Staff changes for McIntosh & Sons team

After two years as branch manager at McIntosh & Son, Moora, Mr Catto has stepped into the newly-created role with enthusiasm, believing that being able to improve processes and resources within the dealership group, while being closer to his family in Geraldton is a good career move for him.

As northern group sales manager, he will oversee stock ordering, pricing and sales processes, focus on supplier relationships, and implement sales training to keep staff up to date on their core product range.

Mr Catto said while he was excited to commence his new job, he admitted he was going to miss his former role.

"I'd love to stay in the Moora branch manager role, I really enjoyed it and found it really exciting, but I needed to be closer to my family," Mr Catto said.

His promotion has meant that the McIntosh & Son, Moora branch manager role is now open.

Mr Catto said the opportunity to lead more than 30 staff in an established sales area was a rare opportunity in the industry.

"It's one of the best jobs going," he said.

"It's an exciting role where there are highs and lows just like any other, but if you put the effort into it, it's a really rewarding job.

"As branch manager you head up everything from sales, service and parts within the dealership, and there's a real satisfaction when you know your team can give your customers the experience they deserve.

"The biggest thing with any management role is communication and dealing with staff - your biggest asset.

"Having the ability to understand what makes people tick plays a big part in keeping the business growing and moving forward."

The promotion for Mr Catto follows a number of career progressions within the Moora branch over the past few months.

Brad Chester has returned to McIntosh & Son to fulfil the role of service manager, replacing Callum Simpson, who has been promoted to regional technical support officer for the group's Northern branches.

Additionally, Jake Fisher has come onboard as workshop foreman and superviser, completing the service team within the dealership.

Callum Simpson, formerly the service manager at Moora, said he was ready to move on to the next challenge after being with the company for thirteen years.

Mr Catto said the promotion was a natural progression.

"Callum brings his years of experience to the new role, which will enable all our northern branches to provide faster service times, better response times for queries and a more knowledgeable team who can learn from him," Mr Catto said.

"Callum is a great resource for any branch staff from a technical point of view.

"Our team of technicians can learn from Callum and ask questions and get the job done correctly the first time, nurturing the process of learning."

One aspect of the regional technical support officer role is an annual training audit, ensuring all service staff are at expected levels of training.

Mr Simpson was enthusiastic about the educational direction that McIntosh & Son was taking.

"I'm very excited to have all our guys at a certain level for every year they're with us," Mr Simpson said.

"That way we're investing in them and they're having a good experience in our business."

Mr Catto said the changes reflected the dealership group's continued focus on supporting staff with opportunities for career pathways.

"We now have an internalised professional development program as a way of allowing employees to grow their skills and enhance their strengths, as well as stay well-informed on management best practice - which is quite unique in our industry," he said.

Of the Moora branch manager role, Mr Cattto impressed the need for interested candidates to apply sooner rather than later, while the role was still available.

"It's a rare for a role like this to become available in an organisation like ours, so it will see a lot of interest, it's a great opportunity."