We’re so proud of the four fearless females representing the KAR family in Women in Remarketing 2018! TradeRev ball of energy Tricia Green shared her unique path to the auto industry, her inspiring leadership style and her career role models.
Q Auto Remarketing: What was your path to the automotive industry, and what do you enjoy most about working in the car business?
Tricia Green: I attended a very small liberal arts college on a soft ball scholarship where I quickly got a reputation for being outgoing and upbeat. Our college baseball team was selling tickets at the home basketball games to earn upgraded cleats each season. I wanted those cleats but didn’t want to ask my parents for them.
So I made the baseball coach a deal that would make sure his team would sell enough tickets to cover the cost of the cleats if he would order me a pair, too. We hit the goal and bolstered my reputation to the outgoing and upbeat girl that would stopping at nothing to get what she wanted.
Six years later I had my first opportunity to enter the automotive industry through an old friend on that baseball team. I finally found a career with the energy, goals and atmosphere I thrived in.
The best part of this crazy business is the people. I am constantly reminded of the authentic lifelong relationships I have formed and how they have shaped me both personally and professionally into the strong and confident woman I am today. The old saying is still true, ‘Once you get in the car business you never leave.’ I love the rush of the car business; the confident people, making deals, witnessing the moment, when you ask enough of the right questions that they see the value in what you are doing.
Q AR: How is the remarketing/used-car segment of the business most different than when you first started out?
TG: When I first started in remarketing, the industry itself drove how business was conducted. For example, outside influencers decide when to sell a vehicle and how much to sell it for.
Now that we are in the era where social media and mobile business platforms drive success, dealers have the freedom of self-determination when it comes to their remarketing strategies. For example, TradeRev is driving the mobile business platform in which the seller controls when they sell. TradeRev is positioning buyers to drive real-time fair market values, which is bringing a whole new level of transparency into the remarketing industry. Ultimately, the introduction of the buyer and seller at the most upstream point in the retail process opens the door to a more positive retail customer experience creating a new level of loyalty and trust that creates customers for life.
This shift in business practice is an asset on multiple levels of the remarketing segment.
Q AR: How would you describe your leadership style and approach to problem-solving?
TG: I strive to lead by example every day. I remind myself constantly that even when no one is
watching, someone is following my lead. I believe if you want to be the best, you need to ask the best questions.
Listen to those around you, and when you hit a wall, keep asking questions. My goal is to educate and minimize distractions — this means I need to be bold and courageous enough to identify possible distractions and tackle them before we get off course. The keys to solving problems for me are:
1.Positive energy and attitude. Attitude drives everything! 2.Listening
3.Gathering information. Asking questions 4.Flexible/reactive thinking
5.Willingness to embrace being wrong. Followed quickly by a drive to reformulate a stronger plan.
Q AR: What have been some of the top keys to your success in the car business?
TG:
1.Allow criticism to be valid, even if it’s just for a moment. I take the criticism as feedback and use it to make myself better.
2.I allow my passion to drive my determination; I love to win! At the end of the day, no one can question my motivation and passion.
3.Instead of figuring out what is wrong, figure out what is right and do more of that. Once you have that down take it to the next level. There is no need to waste time recreating a wheel that is rolling in the right direction.
4.No is only no for right now!
Q AR: Who are some folks, whether in the auto industry or not, that you admire professionally, and why?
TG: As a child I watched my dad and grandpa come home covered from head to toe in coal dust as they worked relentlessly in the coal mine. Year after year, from hot summers to freezing cold winters, they embodied what hard work and never giving up looks like.
I watched my mom push to find the balance between working in a hospital, which included being on call most nights, and being the engaged mom every child wants. The way she lives is an example that I can be stronger than I can even imagine and that I can be a successful full-time working mother.
My grandmother advanced an entire community with her passion for reading by spearheading the library in our little town. She not only connected others to reading, but taught people that loving and caring for other people is contagious. She made a difference by showing me passion will move mountains.
There are so many other folks I want to talk about, but I can hear the Oscar music playing; the long story cut short is God continues to surround me with people that don’t just tell me the answers; they challenge me to think about things and ask questions. Every day I am faced with situations that intentionally mold me into the person I am destined to become.
Q AR: When you are able to get away from the office or work, what do you enjoy? What are your hobbies, interests, etc.?
TG: Away from work my favorite things usually involve my family, either traveling to see them or staying home to have a huge gathering for dinner. I love being silly with my daughters Alex (11) and Dani (8). I enjoy watching them compete on the IDC dance team or seeing them zipline across the lake at my parent’s house.
When we have a weekend off , I value down time with my hubby, Bobby, while we listen to our favorite music. I also love spending time with my sister just talking and laughing so hard we cry. Clearly my family is central to all that I am, all that I do, and as such, they are where I choose to put my energy when I am away from work.
Source: http://cdn.coverstand.com/25591/491073/c1a743b522da3f5693a51d2b6f6bbdebc3abdeaf.9.pdf, Page 38