Tom Ganley began selling motor vehicles as a part-time job while still a student at Chanel High School in Bedford. That passion for vehicles has carried him from buying his first new vehicle dealership in Euclid in 1968 to overseeing his Northern Ohio network of 25 dealerships and 700 employees.
Ganley follows the philosophy that “The customer always comes first,” and customer satisfaction is a priority for him and his staff.
“Over the years, that’s the foundation and the strength of the Ganley organization — the quality of the employees,” he says. “That encompasses everything from my management company to the senior management of the organization.”
He maintains daily contact with each of his dealerships but doesn’t have an executive office at a management location. Instead, he prefers to visit the dealerships to review the finances and help managers to run an efficient operation.
Each manager is given great autonomy to develop a marketing plan for that dealership and a sales and service approach that will deliver the best possible buying or service experience to those customers. Ganley encourages innovation among his managers, who meet monthly to compare ideas and results.
Expanding his dealerships into Summit and Stark counties and developing the Ganley name in Greater Columbus with a new Mitsubishi dealership are current projects for Ganley.
“We’re certainly doing more aggressive marketing, and we’re seeing the economy improve steadily. It’s not dramatic but it’s a very steady improvement,” he says. “Part of contributing to that is to create more jobs, and I’ve certainly been working hard to do that.” How to reach: Ganley Management Co., (216) 228-8484
