A just-released book challenges the owners of tire businesses to look at whether they are limiting their scope to that of a "small business" or they have expanded their view to be that of an entrepreneur.
The book, Entrepreneurial Insanity in the Tire Industry by self-described serial entrepreneur Roger McManus, features input from some significant players in the tire industry, defines the question and describes how a dealer can tell the difference between small business ownership and entrepreneurism.
“What I have tried to do is get the owner of a tire business, whether the founder or the next generation operator who inherited the responsibility, to examine his or her role in the business,” McManus said. “Interestingly, the owner who is vital to the daily operation of the business – the person the employees know has all the answers – probably owns a business worth far less than the owner who is virtually invisible.”
McManus explained it’s all about operating systems that allow a business to run – if the systems are in place, the owner is almost irrelevant. “The owner can essentially manage the business from an iPhone.”
The book was conceived in a meeting at the 2010 Global Tire Expo in Las Vegas, when McManus was introduced to former TIA president Wayne Croswell. Within days, Wayne had introduced McManus to some key people in the industry and McManus was off and running with an idea that culminated in the just-released book.
Contributing to the book were Roy Littlefield, executive vice president of TIA, Pam Gatto, president of Gatto’s Tire and Auto Service (Melbourne, Fla.), Jody DeVere, CEO of AskPatty.com, Larry Morgan of Morgan Auto Group (Tampa, Fla.), Charlie Creighton of Colony Tire (Edenton, N.C.) and Croswell, president of WECnology (Amherst, N.H.).
The book is available through Amazon.com, but orders made through a special link on the Tire Industry Association website will generate a contribution to the TIA Foundation through an Educational Fund established by the publisher, Ensanity Press, on behalf of TIA.
