How Next-Gen Technology Drives Staffing Success

Your dealership’s technology plays a significant role in your day-to-day business—sometimes in ways that aren’t immediately apparent. The right tools can improve how efficiently your data travels between systems, speeding up transactions for clients, and delivering exceptional service. And, while it may be difficult to quantify—at first—more efficient technology improves the lives of everyone who interacts with your dealership. Most notably, your current and future staff. When it comes down to it, the technology driving your dealership can literally drive away the talent you need to deliver the best customer experience. While the right DMS can help you attract and retain top talent, the wrong technology can deter both talent and customers from coming to your dealership.

Retain Talent for Customer Continuity

Despite the increasing popularity of digital car buying tools and the prevalence of online car shopping, your customers still want a personalized car buying experience. In fact, up to 80% of consumers are more likely to do business with a company that offers a personalized experience, according to one study1. They just want it on their terms and in their own time. And most eventually want to actually see the car they’re buying and meet the dealer they’re doing business with in person.

The fact that your customers want to complete much of the car buying process on their computers can, however, make it difficult for your team to personalize their experience. This difficulty is compounded by the fact that the automotive sales industry has one of the highest turnover rates in any industry, which has the potential to frustrate customers looking for a cohesive online to in-store buying experience.

Today’s workforce values technology. When they work with technology that facilitates next-gen tools attracts, it gives them reasons to stay at your come to and stay at your dealership, resulting in more continuity for your customers. This cuts down on hiring and turnover costs and makes your customers’ transition between online and in-store shopping much smoother.

“If we don’t invest in technology, the market passes us by. It’s critical that our staff has the tools that they need to help answer client questions. That’s where the technology comes in. Dealertrack provides us a very easy-to-use, simple solution.” – Jeanne Brewer, General Manager Acura of Glendale

A Next-Gen DMS Empowers the Next-Gen Sales Team

The right DMS (and the right DMS partner) also gives your dealership access to real-time data, without restraints, enabling better sharing of information, better customer hand-off between incoming and outgoing employees (when turnover does happen), and a better understanding of your business for everyone involved. All of these benefits ultimately get passed along to your customers and to your dealership’s bottom line.

And a failure to take your dealership’s DMS technology into consideration—the single source of truth for all of your data and day-to-day operations—can cost you both staff and sales. As Jeanne Brewer, General Manager Acura of explains, “If we don’t invest in technology, the market passes us by. It’s critical that our staff has the tools that they need to help answer client questions. That’s where the technology comes in. Dealertrack provides us a very easy-to-use, simple solution.”

Your dealership’s technology really does play a significant role in your day-to-day business, especially as you transition to incorporate more digital tools. Whether part of the onlineor in-store buying experiences (and especially the exchange in between), the right (and wrong) DMS technology can help or hinder your talent retention, your customer’s experience, and your business’s bottom line.

To learn more about how your DMS technology play a role in retaining top talent, check out The Dealer’s Guide For Maximizing Profitability.

 

1Epsilon Marketing, “The power of me: The impact of personalization on marketing performance,” 2018

Measure What Matters: Tracking Employee Statistics

You probably know how many cars are on your lot right now (or at least a good idea, we hope). Your accounting manager tracks payroll down to the minute. And you use smart data to gain insights into profitability from dashboards and reports. But, you still have a problem—a people problem. With an average dealership turnover rate of 46% for employees and 80% for salespeople, the industry needs to get better at tracking employee statistics.

Calculating the True Cost of Turnover

Your managers know turnover hurts. The best way to combat this key issue and win back the losses to your budget is to formulate a smart strategy. Calculating the true cost of employee turnover requires measuring more than just lost wages. Here are several key metrics to monitor:

  • Unemployment Compensation and Exit Interview Fees – If your dealership expects to spend money paying furlough fees, unemployment, and other costs, these should be included in your metrics.
  • Replacement Costs to Advertise Open Positions – Pre-employment screening and money lost during downtown are often hard to estimate. Yet, dealers have reported spending up to $10,000 on resources like advertising, interviewing, and recruitment.
  • Training New Labor – Your dealership may require service technicians to obtain costly certifications setting you back thousands of dollars like the ones offered by the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence.
  • The Productivity Gap – It may feel impossible to measure a loss to your team’s productivity or morale. However, studies show employees reach full productivity after three years on the job.

It’s Not All Doom And Gloom

Your dealership has already been through a lot this past year. With rapid adoption of digital tools, shifting buyer habits, and an uncertain economic market, you’ve made fast-changes to keep up. Change is a constant in your line of work. And, almost any issue is solvable—as long as you measure it.

93% of employees polled believe their workplace would be better if the had access to better technology.

Here are the often overlooked statistics you should be tracking:

  1. Employee Satisfaction and Happiness – A happy team works harder and sticks around longer. Measuring employee satisfaction is the first thing you and your managers should monitor to improve retention. Hindsight is 2020, but catching a problem before it occurs is even better!
  2. Voluntary Turnover Rate – Tracking how often your staff leaves for greener pastures over time will give you a benchmark to help establish a normal level of tenure at your dealership. It can also signal a problem (if this number suddenly jumps) that something isn’t going well.
  3. Involuntary Turnover Rate – Layoffs are extremely unfortunate. Your hiring brand suffers over time, and you could earn a reputation as a poor employer. Tracking this metric could indicate an HR issue, like a mismatch between skills and job description.
  4. Retention Rate by Department and Manager – There’s a saying that people don’t leave bad jobs, they leave bad managers. You may want to invest in manager training and development if you’re seeing this metric spike.
  5. Training Expenses per Employee – Could the wrong technology be impacting your turnover? 93% of employees polled believe their workplace would be better if the had access to better technology.

When you measure what matters, you arm yourself with the data to battle the problem. Your dealership can reduce turnover over time. This industry-wide issue has proven resilient over time. But, so has your dealership. Discover new research and key insights in the guide, 9 Ways to Reduce Turnover and Improve Retention: A Dealer Principal’s Guide to Hiring and Retaining Talent.

 

Pair Talent with Technology to Maximize Staffing Strategy

Having trouble filling all the roles at your dealership? Then why are you ignoring the millions of applicants who want to work at your dealership? That might sound dramatic, but according to a report from the hiring and software consultants at Hireology, more than 11 million people applied for jobs at dealerships last year and were completely ignored or overlooked. So why is it still so difficult to find and keep top talent in the roles at your dealership? And, what can the technology driving your business do to help? Here’s what we’ve uncovered:

2020’s Many Challenges Are Making it More, Not Less Difficult

The figure mentioned above refers to pre-pandemic levels of job seekers who wanted to work at businesses in the auto industry. Back then, the unemployment rate was low. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, as of October this year, the unemployment rate is hovering around 7.9%. While that figure is improving, there are other factors that complicate the automotive industry. Record low vehicle inventory, high jobless claims, and auto loan delinquencies could signal the perfect storm for next year. And, according to Cox Automotive chief economist Jonathan Smoke in this article, “I think we’ve had a false sense of security that we are out of the woods.”

Technology is Key to Building the Right Team

When it comes to building the right team at your dealership, connecting the right people, tools, and processes is key. That’s according to Dealertrack DMS VP of Service and Support Mandi Fang. According to a Cox Auto Consumer and Dealer Survey, 75% of dealerships have adopted digital retailing within the past six months. Fang notes that this remarkable figure shows that “dealers across the country are building better digital retailing programs to reach, connect, and accommodate their consumers.” And, she notes, dealers should be actively hiring and recruiting candidates who are interested in working in an environment where they have the opportunity to work on digital technologies like the CRM, digital retailing, DMS, and others.

Focus on Your Dealership’s Hiring Velocity

Ideally, any problem that can be measured can be analyzed, broken down, and then fixed. We now know that the number of people looking to join the team at your dealership is, in fact, growing. And, you know that building a more digitized sales and service experience at your dealership creates an opportunity to attract a more tech-savvy workforce. So, what’s the next step? According to the 2020 State of Hiring Report from the experts at Hireology, it’s now time to speed up your job applicant review process. In that report, data shows it takes 54 applications on average to make a hire at most dealerships. Yet, many applicants can go weeks without having their resume or application reviewed. By simply committing to a 24 hour application review process, your hiring managers can reduce the process from 14 days to just 9. This hiring velocity metric is simple, measurable, and will result in actual profitability for your business.

Don’t miss out on the millions of millennials actively seeking out opportunities to work at your dealership. Now that your digital dealership is up-and-running smoothly, put the right people in place.

Learn more best-practices: Get the Guide today.

 

 

Now Hiring: Better, Brighter Talent For Your Business

Hiring the right people for the right roles makes all the difference. The business of selling and servicing cars is a people business, first. That’s because people impact profits. In an interview with Automotive News, Adam Robinson, CEO of Hireology, a hiring software provider and consultant, said the “difference between a mediocre dealership and a great dealership is the strength of its people.” Yet, filling the roles at your dealership has always been a challenge. As recently as 2016, the turnover rate for automotive dealerships was as high as 43%, according to an NADA Workforce Study. Fast-forward to today, and your dealership is facing a whole new set of staffing challenges. Record unemployment, restructuring, and new technology makes finding new talent tricky. Building your dealership’s dream team is possible. But you’re going to need to change your approach. Here’s how to get started.

Build a Top Career Site to Attract Candidates

The saying goes, “If you build it, they will come.” We’re talking about your career page, that is. That’s because, according to Hireology’s State of Hiring 2020 Report, applicants who apply directly to your career site are more likely to get hired. In fact, 44% of all hires, and 57% of career site applicants are considered top candidates. Consider that people who already want to work at your dealership are already on your site and looking for open positions. When was the last time you updated your career page? Do you have employee testimonials on this page? Can candidates easily find your company values and mission statement? If not, it shouldn’t be a huge lift, and it will go a long way.

Think Outside the Box

As you adjust to new buying behavior, you should also adjust your expectations for new hires. If, previously, sales and customer service experience was required, or even a basic understanding of your Dealer Management System (DMS), consider a change. Try listing experience in technology, online retail, or software management in your job post. With so much of your business taking place online, it’s time for a new mindset.

Diversify Your Search

At the start of April 2020, many dealerships faced the difficult decision to furlough or layoff workers due to COVID-19. While most have been able to recover, rebuilding your workforce will take some time. According to a Cox Automotive COVID-19 Dealer and Consumer Sentiment Survey, 57% of people are still extremely concerned about the virus.  Your ability to conduct in-person interviews may still be impacted for some time.  You can still find the right talent to fill open positions at your dealership as long as you invest in a multichannel strategy. That’s according to the State of Hiring Report from Hireology who say “dealerships with diverse sourcing channels increase their quality applicants by 62%.” And, they claim, don’t rule out mobile ads in your approach. 80% of Facebook’s 2 billion users only have a mobile phone proving just how important mobile-first experiences can be for job seekers.

Rethink Your Dealership Roles

Business at your dealership has changed. From e-contracting, to virtual showrooms, to Sales Pick-up and Delivery (SPUD) and virtual check-ins, your business is now running as much (or more) online as it is in-person. As you look to fill positions, consider the opportunity to rethink the way your team works. As Director of Business Development for Dealertrack DMS, Tyler Anderson, points out in this article, “connecting the right people with technology and timely data is the winning combination that, I believe, will bring dealers through these tough times. I’ve seen several OEMs take the lead by hiring higher caliber sales people who are able to carry the sales process from beginning to end, and with fewer hand-offs.” The omni-channel approach to sales is now possible to many dealers thanks to more fully integrated technology. With fewer logins, less friction, and more systems working together, your staff can function at a higher level.

Your dealership looks different. But, change is nothing new to the automotive industry. As you continue to shift and grow, your staff will grow with you. With the data from industry experts, surveys, and our dealer partners, we hope your team continues to thrive this year and many more.

For more information, download our free guide.

Boost Your Dealership’s Game-Plan: Staffing & Process

When it comes to making smart strategy decisions for your dealership, there are two key areas of focus you can’t ignore: staffing and process. You’re likely investing in better technology. And, you’re building a better customer experience, focusing on digital retailing and virtual sales and service options. In fact, by the end of 2020 and heading into 2021, your dealership has done (and is doing) so much to overhaul the way your business runs, you might not even look like the same dealership anymore. But, here’s why optimizing human capital management and developing process improvements that drive operational efficiencies will help you level-up your dealership’s game-plan.

“Even before the pandemic, employee turnover was cited as a major problem and a pain-point for dealerships. Twenty-percent of dealership staff said they were likely to look for another job in the next six months.” – Tyler Anderson, Dir. Business Development, Dealertrack DMS.

Solving Key Human Capital Challenges

Between hiring, onboarding, training, and remote-work management, dealerships are facing difficult challenges within the people-side of the business. Some of these issues are hardly new, while others are unique to the current changes taking place to the retail environment. “Even before the pandemic (according to a Dealership Staffing Study), employee turnover was cited as a major problem and a pain-point for dealerships,” says Tyler Anderson, Director of Business Development for Dealertrack DMS. “Twenty-percent of dealership staff said they were likely to look for another job in the next six months.” The problems for dealers and their staff are often deeply rooted within the varying technologies and systems that employees must constantly learn, and re-learn, on the job. Anderson notes, in a recent webinar, that dealership employees often face redundant entry points for data between multiple, disconnected solutions creating the opportunity for manual errors. By bringing together best-in-class technologies and fully integrating your dealership’s human resource and payroll solutions, is a giant leap in the right direction. (Watch the full webinar below to learn how companies like Netchex and Dealertrack are working together to offer new, integrated solutions.)

“In the midst of these transformations, dealerships still have to manage these processes—quite frankly—to succeed. Or, they’re going to fail…Reporting doesn’t go away, it becomes paramount.” – Randy Wilson, Dir. Performance Management, Dealertrack DMS

Without Operational Process, Organizations Will Fail

Among the many changes dealerships have seen this year are the various services offered to customers who don’t want to visit your store in-person. In fact, according to a Cox Automotive COVID-19 Consumer and Dealer and Impact Survey, two out of three buyers would prefer to complete 100% of the buying process online. Between online shopping and the need for remote service options, dealers are reinventing their standard operating procedures. This means that new team members, returning staff, and training standards must all be re-calibrated to keep your business running smoothly. “Leveraging your technology is crucial to your success,” explains Randy Wilson, Director of Performance Management at Dealertrack DMS. Wilson’s team of Performance Managers work one-on-one with dealer partners and oversees the rapid digital transformation that has taken place this year. But, Wilson cautions, without establishing process improvements to achieve operational efficiency, your dealership’s new online business model could be in peril. “In the midst of these transformations, dealerships still have to manage these processes—quite frankly—to succeed. Or, they’re going to fail…Reporting doesn’t go away, it becomes paramount,” says Wilson.

To learn more about Dealertrack’s integrated Payroll, powered by Netchex and Performance Management for DMS, watch the recorded webinar below.

 

Sources:

2020 Cox Automotive COVID-19 Consumer and Dealer Impact Study
2019 Dealer Impact Study: https://www.coxautoinc.com/learning-center/2019-dealership-staffing-study/

 

Dealership Study Data: Three Opportunities

2020 has continued to teach our industry important lessons and has caused us to think and rethink just about everything. Navigating the changes the past seven months hasn’t been easy, and we’ve relied heavily on data to inform, educate, and inspire us through a nation-wide shutdown and a significant digital retailing shift that has changed how we’ll do business forever. I had the opportunity to speak with Hireology’s CEO and Co-founder, Adam Robinson in a live discussion, where we explored the implications from that data and how many dealerships are not only coping, but improving upon their expectations. My research includes insights from recent Dealer Advisory Board sessions, as well as bi-monthly Cox Automotive COVID-19 Consumer & Dealer Sentiment surveys. While the following list doesn’t include all of our team’s findings, it does outline three major opportunities learned thus far in 2020. (Check out the full webinar to learn more.)

Digitization is Here to Stay

In the September Cox COVID-19 sentiment survey, 57% of the people surveyed were still extremely concerned with contracting COVID. Many dealerships are still seeing low foot traffic in their stores as buyers are doing the majority of their car shopping online. That same study also reports that up to 75% of franchise dealers have adopted some form of digital retailing. In fact, there has been a 70% rise in vehicle sales and a 74% rise in service. That’s remarkable, and we believe this is a testament to dealers across the country building better digital retailing programs to reach, connect, and accommodate their consumers. The big lesson you should take from this is that the changes you’ve made to reach your buyers remotely were not—and should not be considered—temporary.

New Digital Dealership, New Structure

The Cox COVID-19 impact survey reported that two out of three buyers would prefer to complete one-hundred percent of the buying process online. That means offering flexibility in your dealership’s shopping process and providing a way for the third—who still prefers to kick the tires in person—to do that. You should be actively hiring and training team members who can reach a public who is still very much interested in this new method of buying and servicing vehicles. Many of the dealers we spoke with in our Dealer Advisory Board sessions reported the need to rethink their entire sales operations, release old-school thinking, and hire people focused on the consumer experience who understood technologies like the CRM, Digital Retailing, and others.

Integrated Technology Enables Better Processes

Cox has continued to create new products and integrations, as well as enhancing critical integration points between core systems like Dealertrack DMS and VinSolutions throughout the year to give you better data-driven insights, tools to advance your digital retailing strategies, and insight into potential buyers. By reducing the friction-points between the technologies your team relies upon to service your customers—whether in the service department, financing, or on the (virtual) sales floor—your dealership staff can provide an optimal customer service experience, whatever that looks like.

I’ll say it again, the impact of COVID-19 has and will continue to influence the behavior of both car-buyers and service customers. It will continue to demand changes in your processes from generating leads to adding or modifying the dropoff and pick up services you offer. You’ve shown how agile you can be as you’ve changed and created new processes over the past six to seven months to respond to COVID-19 and your customer’s needs. So while it feels like so much in our world continues to change, one thing remains certain: your ability to meet your customers’ needs inspires us to help you grow.

Watch the webinar, Adapting Staffing Strategy to Align with New Digital Dealership, today!

 

 

About the Author

Mandi Fang
VP Dealer Service and Support—Mandi Fang is the Vice President of Dealer Service and Support at Dealertrack DMS. She brings with her a wealth of experience from DMS and vAuto, working closely with key internal and external stakeholders to prioritize and pursue product initiatives that advance business goals for clients and the Cox Automotive Retail Solutions Group. In 2016, Mandi was recognized as one of Auto Remarketing’s Women in Remarketing and received the Spirit of Leadership Award from Women’s Automotive Association International.

Prior to Cox Automotive, Mandi successfully held product development, management, customer relationship and sales roles with automotive industry leaders Reynolds & Reynolds and Digital Motorworks, earning multiple awards for her service. Mandi received her Bachelor of Arts in communications from Morehead State University. å

Leverage DMS Technology for Improved Human Resources

Technology and retail automotive are anything but static. In the first half of 2020, dealerships are facing constant changes and challenges thrown at them from nearly every angle. As Director of Business Development for Dealertrack DMS, it’s my role to find, vet, and craft strategic partnerships, solutions, and DMS integrations that offer a best-in-class experience to help our dealers succeed. The DMS is so critical to dealership success, specifically from a human resources perspective, managing payroll, and recruiting, that having a seamless experience that improves your business is key. Now, as businesses begin to reopen and people are returning to work, I believe we have the opportunity to make rapid progress in the midst of unprecedented disruption and changing consumer behavior.

Hiring for your Team

According to a 2019 Dealership Staffing Study, staffing is one of the biggest issues for dealerships. On top of that, only 39% of employees feel their dealership is using the latest technology to help them succeed in their job. As business begins to return to normal, dealers will face a backlog of service appointments and limited staff due to unfortunate reductions and furloughs. Some departments may even struggle to fill roles for employees who earned more money on unemployment. Doing more with less may be the norm right now—but it isn’t sustainable. Our solution, at Dealertrack DMS, is to partner with the experts at Hireology and Netchex. In 2020, we’re rolling out a new integrated Payroll solution that automatically transfers new hire data, manages PTO, performance review, and saves time by managing the complexities of tech-time, among other features. The best part of this strategic partnership is that all of these integrations occur through your DMS.

Demand for Technology Straining Resources for Dealers

Digital retailing, digital transformation, data-driven…all of these concepts that are revolutionizing the dealership are real and here to stay. But, having a high-powered DMS and complex systems that keep your business moving forward (at record pace) require a network that can keep up. We saw it first-hand when businesses were forced to shut down at the beginning of March and April this year. Dealers who had IT support and state-of-the-art networks were in a good position to send employees home and set up their remote offices. Offering consumers new ways to shop online and access virtual showrooms is a groundbreaking concept and it’s not going away anytime soon. With all of these new technology solutions, your dealership absolutely requires the digital infrastructure to support it. Managed Network Services, powered by Proton IT, provides a critical, and dealer-specific, solution to keep dealers running.

Dealerships are built on human-to-human connection. The “hand shake” at the end of the sale, the relationship and trust earned for a major decision. It’s the same for team members who build their careers in the dealership. Now that we’ve adjusted to a more virtual environment, our offerings are simply faster, more seamless, and online. Yet, we are human at the core. Improving the way we hire, recruit, and employ our teams in this new environment will help. And, our team will continue to provide best-in-class solutions that drive your business forward.

About the Author

Tyler Anderson | Director of Business Development, Dealertrack DMS

 

Tyler Anderson joined Dealertrack DMS in June of 2019 bringing with him 24 years of experience in the automotive industry. In his role, Tyler has developed partner-driven products that allow our team of professional experts to provide a best-in-class suite of integrated solutions. Through open source software and strategic partnerships, Tyler has up-leveled Dealertrack’s core products allowing for seamless integration into hundreds of market options. He has personally driven new payroll solutions, managed network services and parts processing partnerships in this year, alone, helping dealers navigate the digital transformation taking place amidst social distancing restrictions across the country.

Reimagine Your Dealership Staff

Dealerships across the country are beginning to reopen and emerge from shelter-at-home guidelines this June. And eager employees are looking to fill old positions in sales and service roles that may have been placed on furlough or operated in remote capacity. But, the return to the showroom won’t be as simple as flipping on the “Open” sign for most businesses. With safety regulations and guidelines, as well as altered customer expectations, dealerships are being very careful not to rush into the process. Many car buyers aren’t as eager to jump back into old habits either. With virtual showrooms and online buying becoming standard due to the lessons learned during quarantine, not everyone wants the process of buying a car to go back to pre-COVID-19 ways. Dealertrack DMS VP of Operations, Mandi Fang, recently joined Dale Pollak, founder and EVP of vAuto, to discuss the principles for becoming a data-driven dealership in his online webinar series. Let’s take a look at these steps and apply them to the dealership re-boarding process to build a data-driven team ready and willing to meet the needs of the new business environment.

Build a Culture that Values Data

Using data-driven practices to effectively measure and monitor what matters most to your business will help you minimize your reliance on instinct. This may sound simple in theory, but in reality, nearly 40% of organizations use ‘gut feelings’ to make big decisions.¹ Building a culture that understands and values data has to start at the top. Once you demonstrate that dat
A can positively impact your dealership, you’ll have an easier time convincing your team to trust it over experience or gut instincts. Look to your DMS to provide accurate forecasting and reporting. And leverage your Performance Managers to help you establish which reports will help you.

Redefine Your Business Objectives for Today’s Values

As buying habits change, the market shifts, and situations such as a global pandemic impact the way customers interact with your business, your dealership must remain flexible. Redefining your business objectives for today’s values will keep you on track to meet realistic goals. For example, according to a Cox Automotive customer sentiment survey, two out of three buyers are willing to buy a vehicle 100% online.² Do your business objectives truly accommodate what two out three buyers want? That includes virtual test drives, e-forms, online financing, virtual showrooms, video meet-and-greets, etc. Is your staff trained to handle these new needs?

Find the right People, Processes, and Tools

Aligning the right people to your technology—and implementing efficient processes—is the magic formula that will help your dealership run like a well-oiled machine. Install a difficult technology system with a low adoption rate and you will have a huge problem on your hands. Plus, you may even find yourself struggling to onboard, or reboard, your employees as you open for business this summer with new regulations, more virtual experiences, and an even greater reliance on technology.

Ready to Recruit?

The beginning of 2020 saw record low unemployment. But the pandemic has forced many businesses to close or furlough their staff leading to a huge shift in unemployment claims. If your dealership isn’t hiring right now, use this opportunity to build a strong career website. And, if you are, make sure your site is attracting tech-savvy talent who are willing to meet the new challenges of your digital dealership. Our partners at Hireology have outlined several best practices and strategies in their Career Site Playbook.

Watch the full presentation and discussion with Mandi and Dale in the video below.

HELPING OUR CLIENTS MAINTAIN BUSINESS CONTINUITY IS A TOP PRIORITY. VISIT OUR BUSINESS CONTINUITY TOOLS & RESOURCES CENTER FOR MORE.

 

 

¹BARC Institute, 2014 Information Culture Study.
²Apr 11 CAI dealership survey)