Celeste Briggs, who heads up the General Motors Women’s Retail Network, an initiative that encourages women to seek dealership careers, has recently found herself surprised at the amount of women interested in becoming automotive technicians. Since 2011, the project has awarded about $100,000 in “Drive to Succeed” scholarships to women.
Half of last year’s recipients wanted to work in service departments. “That surprised me,” Briggs says.
Traditionally, dealerships have employed more men than women. “We want to change culture of dealerships,” Briggs says.
A National Automobile Dealers Assn.-commissioned survey indicates 92 percent of dealership office and administration workers are women, but females account for only 19 percent of finance and insurance positions, while only 13 percent in parts and service, 9 percent in vehicle sales and 4 percent in sales management.
An industry first, the program has grown and helps to increase the number of women qualified to enter auto retailing, including positions in sales, marketing, management and technical fields, Briggs says.
“We want to change the culture of dealerships by attracting women to dealership jobs and all aspects of management,” Briggs says. “We want to get more women involved, from technicians to people on the sales floor. We’re doing what we can to attract women to auto careers.”
She strives to “create more gender balance in the auto retail environment.”
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