Holden Genuine Maintenance Servicing
Service Audit

Wednesday 4.30 pm with Simon Thornton
Georgia Pound
Lydia Connelly
Sean Frank
Table of contents

Executive Summary P3
Introduction: Company and Industry P4
Target Market P4
Brand and Service Positioning P5
Service Positioning P6 Focus Flower of Service
Distribution Strategy P8
Communication Strategy P8
Pricing Strategy P9
Organisation Structure and Human Resource Strategy P9
Physical environment (servicescape) P9 Tangibles Reliability Assurance Empathy
Recommendations P11
Conclusion P12
Bibliography P13

Executive Summary
This report provides an in-depth evaluation and analysis of Holden Genuine Maintenance Servicing and review how this service is operating at its current position within the industry. Through analysis of Holden’s existing service operations, three recommendations have been identified at the conclusion of the report.
This report details various service quality audit methods, designed to highlight key strengths and failings within Holden Maintenance Servicing; including the flower of service, SERVIQUAL dimensions and a comprehensive review of the distribution, communication and pricing strategies. The research includes interviews with a Holden Service manager, Dealer Principle, Director of customer experience and a District service manager.
The research found that Holden is currently operating above the expectations of the market in many aspects of their service delivery, particularly their current brand position, pricing strategy and the servicescape.
However there can be improvements made to further enhance the customer experience during this service. More specifically the audit found that customer care, both during and after the service experience, and the reach of communications were Holden’s biggest shortcomings and areas of greatest concern. Finally it was identified that there is a need for a structured program to provide courtesy loan vehicles to customers during service of vehicle off road situations.
In undertaking this audit we have shown how Holden is a leader in the vehicle servicing industry, but addressing the operations areas of weakness, Holden can improve their offering, customer experience and ultimately revenue.

Introduction: Company and industry
Holden is an iconic Australian brand, GM Holden is an Australian company which is owned by American parent company General Motors. General Motors is ranked number 7 in the Fortune 500 list and has operations in America, Asia, Europe, South America, Australia and New Zealand and directly employs over 213,000 people worldwide. Currently GM Holden designs and manufactures two car lines out of Elizabeth, South Australia and manufactures engines on site at their Engine Operations plant in Melbourne, Victoria.
Currently there are emerging challenges in the Australian manufacturing industry. The automotive sector employees over 312,000 people within Australia and is a $162bn industry (Ibis world report). The Australian automotive market is very competitive, with over 80 brands competing for national sales, comparably low sales volumes and low import tariffs. Today the economic climate has proven that manufacturing vehicles in onshore in Australia is no longer a viable practice and we can see brands such as Ford, Toyota and Holden are withdrawing manufacturing in Australia as a result. Outsourcing manufacturing to an overseas location will allow a higher margin for profit for brands and also a reduction in vehicle costs for consumers. This will be a dramatic change in Australia and will have flow on effects for the rate of unemployment and the economy. With the closure of onshore manufacturing Automotive businesses are recognising the necessity to focus on Vehicle Servicing as a major factor in driving profit.
Target Market
Holden currently offer vehicle