In 2020, when we first asked about the biggest challenges Members faced in
running their businesses, 36% said it was finding good staff.
Back then, it was third from the top of the list, behind having a good
work-life balance and managing to take a holiday. Last year, the figure was
39%. This year, it has leapt to 51% - and it now tops the list.
The biggest increases were all in areas directly related to the skills shortage:
- Finding good staff: up from 39% to 51%.
- Finding good apprentices: up from 14% to 22%.
- Keeping staff long term: up from 9% to 16%.
Many Members said the skills shortage was adversely affecting their work-life balance and their ability to take a holiday. While the data is similar to previous years, these are consistently the top three challenges.
What's the good news?
No matter the size of the business, on average Members are reasonably
comfortable that:
- The impact of the parts shortage is easing, with this cited as a challenge
for 24% of Members this year, down from 31% in 2022.
- The lingering effects of COVID are almost out of the system, with this
cited as a challenge for 6% of Members this year, compared to 18% last year.
When it comes to finding and retaining good staff, the larger the workshop the greater the scale of the challenge. The same is true when it comes to finding good apprentices.
- Smaller businesses are more likely to have issues with changing technology, increasing parts prices and customers supplying their own parts.
- Mid-sized businesses are the most likely to struggle with work-life balance or taking a holiday.
What's the good news?
No matter the size of the business, on average Members are reasonably
comfortable with:
- Marketing and promoting their business.
- Keeping up with digital technology.
The type of workshop Members operate can have a huge impact on the kinds of challenges they face in their business.
- Collision, commercial truck and tyre and suspension businesses are likely to be the most impacted by the inability to find good staff.
- Auto electricians are more likely to face challenges related to technology, including accessing data and diagnostics.
- Finding apprentices is most acutely a problem for collision shops.
What's the good news?
- The impact of the parts shortage as a challenge has dropped by 11
percentage points for mobile mechanics, nine for auto-electrical and seven
for mechanical workshops.
- Across all business types, financial concerns ranked low as a business
challenge.
