AM Awards 2021 winner: DP/GM of the Year, Scott Stenning, Arbury Motor Group

The AM Awards 2021’s GM/DP of the Year, Scott Stenning, says he is motivated by the success of his team – if the team is high performing and striving for improvement then business and personal success will follow.

Empowering the team and creating a motivating environment where people want to give their best is crucial, he says.

“I believe I bring a driven and detail-orientated approach, which is underpinned by supportive and personable emotional intelligence, that, in turn, produces a high-performance team and strong team culture,” he adds.

A graduate in automotive dealership management from Loughborough University, his first general management post at another Arbury site from 2015 gave him experience of improving profitability through some “clear wins” and raising the dealership high in its brands’ league tables.

Moving to the current Bromsgrove multi-franchised outlet in 2019 posed new challenges, as his predecessor had left it in great shape financially and culturally.

“I therefore had to focus in on the detail and discuss with the whole team to establish where everybody felt improvements could be made,” Stenning says.

Gains have been achieved since in used car sales, aftersales capacity, fleet department profitability and customer satisfaction – all contributing to a rise in overall profitability and a return on sales percentage three times the 2020 industry average.

The pandemic brought the challenge of balancing business objectives and stability while maintaining focus on employee engagement and welfare.

Stenning kept in touch with the team, through WhatsApp, phone calls or emails. On return from furlough, every employee had a full induction to ensure they felt comfortable and safe at work.

Since joining the Bromsgrove site, Stenning has sought to keep staff informed of all departments’ performances, and recognised personally for their achievements, such as in monthly awards for sales, service and customer satisfaction.

 Their feedback and open dialogue is hugely valued too.