Title: Dealer principal/director
Business: Ford and Mitsubishi motor vehicle retail franchises
Total employees: 70
Reporting directly: 70
Accomplishments
Toni Lehaney regards the purchase of Range Ford in October 2006 as her most significant business achievement to date. It was a time-consuming and drawn-out process, as the vendor was a public listed company, and the sale had to be approved by Ford Motor Company.
Ms Lehaney had to ensure her preparations and presentations for the acquisition were of a high quality and fully transparent.
Along with maintaining full operational control of her business in Karratha, she says it was a real challenge to prepare for the purchase of what is one of the leading Ford dealerships in Perth.
Career guides
• Do the right thing by your clients and your employees.
• Simply saying that the customer is always right is simplistic, but if the customer has an issue, work through it, do not get defensive, listen.
Personal/community
Ms Lehaney has a diploma of financial planning from the Securities Institute of Australia. She is the 2005 national excellence dealer of the year – Mitsubishi, and has received various individual sales awards over the past 16 years.
She is member of her local chamber of commerce, has sponsored the Royal Flying Doctor Charity Ball in Karratha, and various other sports clubs.
Top tips
“When you say that you are going to do something for your customer – actually do it!”
“Watch the cents and the dollars will come.”
