43 YEARS WITH FORD & SLATER’S GROUP PARTS ANALYSIS MANAGER

9th October 2018 |

43 YEARS WITH FORD & SLATER’S GROUP PARTS ANALYSIS MANAGER

43 YEARS WITH FORD & SLATER’S GROUP PARTS ANALYSIS MANAGER

Our foundation as a family business means even as we have grown to ten locations, Ford & Slater maintain the strong family values which are at the heart of everything we do, from the way we work with our customers to the relationships we have with our staff.

As a result, over 23% of our employees have been with Ford & Slater for over 15 years, including Group Parts Analysis Manager Ash Griffin who is celebrating 43 years within the parts department at our Ford & Slater Leicester dealership.
 

Family values

Ash began his career with us in 1975, as a Parts Sales Apprentice. During that time the company was owned by UAC Motors and was primarily a Leyland Trucks dealership.

“Ford & Slater has always been a good place to work. Back then the Parts department was entirely paper based and hand filing, and there was grease and dirt everywhere, including under your nails. Now, the whole concept of parts has changed. What was typically known back then as a workshop garage store has become a first-class parts emporium.”

In 1991 Ford & Slater Ltd was purchased by Peter Strevens and later succeeded by his two sons, Nigel and Tim Strevens. By that time, Ford & Slater had begun its lasting and successful relationship with DAF Trucks UK and Ash Griffin had moved into a permanent position within the company as a Parts Supervisor, though it wasn’t long until he was managing the parts department.

“I was Parts Manager for Leicester for 19 years. During this time, I saw the parts department transform into a modern and welcoming environment. I think the Strevens family taking control of the business was a turning point for Ford & Slater; Family values have continued to be a big part of the way things work here and it makes the whole experience of coming to work so much better.”


Moving up

Ash managed the Leicester parts team until he was promoted into his current role of Group Parts Analysis Manager in 2017, created for Ash with the goal of streamlining and specialising our Group parts services.

“As a Group Parts Analysis Manager, I am responsible for reviewing the statistics for what is happening in the parts department throughout the group and feeding reports back to the rest of the parts management team.

“I collect the data which can be used to help us grow as a business and create a better, more efficient experience for Ford & Slater customers. This could be looking at stock intake and sales, developing systems and procedures to make the parts department run smoother or reporting on campaigns and sales efforts.”


So what about the future?

“At the moment, I am still learning a lot from what has been done in the past. It is an interesting and diverse role which I really enjoy being a part of. I am due to retire in six years, but even after 43 years with Ford & Slater I’m still enjoying my time. There might be a few more years left in this old dog yet!”

Happy 43 years, Ash!