Turn Your BS Meter On High: How Dealers Can Separate Real Operators from Professional Interviewers
Turn Your BS Meter On High: How Dealers Can Separate Real Operators from Professional Interviewers
One thing we often tell clients when evaluating General Managers and other dealership leaders is this: turn your BS meter on high.
It usually gets a laugh, but we're only half joking.
After interviewing hundreds of dealership executives throughout our careers, we've learned that some of the most impressive candidates can also be the most difficult to evaluate accurately. The reason isn't necessarily dishonesty. More often, it's because successful automotive leaders tend to be excellent communicators. They know how to build rapport, read people, overcome objections, and tell a compelling story.
Those skills helped them succeed in automotive retail. They also make them very effective interviewees.
The challenge for dealers is separating the story from the substance.
Don't Fall in Love with the Story
One of the biggest hiring mistakes we see is falling in love with the narrative.
A candidate describes the struggling store they inherited. They rebuilt the culture, fixed the used vehicle operation, developed managers, increased profitability, and transformed the dealership. It's a compelling story with challenges, setbacks, and eventually a happy ending.
Sometimes it's completely accurate.
The problem is that interviewers often become so engaged in what they're hearing that they stop investigating it. The more impressive the claims, the more important it becomes to verify them.
Move Beyond Results and Into Process
Every candidate can tell you what they accomplished.
The candidates worth hiring can explain exactly how they accomplished it.
When someone tells you they increased used vehicle volume by 40%, don't simply congratulate them and move on. Ask what volume was when they arrived, what operational changes they implemented, what obstacles they faced, and which initiatives didn't work as planned.
We've found that the truth usually lives in the details.
Strong operators can explain not only what happened, but why it happened. They remember the sequence of events, the challenges they encountered, and the decisions they made. Candidates relying primarily on polished interview skills often become less comfortable as the questions become more specific.
Ask for Evidence, Not Buzzwords
Most candidates know they're supposed to talk about accountability, culture, communication, and employee development.
Those words sound great, but they don't tell you much on their own.
If a candidate says they're exceptional at developing talent, ask about the last manager they promoted. Where did that person start? What coaching was provided? Where is that employee today?
The goal isn't to challenge every statement. The goal is to move beyond leadership philosophy and into leadership behavior.
Anyone can tell you what they believe about leadership. The best candidates can show you how they've actually led.
Pay Attention to the Questions They Ask
One of the most revealing parts of an interview is often the part dealers spend the least time evaluating: the candidate's questions.
Strong leaders tend to ask about culture, expectations, organizational challenges, leadership alignment, and what success looks like in the first year. They're trying to determine whether the opportunity is the right fit because they understand that leadership success depends on more than compensation or title.
The best leaders are interviewing you just as carefully as you're interviewing them.
References Still Matter
A candidate can impress you during an interview. It's much harder to maintain that same impression across former supervisors, peers, direct reports, and industry contacts.
The best reference checks focus on leadership style, accountability, culture, talent development, and long-term impact. Those conversations often reveal more than any interview ever will.
The Bottom Line
The biggest hiring mistakes in automotive retail rarely happen because a candidate lacks industry knowledge. More often, they happen because decision-makers become captivated by the story and stop digging for evidence.
The best operators welcome tough questions. They can explain their results, acknowledge setbacks, share credit, and demonstrate consistency across their resume, references, and interview responses.
So the next time you're interviewing a General Manager or dealership leader, turn your BS meter on high.
Not because you're looking for lies.
Because you're looking for the truth behind the story.
Need help identifying the difference between a polished interviewer and a proven operator? At Malo + Conner, we help dealers evaluate leadership talent beyond the resume and interview performance, so hiring decisions are based on evidence, not impressions. If you're considering a General Manager, Controller, CFO, or other key leadership hire, we'd love to be a resource.