PacLease recently held its semi-annual Service and Operations Summit in Nashville.
The two-day event, which featured topics and presentations to further strengthen the PacLease network, had record attendance, with nearly 80 percent of franchise groups in the U.S. and Canada represented. PacLease has more than 460 full-service leasing and rental locations.
“It felt good to be all together in person,” says Andrew Keane, Paccar Leasing’s director of franchise operations. “These past few years have been challenging, and we had to cancel our last Summit due to Covid-19. Everyone was excited to reunite -- the energy and passion we had in the main presentation room, and in breakout sessions, really set the stage for some exciting years ahead of us.”
The meeting, themed “Charging Forward,” included topics such as the coming of electric vehicles and the sales/support efforts needed by the PacLease network to make the transition to electric easier for customers, PacLease says.. It also included presentations on the evolution and implementation of voice-guided technology for performing preventive maintenance. A presentation was also made on the Voice of the Customer – examining results from a survey that was sent to PacLease customers, the company adds.
With Kenworth and Peterbilt both offering battery electric medium and heavy-duty trucks, presentations were made on implementing EV infrastructure at PacLease locations, tooling and equipment, plus ways to support customers in applying for grant money to offset the added cost for an electric truck.
“There is a lot of interest in leasing electric trucks as they represent the future,” says Keane. “Leasing through PacLease will be a great strategy for many as we can offer a complete turnkey program to make any transition seamless and smooth. We’re already beginning to plan and install charging stations at several of our larger PacLease locations, near our service bays, in anticipation of first customer deliveries.”
Through PacLease’s annual Voice of the Customer survey, customers reported an increase in the value they received for the price paid, and they also reported an increase in overall customer satisfaction.
“Those were great statistics to report back to the group,” says Keane. “We’re always looking to improve our services and our Voice of the Customer surveys provide the feedback we need for continuous improvement.”
That’s one reason Keane said that PacLease franchises are adopting the company’s voice-guided technology for preventive maintenance.
“It improves consistency and quality,” he states. “No steps can be missed or forgotten with our voice-guided system, plus it also speeds the process by not having to double check next steps in a PM, especially for new technicians. We feel this type of technology is the future in maintaining vehicles and our franchises are quickly coming onboard with installations.”
