea in November to see the Hyundai plant and compete against 30 other countries as Canada’s representatives at the 2018 Hyundai Global Customer Experience Championship.
This is an incredible accomplishment by Spencer. We are very proud of his efforts and look forward to seeing him bring home another championship. But everyone was wondering, how in the world did he accomplish this feat at such a young age?
His response “I started working here fresh, with no preconceived notions of the industry. The FFUN Motor Group has provided me outstanding training around process, how to handle customers and objections. I’ve also had some tremendous mentors and learned directly from their success. I came in to this job with an open mind, determined to grow and have been given every opportunity to continue forward, improve and impress.”
Spencer is wise beyond his years and incredibly personable, which makes his customers feel so at ease. He attributes this to the household he grew up in. This is also how he grew into his love of cars, but that’s not his only pastime, “I also love to play video games”. Yep, the competitive spirit never ends.
