Meet Chris Cooling Racing at Downtown Tinley Cruise Nights

On Tuesday, June 25th, Chris Cooling Racing will visit Downtown Tinley at its weekly Cruise Night. Cooling will be available for pictures and autographs from 5-9 p.m. in front of Subway, located at 17217 Oak Park Avenue in Tinley Park.

Chris Cooling Racing competes every Friday at Grundy County Speedway in Morris, Ill. In his most recent race on Friday, June 21st, Cooling finished 6th overall. Chris Cooling Racing is sponsored by Central Collision Center, Shorewood Animal Hospital, T&D Bowling & Awards, Carhart Vinyl Lettering, Blast Off and Jones Soda. For more information, visit the team's Facebook page. For race schedules, results and more, visit Grundy County Speedway's website.

Downtown Tinley's Cruise Nights take place every Tuesday through August from 5-9 p.m. Enjoy this classic car show with no entry fee. Music provided co-sponsored by the VFW Post 2791 and the Village of Tinley Park Mainstreet Commission. For more upcoming events, business information and specials, visit www.downtowntinley.com. 

Dirty Car? Enter for a Free Car Wash

Central Collision Center is running a Facebook contest to find the dirtiest car in the south suburbs. Think your car might be it? Post a picture on Central Collision's Facebook page for a chance to win a free car wash. Contest runs June 13-21. Central Collision will announce 1 winner on Monday, June 24.

Driving Through Severe Weather

Severe storms are pummeling the Midwest this week. While news and weather sources may encourage drivers to stay off the road, drivers unexpectedly caught in these storms may have no choice but continue to drive. Central Collision Center has prepared our tips for safely navigating these potentially dangerous situations.

Before the storm:

• Check the condition of your windshield wipers and tires
• Replace immediately if either are worn

During the storm:

• Increase distance between your vehicle and the vehicle in front of you
• Treat traffic lights as stop signs in anticipation of other drivers losing control of their vehicles
• Turn headlights - not brights - on
• Reduce speed to prevent hydroplaning

Hydroplaning is a major cause of accidents during severe weather. Three factors can cause hydroplaning:

1. High speeds, which reduce traction
2. Worn tires, which are less likely to resist hydroplaning
3. Water depth, which reduces traction

Water on roadways can create dangerous driving situations. According to The Weather Channel, six inches of water will reach the bottom of most cars and one foot of water will  float most vehicles. Be cautious driving when any amount of water is present on a roadway, but turn your vehicle around if you have to pass through more than a few inches. 

Central Collision Center urges drivers to be cautious driving during these stormy, summer months. If you have concerns about the safety of your vehicle before the storms hit, please call one of our six locations.

Central Collision Center Named Autochex Premier Achiever For Excellence In Customer Service

Central Collision Center of Oak Forest, located at 15232 S. Oak Park Avenue, has been recognized as a winner of the 2012 AutocheX Premier Achiever for outstanding customer service and satisfaction.

Now in its 11^th year, the annual Premier Achiever Awards honor auto body shops that consistently achieve extremely high customer satisfaction scores as measured by AutocheX either independently or as part of an insurance-sponsored repair program. In 2012, participating insurance programs included seven of the top 25 carriers in North America.

“For the 11^th year in a row, we are delighted to sponsor the Premier Achiever Awards and to recognize the tremendous accomplishments of Central Collision and all the 2012 winners,” said Jim O’Leary, Vice President of Mitchell Repair Solutions. “The high satisfaction scores of these elite collision repair facilities in North America clearly demonstrate their ongoing commitment to their customers, and set the bar very high for customer experience management in our industry.”

In an industry of nearly 50,000 shops in North America, Central Collision is one of only 400 Premier Achiever Award winners in 2012 — placing the shop in highly exclusive company.

“Receiving this honor reflects our company’s core values of outstanding customer service and repair quality above all else,” said Michael A. Caruso, facility manager of Central Collision Center of Oak Forest. “We are proud to be considered among the elite in this category and we will continue to improve our processes in order to remain an industry leader.”

AutocheX, Mitchell International’s customer experience management group, is a leading provider of customer satisfaction measurement and customer experience management solutions to the collision repair industry. AutocheX and the participating insurance companies present the Premier Achiever Awards each year as a way of honoring collision repair facilities that have proven their devotion to quality, service, and customer satisfaction.

For more information about Central Collision Center, visit www.centralcollision.com.

5 Tips For Small Business Owners

Caruso managed and worked out
of the Peotone location.

When Mike Caruso returned from U.S. Military service on a Friday night, he expected to start school shortly after to become a dentist. Little did he know a phone call from a family friend asking for temporary help would change everything. 

After working in his friend's shop for three years, Caruso learned about a body shop in Peotone going out of business when the owners contacted him to purchase equipment. When he drove to the shop on a Saturday morning, Caruso had a strong feeling that's where he belonged. 

At just 23 years old, Caruso and his wife, Nancy, bought the Peotone shop for $40,000. 

"It might as well have been $40 million," Caruso said. "I didn't have 40 cents to my name then."

The couple closed on the property on May 12, 1981. A few weeks later, a hailstorm hit, damaging nearly every car in Will County. 

Thirty-two years later, Mike and Nancy Caruso have created a successful, family owned and operated six-shop collision repair business.

We sat down with Central Collision Center President and Owner Mike Caruso to learn how he created a successful business at such a young age. Here are his top 5 tips for small business owners:

1. Be honest and loyal to your employees, customers, business partners and yourself  

   

   Caruso addresses employees at the company's 
   annual Christmas party.

   My favorite part of what I do is spending time with our employees, most of which have been with us long enough I consider them my extended family. Having an open relationship with the people you work with – whether its employees, customers, vendors, etc. – makes work enjoyable. I want our employees to be proud to work at Central Collision, and that can’t happen unless I’m honest with them.         
                       
2. Deliver a product better than your competitors  
   We will continue to invest in continuing education and training for our employees to make sure we are delivering the highest quality product and service. If you’re not providing a quality service, you’re setting yourself up for failure. I stand behind our technicians’ work 110% because I know the type of quality they produce on every vehicle.
   
   
3. Always work to improve your process 
   Our team meets regularly to discuss ways to improve. Between monthly planning, management, CSR and manager meetings and daily production meetings, we are constantly troubleshooting ways to be more efficient. You can never sit back and say “things are going great.” There is always room for improvement.
   
   
4. Be open to change

   

   Mike and Nancy Caruso matched all employee
   donations at the company's annual food drive
   benefitting Alicia's House Food Pantry.

   One challenge we face is staying up to date with changes from auto manufacturers, insurance companies and general regulations. But we work extremely hard to make sure we are on top of the changes and execute procedures properly. Embracing these changes instead of fighting them has been one of our biggest keys to success.
   
   
5. Give back to the communities that support you  
   Without the local communities’ support, Central Collision would not have made it 32 years. I can’t thank everyone enough who has supported our business. We will always give back to our communities because of what they have done for us. Even as Central continues to grow to serve our expanding customer base and insurance partners, we will never be too big that we can’t service each individual customer properly.

From the entire Central Collision Center team and the Caruso family, thank you for your continued support. We could not have made it 32 years without you!

From left: Michael, Marissa, Mike, Nancy and Matt Caruso

Encouraging Exceptional Customer Service

Exceptional customer service is going above and beyond for a customer, which we call “WOW-ing” the customer at Central Collision Center. We know your vehicle is an investment and leaving it with someone takes trust. Earning that trust through exceptional service is how our team maintains our customers.

My job as the customer service representative  (CSR) manager is to ensure that each Central team member provides exceptional customer service to every customer who visits or contacts any one of our six facilities. I do this through:  

• In-depth customer service training
• Weekly visits to each of our six locations 
• Monthly group meetings with our customer service representatives and office managers

Each month, our CSRs and office managers have a morning meeting to discuss
best practices and troubleshoot. April's meeting included SOP review, time card
calculation and a dress for success seminar.

The first step in encouraging exceptional customer service is training. Generally, a collision repair facility is not somewhere a person wants to visit, which makes customer service that much more important. It is our job to turn around a customer immediately after having damage to his/her car and assure him/her that everything is going to be ok. I do this by training our team on EEE – energy, effort and enthusiasm -- along with honesty and sincerity. Exceeding a customer’s expectations can be as simple as providing prompt solutions or answering with a caring voice in their time of need.

I follow-up on this training by making frequent visits to each of our six locations, normally visiting at least two locations a day. Each Central Collision location’s goal is to leave its customers pleased and satisfied with where they have chosen to have repairs done. During my visits, I answer any staff questions and help them troubleshoot any potential problems.

Our process map breaks down each team member's
responsibility through the customer service process.

We hold CSR meetings monthly to discuss great customer experiences and new ways to help each and every person that walks through our doors. Each customer service representative and office manager attends this meeting, which serves as a place for us to share best practices. Throughout the month, I gather any questions or concerns our staff may have and then provide answers to the group. We also revisit our LEAN process map at every meeting to ensure we are serving our customers in the most efficient way possible.

The testimonials, online reviews and thank you cards we receive from our customers make providing exceptional customer service extremely worthwhile and rewarding. Just yesterday, we were recognized as an 2012 Autochex Premier Achiever for Customer Service. As a premier achiever, Central Collision is one of the companies that rated highest in consistently delivering outstanding customer service.

Central Collision Center Joins Effort to Hire Our Heroes

In a fight against veteran unemployment, Central Collision Center has become a supporting member of Hire Our Heroes, a campaign designed to help veterans and their families find meaningful employment.

Central Collision is participating in this nationwide campaign through 3M Collision Repair Solutions’ Automotive Aftermarket Division, who will donate funds to the Collision Repair Education Foundation and Operation Comfort based on sales of popular 3M products. Central Collision’s purchase of these products will help veterans pursue careers in the collision repair industry.

Funds donated to the Collision Repair Education Foundation will provide grants and scholarships to help cover tuition, classroom materials, tools and equipment for returning veterans. Donations to Operation Comfort will support rehabilitation for wounded veterans through a unique automotive skill-based rehabilitation program.

“I know first-hand how hard it is to return from service and start a career,” said Mike Caruso, owner of Central Collision and U.S. Military veteran. “I’m grateful 3M has created this opportunity for our industry to help.”

For more information about Central Collision’s participation in Hire Our Heroes, visit the company’s Facebook page or www.3mcollision.com.