Isuzu Commercial Truck of America, Inc. announced the winners of its 2022 National Sales Walkaround, National Service Walkaround, National Parts Salesperson Product Presentation and North America I-1 Grand Prix Technical competitions. The finals of all four contests took place at Isuzu’s Center of Excellence in Pittston, Pennsylvania, between August 8 and 11, marking the first time the company held all four competitions at the same time.
Additionally, parts department and service department managers from dealerships in the company’s Northern Region attended a simultaneous meeting where they learned best strategies for meeting the current challenges in the medium-duty truck industry.
The overall event was christened “Isuzu’s Week of Weeks.”
“Isuzu’s Week of Weeks is really a celebration of the best our dealerships have to offer,” says Shaun C. Skinner, president of Isuzu Commercial Truck of America and Isuzu Commercial Truck of Canada. “We are celebrating the service technicians with the best diagnostic and repair skills … the service advisors with the best customer communication skills … the parts representatives with the best Isuzu Genuine and FleetValue Parts selling skills … the sales consultants with the best ability to communicate product knowledge … and the parts and service department managers in the Northeast with the best ideas to meet current challenges.”
Here are the results of the competition portions of Isuzu’s Week of Weeks.
2022 ISUZU NATIONAL SALES WALKAROUND COMPETITION
The Isuzu National Sales Walkaround Competition required contestants to present a 2022i Isuzu NRR to a fictitious “customer” who had never owned an Isuzu or a low cab forward truck. The participants previously won their dealership, district, as well as regional contests to earn the right to compete at the National Finals.
- National Champion (winner of $5,000 in cash and the Isuzu Winners’ Circle Gold trip to the Le Blanc Spa Resort Los Cabos in February 2023)
Southern Regional Champion
JOSH SAULS
TranSource Isuzu Truck
Colfax, North Carolina
- Second Place ($3,000 in cash and the Isuzu Winners’ Circle Silver trip to the Westin New Orleans in March 2023)
Northern Regional Champion
BEN BALGAARD
D & K Isuzu Trucks
Lansing, Michigan
- Third Place ($2,000 in cash and $1,500 in merchandise)
Central Regional Champion
JAZMINE KEITH
Boyer Isuzu Truck
Minneapolis, Minnesota
- Finalists (listed alphabetically by last name, each the winner of $1,000 in cash and $1,000 in merchandise)
Western Regional Champion
VICTOR KIM
Rush Isuzu Truck–Whittier
Whittier, California
Isuzu Commercial Truck of Canada Champion
ANGUS SMITH
Warner Isuzu Truck Sales
Regina, Saskatchewan
Nearly 200 Isuzu dealership sales consultants from the US and Canada entered the contest, about a 27% increase over 2021.
2022 ISUZU NATIONAL SERVICE WALKAROUND COMPETITION
A fictitious customer who admittedly knew little about his truck, a 2016 Isuzu N-Series Diesel, faced all four of the service advisors in the 2022 Isuzu National Service Walkaround Competition. The four Regional Champions had only 10 minutes to present the repairs that would best suit the customer’s needs. The results:
- National Champion ($5,000 in cash and Winners’ Circle trip to Los Cabos)
Central Regional Champion
COREY HECK
Truck Center Companies Isuzu–Omaha
Omaha, Nebraska
- Second Place ($3,000 in cash and Winners’ Circle Silver trip to New Orleans)
Northern Regional Champion
JOHN PENCE
Hare Isuzu Truck
Noblesville, Indiana
- Third Place ($2,000 in cash and $1,500 in merchandise)
Western Regional Champion
AMERICA SOLARES
Rush Isuzu Truck–Fontana
Fontana, California
- Finalist ($1,000 in cash and $1,000 in merchandise)
Southern Regional Champion
SASKYA LOPEZ
TruckMax Isuzu
Homestead, Florida
2022 ISUZU NATIONAL PARTS SALESPERSON PRODUCT PRESENTATION COMPETITION
Among the features of the 30,000-sq-ft Isuzu Center of Excellence training facility is a replica of a dealership parts counter. It was here that the four Regional Champions in the National Parts Salesperson Product Presentation Competition encountered their fictitious customer. The results:
- National Champion ($5,000 in cash and Winners’ Circle trip to Los Cabos)
Northern Regional Champion
JOHNNY TEATER
Hare Isuzu Truck
Noblesville, Indiana
- Second Place ($3,000 in cash and Winners’ Circle Silver trip to New Orleans)
Western Regional Champion
SAL CANALES
Monarch Isuzu Truck
San Jose, California
- Third Place ($2,000 in cash and $1,500 in merchandise)
Central Regional Champion
MICHAEL BROWN
Coffman Isuzu Truck
Aurora, Illinois
- Finalist ($1,000 in cash and $1,000 in merchandise)
Southern Regional Champion
NATHAN BRINKLEY
Truck Enterprises Isuzu–Chesapeake
Chesapeake, Virginia
This year marked the second annual National Parts Salesperson Product Presentation Competition, making it the newest of the Isuzu skills as well as communication contests.
2022 ISUZU NORTH AMERICA I-1 GRAND PRIX TECHNICAL COMPETITION
Perhaps the most grueling of all the “Week of Weeks” competitions, the I-1 Grand Prix for service technicians required entrants to pass in a single try a challenging 75-minute entrance exam; only the 12 technicians with the highest scores were invited to enroll and participate in the competition held this week.
After three rounds of competition diagnosing as well as repairing trucks, the results are:
- First Place (Winners’ Circle Gold trip to Los Cabos; Isuzu Diagnostic Service System interface device with one-year IDSS subscription; invitation to participate in 2023 North America I-1 Grand Prix)
ANTHONY PARRILLI
Chicago Isuzu Truck
Summit, Illinois
- Second Place (Trip to Los Cabos; IDSS interface device with one-year subscription; invitation to participate in 2023 North America I-1 Grand Prix)
CANDIDO DELEON
Rush Isuzu Truck Center–Dayton
Dayton, Ohio - Third Place ($1,500 in merchandise and IDSS interface device with one-year subscription)
JAMES BUECHNER
PTR Isuzu Truck Center
West Chicago, Illinois
- Fourth Place ($1,500 in merchandise and IDSS interface device with one-year subscription)
RICHARD NONAMAKER
Rush Isuzu Truck–Waco
Robinson, Texas
- Finalists (listed alphabetically by last name, each the winner of $150 in cash on their Winners’ Circle prepaid debit cards)
JASON BABCOCK
Bob Clapper Isuzu Truck
Janesville, Wisconsin
SCOTT BODALL
All American Isuzu Truck
Old Bridge, New Jersey
JESSE DUBECK
TruckSmart Isuzu Truck
Morrisville, Pennsylvania
LAZARO GARCIA
Nextran Isuzu Truck Center–Miami
Miami, Florida
DANIEL KIELTYKA
Beyer Bros. Isuzu Truck
Fairview, New Jersey
THOMAS McBRIDE
Isuzu Truck of Fayetteville
Fayetteville, North Carolina
BILL NIELDS
Faulkner Isuzu Truck
West Chester, Pennsylvania
CRAIG WIRE
Rush Truck Center–Elk Grove
Elk Grove Village, Illinois
Hundreds of viewers at dealerships and homes around the country viewed the awards ceremony via live stream, a first for any of the contests’ awards programs.
Find out more, visit www.isuzucv.com.
