What’s Moss Robertson’s miracle? Free enterprise.
Robertson, president of the Automotive Group of Gainesville that sells Cadillac and Mazda vehicles, told 30 business people from Vietnam on Friday that the free market is essential in making his business a success.
"It’s like a Broadway play. We’re all actors on a stage," Robertson told the group through translator Chon Le, an economics doctorate student at the University in Georgia. "We have to know our lines and our jobs. The customer gives us the opportunity to fail or succeed every day, so we take it as a very serious thing."
The key, he told the visitors, is for all employees to know what their specific jobs are.
"Every employee must know the job description," he said. "You’d be surprised how many people don’t know it, so you have to continuously tell them."
Mitchell Kot, a business lecturer at the University of Danang in Danang, Vietnam, brought the group to Georgia for two weeks to show them successful business practices.
"Capitalism only really started in Vietnam about 18 years ago, and it’s still difficult to embrace," Kot said. "The average employee makes $3.50 per hour, and a top-notch secretary will take home $250 per month. It’s also a different concept here in the U.S. for workers to be treated equally, as a team with a mission."
Kot was connected to Robertson through a friend.
"Some of these business people are car dealers or deal with car parts, so he was an excellent choice," Kot said. "With a top automotive company, what does it take for him to be successful? What does he do that no one else does that pushes him to the top?"
Robertson invited the company’s managers of sales, service and finances to tell the group how each section operates as part of the whole.
"We say the wheels of commerce don’t start moving in the morning until someone sells a car — then you see all the parts working," Robertson said.
The managers emphasized the importance of good leadership, customer service and accurate finances.
For the two weeks in the U.S., the group lives in homes around the Atlanta area to learn about American culture.
"Sometimes they learn more in the homes than when visiting businesses. They learn how families interact, where fathers come home right after work instead of going out to a bar for a few hours and then coming home," Kot said. "It’s a different culture, and they’re opening themselves up."