Held at the Don Carlos Hotel just outside Marbella at the end of June, the conference was opened by keynote speaker Jim Rickard, managing director of Michelin Tyre and chairman of the Tyre Industry Federation (TIF).

Numerous important issues were discussed, but delegates agreed that the most pressing topics under discussion were: potential government imposed regulation of the industry and the poor consumer perception of the tyre business. The trade’s use of the Internet, issues relating to end-of-life tyre disposal and of course run-flat tyres were also discussed.

While Rickard may take responsibility for the U.K. wing of one of the world’s largest manufacturer’s as his day job, the conference’s opening speech saw the managing director put his TIF hat on. Setting the scene, Rickard explained how the TIF was initially formed in January 2005 with only two organisations – the BRMA and ITMA. Following a meeting in mid-2005 the federation’s leadership recognised that the best way forward was to embrace other trade associations connected to the tyre business, enabling the federation to be the authoritative voice of the tyre industry. As a result the NTDA, RMA, ITA and TRA all became members of the TIF in December 2005.

Interestingly, Rickard’s speech didn’t rule out the possibility that the TIF could follow the Dutch example and evolve in a VACO-style unified association. However, if such a consolidation does come to pass, it is unlikely to happen any time soon, as influential opinion makers have raised questions about how one large “association of associations” could truly represent all of its constituent.

One result of the coming together of the various associations has been to enable the federation to support a number of initiatives including the collation of authoritative U.K. market statistics and training issues, said Rickard. “The federation will clearly want to put its weight behind safety [and health and safety] issues it supports,” the TIF chairman added.

The 2006 conference may have attracted fewer delegates than normal, but the NTDA puts this down to “conflicting member commitments,” particularly the four-yearly global distraction that is the World Cup. Having said that, this year’s event was the best-attended conference (as far as manufacturers are concerned) for many years.

Under the Spotlight
Both of the two leading topics (self regulation and consumer perception) are industry wide issues and consequently the NTDA’s capability to independently solve these problems was questioned by some. With this in mind it was disappointing to see that the previously vocal delegates became quiet when it came to committing to solving any of the problems raised during discussion.

This sentiment was echoed by conference facilitator Piers Thurston: “The most disappointing sessions on the workshop were the last two – when it came down to decide what to actually do next. When it came down to actually taking decisions there was a lack of energy to get things done.”

Another explanation for this could be that there was a lack of belief that change could be made or that those present were ‘qualified’ to make these decisions. Either way the result was the same. As the NTDA said in its official conference report, “in true fashion, the NTDA was left with an extensive list of actions to complete on behalf of its members.”

As far as conference feedback is concerned, no-one could fault the excellent organisation by the NTDA, the enthusiasm of the delegates that attended, the quality of the conference facilities or facilitation. (According to the conference feedback process delegates rated this as seven out of 10 on average). This can also be seen as support for the free-space style of conference discussion rather than the more passive speech-based alternative.

Government-Enforced Regulation
The low level of awareness across the different parts of the industry represented by delegates highlighted how important it is to get the following message out: The tyre industry could soon be subject to a super-complaint and then government regulation as a result.

Questions asked included: What has to happen to stop the government intervening? Do we want the government to regulate us, or be self-regulatory? How do we avoid becoming a ‘soft target’? What happens to the part of the industry that doesn’t comply with self imposed regulation?  Does the NTDA/TIF currently have enough resources to solve this issue?

The good news is the government would rather the industry was self-regulatory, but if that doesn’t happen it will step in. According to some delegates, the industry currently has its collective head in the sand. Many possible actions were discussed but it was felt that the only feasible action was for the NTDA to circulate copies of its current code and review its stance, taking account of the other codes, which exist in the Motor Trade, including the IMI.

Consumer Perception
The question of a potential super complaint is by definition closely linked to the subject of consumer perceptions. The main subject focussed on the consumer perception that the industry is a rip off can be changed. Put simply, how can we bring smiles back to the business?

One novel suggestion came from a group discussion on mystery shopping. This workshop suggested that NTDA members pool resources to fund a kind of ‘association mystery shopper scheme’ that could survey customer service.

Suggested action points were to: develop industry standards for tyre and fast fit specialists, taking account of the current excellence programmes run by various manufacturers. And to discuss this subject at the NTDA Council and set up a working group

Online Business
When it came to discussing the relative merits of online business, opinions were obviously divided as to whether e-business was a friend or foe of NTDA members. Questions varied between “How can we stop the web driving down prices?” and “Should there be an integrated NTDA commercial website for purchasing?”

Other delegates wanted to know just how many people are currently using the web to buy tyres, a question that harked back to the earlier requested for more authoritative industry statistics. Delegates estimated that between 1 million units and 2 per cent of the market was currently sold online, with the potential to grow. The consensus was that the trade is “getting left behind.” This led to suggestions that members would benefit from additional training in this area. This could start with the circulation of an official report comparing the prices of the main market players.

The Internet subject proved to be so popular that no less than three “breakout” groups discussed the subject. Other points raised included: the tyre trade’s resistance to change in this area; and that cooperation with Internet traders should be shunned in favour of working with tyre manufacturers.

See You Next Year
At the same time, as publishing its report on the 2006 conference (available online at www.ntdaconference.com), the NTDA announced that it has agreed to stage a further open space conference on May 2, 2007 alongside Brityrex 2007. This decision proves the effectiveness of association conferences as the idea can be traced back to a discussion that took place during the 2006 event. Next year’s event will be followed by the association’s popular annual dinner.

To conclude, and in keeping with the open-space ethos, T&A would echo the words of conference facilitator Piers Thurston suggesting how to maximising the value of future NTDA conferences: “My recommendation…would be to consider mixing the open agenda format with some more defined sessions that focus on actions and how to actually make changes.” The 2007 conference would seem be an excellent opportunity to do exactly that.