(From left to right: Dean Sheed General Manager of Volkswagen NZ, Jared Lentfer of Ebbett Prestige, Mathew Archer of Euro City, Pierre Meyer of Giltrap Prestige, Anthony Johanson of Miles Continental, Neil Bauer of CCS, Darren Peattie of Bay Prestige, Scott Allchorne of Giltrap Prestige, Steve Wilson National Service Manager of Volkswagen NZ.)
New Zealand has become the first country in the Asia Pacific region to complete the master technician programme by qualifying seven master technicians according to Volkswagen standards.
The aim of the program is to secure and further enhance the service quality of the Volkswagen brand worldwide, thereby increasing customer satisfaction. In the current economic climate customers are keen to keep their vehicles in the highest possible condition and with seven master technicians on their team, Volkswagen NZ is now in a position to ensure this is possible.
The certificates were presented to the Master Technicians by Volkswagen NZ general manager Dean Sheed at an awards ceremony in November. The awards ceremony was attended by all Volkswagen service managers and demonstrates the high esteem in which these qualifications are held and the commitment of Volkswagen NZ to developing its employees to the highest standards.
To achieve Master status each technician completed rigorous training that comprised 14 modules combined into six courses over 18 months. The final exam is composed of five practical exams, three theory exams and a verbal communication exam. A total of six hours of testing for each participant is conducted over two days. The exams follow the strict guidelines from the factory and were supervised by the regional technical training manager from Singapore, Mr Stephen Belling.
“Aftersales support is an integral part of the support mechanism required to ensure total customer satisfaction after the sale,” says VW NZ national service manager, Steve Wilson. “This qualification is the start of a process which will see at least one Master Technician in each dealership in the future. The growth of the Volkswagen brand in New Zealand and the retention of highly-skilled staff is imperative for success.
“VW importer (European Motor Distributors) sees this milestone as an important step to not only raise technical competence but also to set the scene for others to follow. Volkswagen in New Zealand is growing faster than any other European Brand and is set to break records in the future.”
