A personal note from Herb Chambers

Dear Valued customer,

Last, year at this time, I wrote to you about an important workplace distinction of which, I was very proud.

The Herb Chambers Companies were recognized as being amongst The Boston Globe’s Top 100 Places to Work for 2009. I am so proud to tell you, we have just been notified by the Boston Globe, that we have earned this distinction again for 2010.

This year we are ranked eighth in the Large Employer category. We were selected from more than 1,000 employers who participated in the survey. In fact, we are the only automotive dealer ever to have received this award and now we’ve earned it twice.

What I love so much about this is that it was the enthusiastic recognition of our employees’ that made this possible when they nominated our company as a Top 100 workplace.

There is no higher privilege in business than to have your employees emphatically state, “What a great place to work”! … And then, want to tell the whole world…amazing!

Thank you.

Herb Chambers

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The soul of a leader

Three top executives who all inspire loyalty among employees reveal their personal goals, leadership methods — and deepest fears

November 7, 2010

To be one of the Globe’s Top Places to Work, an organization’s employees must believe the people at the top know what they’re doing and care about providing a rewarding work experience. Anthony Consigli of Consigli Construction Co., Kathleen “Kit’’ Tunney of Associates for Human Services, and Herb Chambers of Herb Chambers Cos. all run organizations that ranked high in our survey for employee faith that the organization is in good hands. Top Places editor Michael Warshaw asked them what good leaders do.

• Globe: Anthony, what does it mean to you that your name is on the company?

Consigli: It might make the accountability that much greater. But I don’t think that it is the end all, be all. The reason the name is important is because I have three generations preceding me. If I screw up, I feel like I let somebody down.

• Globe: Herb, what about your name on your company?

Chambers: Well, I think it is different for me because I was the guy that started the company. I think that the pressure on you, Anthony, is five times greater than it is on me.

The company I have today is not what I envisioned 20, 25 years ago. At the time I sold my first company, I was 38 years old. I said, ‘What am I going to do now?’ and I went down to buy a car, and instead of buying the car, I bought the dealership.

Tunney: That is a great story.

Chambers: I realized how bad that particular dealership was. It just looked like the guy wanted to get out of it. I bought it right on the spot.

In the automobile business, you don’t necessarily have to be great. You have to be good. If you are good, you are great. Because most people say they hate car dealers.

We don’t build cars. They roll in, and we have to find a home for them. Our people are so important because the product is unimportant. If you like Honda, you’re going to buy a Honda whether you buy it from me or somebody else. The question becomes: Can we fulfill the need of delivering that car to the customer better than somebody else can?

I hold a training meeting once a month, and we have 300 or 400 people there for breakfast, our whole sales organization. Salespeople have got to be kind of cheered up all the time, because they have a tendency to fall down. Technicians are a kind of a different breed. They have a different level of motivation than salespeople do.

• Globe: Do you speak to each group differently?

Chambers: I do. When I am in the dealerships, I talk to the guys and ask, ‘How is everything with the shop? Anything we can do for you?’

All of our shops are now air conditioned. That came out of one of the comments I got from one of the guys.

• Globe: Kit, you came up differently, from being a staffer.

Tunney: I fell in love with the work that we do — with the staff that I was working with. And over time, wanted to make some changes there, took some courses to get a little bit of credentials in management. And happened to be at the right place at the right time.

• Globe: How did the experience of being a staff member affect your leadership?

Tunney: Having been there and done that makes me more approachable. I try to involve them in problem solving and decision making, because that was important to me when I felt like I didn’t have that voice.

I go out to a group home and say to the staff, ‘How’s it going?’ and I stop to listen to the answer. But I also provide formal opportunities for them to participate in focus groups and surveys to tell me how good of a job we are doing.

• Globe: Tell us something that surprised you that came out of that.

Tunney: Lack of natural light. We had staff in cubbies with no windows. When I decided to build our building, and we interviewed staff to ask them what they wanted, what I heard was: light. Now our building has windows right across the top. It is all one level. And there are suites set off at angles, so it doesn’t look like a motel.

• Globe: Anthony, what are you looking for when you tour your construction sites?

Consigli: I am looking for them to talk to me like I am a normal person, vs. a company president. I think there are some incredibly smart people out there that are building these buildings. They are equally important to this deal as I am. I don’t think they understand that sometimes.

• Globe: Kit, how important is the staff dedication to your mission?

Tunney: It is essential. You train, train, train. I don’t have a breakfast every month for 400 people, but it is the same thing. You’ve got to find out what their needs are, and you have to meet those needs. If I have a staff that didn’t do a good job because I didn’t provide the opportunity to gain the skills that they need, then I am the one at fault.

For instance, if you have an individual that lives in a group home, in a wheelchair, and then is maybe visually impaired, you need to provide training for that particular staff. How do you present a meal to someone that is visually impaired? How do you get them to a table if they are in a wheelchair? So you really have to be very thorough putting together orientation for staff. And follow up, follow up, follow up.

Chambers: In the automobile business, I am embarrassed to say how simple it is. The manufacturer provides you with information on all of the technicians, all the salespeople, the individual dealerships, how they all perform. We know where the problems are.

• Globe: Herb, you bought that dealership, it seems, almost on impulse.

Tunney: That is confidence, and I admire that.

Chambers: I don’t think I am smarter than anybody else. On the same token, I don’t think I am a lot dumber than anybody else. Believe me, I live on fear. I am always worried about everything all the time.

• Globe: Fear of what?

Chambers: Fear of failing in anything. I don’t want to fail.

• Globe: Kit, do you have fear?

Tunney: We’re federally and state funded. I am always wondering whether or not our contracts are going to get cut. And they do. Then I need to figure out, ‘How am I going to do more with less?’ I am always afraid it’s going to get cut so much that I am going to have to look at laying off staff.

• Globe: Anthony, is fear a motivator?

Consigli: Fear and regret. I stay up all night thinking about the things that could go wrong. Construction is a dangerous business. People die, and I am fearful of that. Quality problems, reputation — all those things.

I would say regret is equal. I hate thinking that I am going to regret decisions I made or didn’t make 10 years out, 30 years out.

• Globe: How do you avoid it?

Consigli: Thinking a lot about it. The greatest regret would be tanking a company that has been around for 105 years. I think that fear and hard work hold off that danger of making a decision that you’ll regret.

Do you screw up? Yeah. Everybody screws up. But you man up, you admit it, and you move on. If there are three things that I aspire to, they are humility, empathy, and accountability — just doing what you said you were going to do. I think that if I can do that more often than not, generally speaking, things will go well.

Tunney: If people have a healthy work ethic, they want to come to work and they want to be respected for what they do. And they want to do their best and they want to be rewarded for that. They want to have decent pay checks. And that is what we try to do.

Consigli: If we are the people behind our organizations who are responsible for that, we need to be doing the proper planning and working hard to make sure we’re putting things in place for that to happen for people.

Chambers: Everybody likes to believe they have good integrity. They all like to believe that they work hard. Who is going to set the pace of the organization? The pace of the organization is the speed of the leader, right? They look at you and say, ‘He really puts his heart and soul into everything that he does, or she does.’ So what are you doing to do? You’re going to put your heart and soul into it.

Consigli: The day that I stop doing that is the day I have to get out and let someone else take over. I have seen so many organizations where that doesn’t happen. If I get hit by a bus tomorrow, I want the organization to keep going just like nothing happened. That’s success.

© Copyright 2010 The New York Times Company

Herb Chambers Cars and Coffee Events are held monthly.

These events are all well attended.

It’s New England’s newest car event showcasing antique, classic, exotic, hotrods, motorcycles and motorsports collections from the New England area and around the world!

Herb Chambers Cars and Coffee have become quite a must event for the car enthusiast population of New England!

The past two events have been tremendously successful.

In July Herb brought his McLaren F-1 to the event.

Be a part of the Herb Chambers Cars and Coffee event in August!

Saturday, August 14th, 2010 from 7:00am to 10am at
Herb Chambers Flagship Motorcars 385 Broadway, Lynnfield, MA 01940
Herb will be bringing his twin Daytona’s to the event!

Herb Chambers Car Collection – Herb’s Twin Daytonas!

Herb Chambers Cars and Coffe – CLICK HERE !

Includes Photos by Michael Manning as part of an advertising supplement to the Boston Globe

Herb Chambers – The value of confidence

Workers want a leader they can believe in

By Elizabeth Cooney, Globe Correspondent

HERB CHAMBERS WAS in the middle of expanding his car sales business when the recession hit, but he kept right on going with plans to open new dealerships and expand others. Now Chambers is hiring, and employees are glad they’re at a company that’s growing while their industry is gasping.

When the climate is gloomy, employees want company leaders to offer confidence, communication, and a sense that a bright future is being built.

Workers at these companies believe their professional fate is in good hands:

Herb Chambers Cos.: Twenty-five years ago, it wasn’t the norm for an auto dealer’s service department to wash the cars before returning them to customers, but Herb Chambers did it. “My feeling was a clean car always ran better than dirty one did,’’ said Chambers, head of his namesake business.

This year, going against the grain meant completing $50 million in new facilities. It’s that kind of thinking that has allowed Chambers auto dealerships to grow while other dealers are struggling or even closing down.

That sits well with employees, especially in the high-pressure world of auto sales. “I think it gives our people a great deal of confidence,’’ Chambers said. “They feel good about our company. They believe they are in the right place.’’

One after another, Chambers employees surveyed for Top Places cited the boss himself and the company’s growth as reasons for their satisfaction.

Not that Chambers has escaped the recession entirely. Sales are down 19 percent this year compared to last year, when the expansion was planned. But national numbers are down even more: from 30 to 34 percent.

“We never had a doubt about the future,’’ said Michael Hannafin, service director at Flagship Motorcars, a newly refurbished Chambers dealership in Lynnfield. “He’s a guy who believes in what he is doing. That trickles down.’’

Hannafin said Chambers recently pulled aside a manager who had reorganized a parts department, saying he wanted the rest of the company to copy the system. “You can’t measure what that does for an employee,’’ Hannafin said. “That guy was on cloud nine and the rest of his team was motivated, because he was singled out in a positive way by the CEO of the company.’’

Somerville-based Herb Chambers helps spread awareness of drowsy driving dangers

This event is for motoring enthusiasts looking for a place to take their ride, share stories and admire each other’s pride and joy.

Visit: herbchamberscarsandcoffee.com

Herb Chambers Cars and Coffee is completely free and will be held at the all new Herb Chambers BMW of Sudbury, 128 Boston Post Road (Route 20) in Sudbury, Massachusetts.

The dealership is located just six miles from exit 26 off Rte 128/95.

All enthusiasts including antique, classic, exotic, hotrods, motorcycles and motorsports are invited to attend and there will be plenty of free parking for your vehicle.

Free Tee Shirts for the first 200 attendees!

On display! McLaren F-1

We hope to see you there!

John Covell

Director of Training and Marketing

john@herbchambers.com

Herb Chambers’ McLaren F1 and coffee

~Photo by William Tauro

Herb Chambers helicopter landing pad to the stars!

By William Tauro

A helicopter takes off from on top of the Herb Chambers Auto dealership that’s located on McGrath Highway.

According to sources movie film actress Cameron Diaz is today’s passenger being transported to her movie set that’s being filmed locally.

Sources also tell us that movie star Tom Cruise was yesterday’s helicopter passenger for the day!

Chambers Continues to Storm Forward With Expansion Plans

SUDBURY – Less than a year ago, Herb Chambers gathered with community and industry leaders as well as employees and friends to officially break ground on a new BMW dealership in Sudbury.

At the time, the economy had started its downward spiral, and many people questioned Chambers’ reasoning. Since then, there have been lots of happenings in the industry with General Motors entering and reemerging from bankruptcy, Chrysler closing thousands of dealerships, and even the government stepping in to help boost sales with the Cash for Clunkers program. But that groundbreaking in Sudbury was Chambers’ fifth of the year, and he hasn’t looked back since.

“We took a long term view when moving forward with our development plans, because our company is here for the long haul and expect to continue to grow our business,” said Herb Chambers. “We want to make sure that we differentiate ourselves from the competition by offering customers the most convenient and comfortable experience in our dealerships.”

On Thursday Sept. 17, Herb Chambers, New England’s largest automotive dealer, is opening the doors to the just completed Herb Chambers BMW of Sudbury. The 70,000 plus square-foot dealership is the third largest dealership of Chambers’ 45 locations, and features the latest in amenities designed to pamper customers.

The six-acre property, conveniently located off Route 20 at 68 Old County Road, offers customers a three lane drive in service reception area with valet attendants, a television lounge featuring plasma TV’s and a fireplace, children’s play area, sales lounges, a coffee bar and café, a seasonal outdoor patio, business center, and plenty of parking.

In June of 2007 Chambers purchased Foreign Motors West. The acquisition included Rolls Royce, Mercedes Benz, BMW, Bentley, and Land Rover brands. At the time of the purchase, Chambers pledged to invest in growing the dealerships and committed to building a larger BMW facility at a new home in Sudbury. The dealership will replace Foreign Motors West BMW located on Route 27 in Natick, which will remain the home of Mercedes Benz of Natick where Chambers has plans for future renovations.

“This is very important for us, and we are very excited about expanding our presence in Sudbury with the addition of this luxury brand,” said Herb Chambers. Chambers also has a Land Rover Sudbury dealership located on Boston Post Road (Route 20).

The new dealership also features a 15-car two story showroom, a 6-car exterior display area featuring a sun-shaded canopy, 40 service bays, 6 reconditioning bays, and an automatic car wash. Because of the vast array of luxury brands, Chambers welcomes trade-ins. Creative financing is available and a huge selection of fine pre-owned vehicles.

The dealership was designed by Regent Associates Inc. of Westborough and constructed by Advantage Construction of Quincy.

In February Chambers opened brand new Porsche and Audi dealerships in Burlington, in March he opened a new truck service and collision center in Braintree, in April he opened a new Infiniti dealership on Route 9 in Westborough, and next month he will complete an expansion of his Mercedes Benz and Smart Center dealerships at Flagship Motorcars of Lynnfield.

“Our continued growth has been a result of the support of our expanding customer base, the dedication of our employees, and the cooperation by town officials in the communities that we operate in,” said Herb Chambers. “We are excited to continue to grow both our company and our customer base moving forward.”

About Herb Chambers Companies

Herb Chambers purchased his first car dealership in 1985 and has grown his company into the largest automobile dealership group in New England. Today, the Herb Chambers Companies are comprised of 45 automotive dealerships throughout Massachusetts and Rhode Island. For a complete list of dealership locations visit www.herbchambers.com.

“Have fun at the Allston Village Street Fair on Sept. 20”

The Allston Village Street Fair Urban Mardi Gras Multi-Cultural Festival, scheduled for noon-6 p.m. on Sept. 20, will be six hours of fun, free and open-to-the-public stage and street performances. The fair takes place on Harvard Avenue from Brighton Avenue to Cambridge Street in Allston.

More than 30 rock bands will perform on two outdoor stages. There will be multicultural street performances, an artists/vendors market, an international food court, arcade/amusement area, interactive activities, face painting, air brushed tattoos, balloon twisting and thousands of promotional giveaways and product samplings in between.

The Allston Village Street Fair is MBTA-accessible, with free bike valet service offered at the AVSF Event, as well as free parking and shuttle bus service from the Guest Street Parking Garage in Brighton.

Free pearl necklaces will be given to the first 1,000 visitors to the PCBG Inc.

There will be an information table, compliments of Overstock.com.

For more details visit www.allstonvillagestreetfair.com and www.myspace.com/allstonstreetfair.

The Allston Village Street Fair is produced by the Parents & Community Build Group, Inc., www.parentsandcommunitybuildgroup.org, and co-presented by the Herb Chambers Companies www.herbchambers.com .

Going on NOW at ALL Herb Chambers Dealer Locations!

Herb Chambers is an automotive dealership group based out of Somerville Massachusetts, we care about creating a positive car buying experience. For decades Herb Chambers has provided New England car buyers with high quality automobiles including those from BMW, Porsche, Ford, Lexus, MINI, Chrysler, Scion, Honda, and many more. As one of the most trusted brands in New England, Herb Chambers is a proud member of the Better Business Bureau. Featured in a number of area media publications like The Metro West Daily News, The Providence Journal and Boston.com, Herb Chambers is known to local buyers as the region’s premier automotive dealership group.

Whether you are looking to buy a new vehicle from Herb Chambers, or, just looking to have quality collision repair or service performed — we hope that you find what you need here on our web site. If not, please contact us as soon as possible so that we can better assist you.

Herb Chambers serves the greater metropolitan areas of Boston Massachusetts and Providence Rhode Island. Dealerships in the Herb Chambers Companies include Audi, Bentley, BMW, Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Chevy, Chrysler, Dodge, Ford, Honda, Hummer, Hyundai, Infiniti, Jeep, Land Rover, Lexus, Maybach, Mercedes, Mercedes Benz, Mini, Pontiac, Porsche, Rolls Royce, Saab, Saturn, Scion, Smart, Toyota, Vespa and preowned vehicles.

Herb Chambers Official Website: CLICK HERE

PORSCHE PARTY—Steve Sabatini (left), Regional Manager of Porsche North America and Herb Chambers perform the ceremonial ribbon cutting ceremony at Herb Chambers’ new Porsche dealership in Burlington.

The dealership, Porsche of Burlington, held a sizzling summer party for customers, friends, and industry leaders to officially celebrate the opening of the dealership.

Located next to Chambers’ Audi Burlington at 62 Cambridge Street, the state-of-the-art luxury dealership is Chambers’ second Porsche dealership, the other being Herb Chambers Porsche of Boston. The party featured a special music performance by the band Crusin’ and catering by Davio’s Restaurant of Boston.

Also in attendance were dealership General Manager George Chambers and Herb Chambers Companies Vice President Jim Xaros. Herb Chambers is the largest automobile dealership group in New England with 46 dealership locations.