Women in Retail: Michelle Petrenko of Penske Automotive Group/Mercedes-Benz of North Scottsdale

Vehicle Remarketing is recognizing the 2022 Gals in Retail honorees in the existing situation of the magazine and at Used Car or truck Week this fall in San Diego. 

With these awards, we specifically recognize leading leaders on the retail aspect of the automobile field, like honorees from dealerships, supplier groups and third-celebration companies/suppliers

Above the next couple of weeks, AR will be posting Q&As with each individual of the honorees on this web page.

Subsequent up is Michelle Petrenko, normal supervisor, Penske Automotive Group/Mercedes-Benz of North Scottsdale.

Car Remarketing: What do you delight in most about doing the job in retail automotive, and what would you modify?

Michelle Petrenko: Operating in retail automotive lets to me to hook up and create relationships with so many awesome men and women. I have been blessed to have so quite a few terrific crew customers, peers, shoppers, and mentors in my life. Retail automotive encompasses everyone — not just a decide on team — and I understand each and every day from all the fantastic connections I make.

I definitely delight in impacting my team customers lives by supporting them obtain their occupation goals in a dealership I regulate, and it is quite fulfilling when they get pleasure from obtaining their personal objectives when obtaining the economical metrics of the shop as very well. In today’s entire world I believe it is seriously critical to give a fun, substantial-electrical power and beneficial natural environment for both equally the team and the customer.

Everyday living is challenging adequate for anyone with out generating buying and servicing a auto stressful. A person of the points that I would adjust is the impact that some females have that they however have to have to bring a male into a dealership to get help in profits or services. I nevertheless listen to it all the time and I believe it’s genuinely vital that gals truly feel empowered to arrive in and obtain, offer or assistance their auto with out any hesitation on their section. It’s a particular mission of mine that ALL individuals who walk into any dealership I control experience like they are welcomed, respected and appreciated.

AR: What is the best development you are viewing in retail automotive this 12 months?

Petrenko: Used-car acquisition! With the risky inventory ranges we are all encountering, I shell out hrs weekly on the lookout at auction developments, market place traits, lending developments and motor vehicle sourcing. I am constantly looking through posts, listening to podcasts, and studying to make guaranteed that I am fully informed of anything at all that might affect my dealership, my staff and my customer. I am usually hoping the most effective resource to acquire a superior pre-owned car for the ideal value so that I may well provide my customers with the ideal pre-owned inventory in the current market.

I have also put in a whole lot of time finding out about the most present-day developments for on-line promoting to increase my consumer foundation and to be certain their relieve of staying ready to acquire without having owning to spend hours in the dealership.

AR: What piece of profession suggestions would you give your more youthful self?

Petrenko: The job suggestions I would give my more youthful self is the same I would give any individual in any vocation path: and that is to be susceptible and be your genuine self. By being susceptible, I imply staying open up to admitting the issues you really do not know or you may be weak in instead of frequently making an attempt to verify yourself and your really worth. When I 1st obtained out of higher education, there weren’t a lot of ladies in the car or truck organization. I generally felt like I experienced to work so difficult and make confident I didn’t acknowledge to any weaknesses or everybody would think I was not worthy of that future marketing and I typically tailored my individuality to accommodate what I imagined the expectation was of how I must behave, costume, and manage people today. It was not what folks had been doing to me that brought on this it was my very own insecurities.

As soon as I acquired that the absolute finest way to navigate my occupation was to be my goofy, delighted authentic self and just get the job done super difficult and ask a lot of issues about just about anything and everything that I did not know, almost everything became so a great deal a lot easier and my occupation seriously benefited. I have been a general supervisor for 10 years and to this working day, I am regularly inquiring my product sales and service groups, my techs, and my areas teams inquiries all the time and mastering from them.

AR: What has been the best critical to your accomplishment in retail automotive?

Petrenko: The top critical to my good results in retail automotive has been the ability to build fantastic groups. As I explained earlier, becoming vulnerable and currently being legitimate has been a own key I have discovered but the capability to establish these highly effective groups by obtaining team associates from assorted backgrounds who bring their possess skill sets and mindsets with them has been substantial for my success.

When you make a workforce and you arrive alongside one another for the function of generating just about every persons lifestyle better by making the total group better, by offering a earth course working experience for your clientele and by achieving the money metrics that the retail outlet desires that’s highly effective. It is all about applying your electrical power and your intention for very good it’s totally the truth and it functions. It is a potent, unstoppable drive when you get a various staff with each other with a person popular concentration and with that great intention and electrical power. I have been pretty blessed in my lifetime to be the “head coach” of some of these awesome types of teams and THAT has been the crucial to my accomplishment in this marketplace.