Kasey Price, Diversity and Inclusion Consultant, Subaru of America

Kyle Mountsier: 0:00This is In The Dirt with ASOTU. Alright, we're back here at name add with Kasey price of Subaru of America. She's got a crazy side and washes.

‍Kasey Price: 0:10

Its de ibbl Diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging, business analysts at Subaru of America consultant holiday.

Kyle Mountsier: 0:17

Got him. Okay, so we were just chatting off camera and I said, Whoa, we got to bring that on camera. Okay, because you were talking to me about how the encouragement that you're giving to millennials in particular, is a lot different than I think what a lot of retail or business is encouraging right now. And you can speak from some level of authority, right?

Kasey Price: 0:41

I think we're the best generation alive, sorry, boomers. Think about it this way. Right. Boomers were the biggest generation, the next finish generation was millennials. So what are your next CEOs? Executives? Next Gen panel? They're all millennials. So if you don't adapt to what we want in the market, do you want to be at Kmart? Or do you want to be an Amazon? How are you going to pivot that business?

Kyle Mountsier: 1:01

Okay, so what, when, when we're talking about millennials, specifically in the auto business, because and there's multiple places where they can fit in love with the industry partner level at the dealer level? What, what does a millennial like in a generalization? It's not everyone, but what are the some core principles that you're seeing, that are not being adapted to by business industry as a whole?

Kasey Price: 1:22

100%? So the remote versus hybrid? I'm just talking to someone about this, when you're saying that we can't connect with people. If we're not online. We're not in person. You're insulting millennials, we do half of our connections on FaceTime, right? So when people say to me, Oh, I look, I basically know you're on LinkedIn, which means you're kind of admitting as a boomer that you feel like you know, someone on the internet, so why can't you know me in a team's meeting, or on Zoom? We want to be at home, because we want to spend more of our time we believe in working smart, right? Not a lot. Okay. So

Kyle Mountsier: 1:49

let me challenge you. Okay. Talk to me is we're in a retail business. We have ABS establishments and retail environments. Okay, with showrooms. Okay. How do you reconcile that, when trying to attract a generation that is starting to get used to working from home working in reverse mode environments are being encouraged that by a lot of the tech partners that are outside of auto? Yeah. How do you reconcile that conversation with places that need people in particular places to interact? interpersonally with people? So

Kasey Price: 2:19

it's three things right? One, do you want the money on market? Right? We have the baddest rap, but you keep hiring us, right? Do you want us as your market? And if you do the same way, you're doing diversity, pipeline recruitment? How do you get people in our How do you get people from our demographic, right, strategize? Do you want us strategy time can be done hybrid they can sell in the store, but when they're out sending emails, let them walk from home and flexibility. We want autonomy, we want money, and we want flexibility, right? And the last aspect is you have to hear from us. Because I want you to compare it to all the businesses that were obsolete, do you want to be a Kmart you will be gone. If Facebook and Google and Twitter doing it, you should be doing it as well. It doesn't matter if at the same business model automotive or not. If the leaders that unicorns Ubers doing it, you should be doing

Kyle Mountsier: 2:59

so what I'm hearing is like there's there's probably a few models that you might be able to adopt based on the role and their specific role. Or even, you know, like, you kind of just said this, and I'm just thinking out loud at this point, because that's what I like to do is okay, there's maybe an opportunity where these people can work from home unless they have an appointment or have to be in the store. And then you do struggle with some like coverage things, especially in the sales or service environment, right. But there might be multiple opportunities to structure your organization across remote hybrid and in person work to like find the people where they want to

Kasey Price: 3:32

be. I think it is also doing the idea of true hybrid, I think it was Ford who's doing like the hybrid of remote first, to me hybrid, the perfect sweet spot for us right models, I've asked a bunch of us right take test me on this is that we want three days. So if you can give me two days, one week, and today's other weekend, give me a one swing day, that's ideally hybrid. So when you say what's your job, employee value proposition, we have a hybrid model two to three days, you'll hear from us when you say absolutely not, you're not the company for us. And then that means that you don't get all of our leadership and our skill set,

Kyle Mountsier: 4:00

man and that's a dangerous thing. And I think so I think OEMs industry partners and dealers all have to reconcile with that's just something they need to have in the conversation whether or not they want that leadership in particular places. It's not a bad thing to say no, right think, but it's just a conscious understanding of what you may or may not be able to. Now here's a question how to, I gotta ask you because you it doesn't sound like you grew up going like, Oh, I'm gonna be an auto. No. How did how did that how did that kind of take place? How did you get into the OEM ecosystem?

Kasey Price: 4:30

Long story short, so I went to a place in Bucks County, William Tennant and we weren't very diverse right. So before di was cool on me for George Floyd. So we say post and pre George for the DI world. I was talking to my superintendent about changing curriculum and changing the school district. So then I kind of was a do gooder and went to nonprofits taught a financial literacy program and T and entrepreneurship from TD Bank after I kind of went to education between Wharton and kind of the education route, and Subaru had opportunity for diversity. So education equity is important to me and financial inclusion is important to me and if Subarus Want to do that I don't care where it's at my commitment to the work.

Kyle Mountsier: 5:03

That's really cool. So the commitment to the work, the brand was willing to do that work. And it's like, hey, look, wherever brands are willing to do that work you're going to be placed in. Well, thank you so much for hanging out with us. Thank you and encourage you and your work.

Kasey Price: 5:17

Thank you. I appreciate it. Thanks, guys.

Kyle Mountsier: 5:20

Thank you for listening to In The Dirt with ASOTU. We love the automotive industry and the people who make it run day in and day out. We would love to connect with you more through our daily dose of fun, a free email that you can sign up for at asotu.com That's a s o t u.com. We put our heart and soul into it every day. Thanks again for listening. Join us next time for more Conversations In The Dirt with ASOTU

‍