Taking the wheel: Lacy Adams becomes face of Johnson Bros. Ford-Lincoln

Photo by Becky Stinehour

In a way, Lacy Adams has been training her entire life for her new job — general manager of Johnson Bros. Ford–Lincoln in Temple.

Lacy was promoted in early April, taking the reins from her father, Harry Adams, who has been the face of the dealership since 1982. She is one of the women managing automobile dealerships in Central Texas.

Lacy was 3 and her sister Lane was 9 when Harry moved his family from Austin to Temple to take over as general manager of the dealership. She was just a little girl the first time she stepped inside the showroom that was originally located at north I-35 on North General Bruce Drive.

“As young children both of them would hang out at the dealership, which was fun for me,” Harry said. “By the time they were teenagers, they both worked at the dealership in some capacity. Duties ranged from answering the phone to reception, customer follow-up or clerical duties. They frequently traveled with us to Ford meetings and trade shows. The automobile culture was always present and they were being exposed to it.”

But Harry did not push Lacy into the car business. “After high school and college, we felt it important to give Lacy and Lane space to decide what they wanted to do in life,” said Harry. “Lacy remained in Temple and was an apartment manager for several years. I think that was an important time for her and actually made her a better employee when she joined our company.”

Following college Lacy was a leasing consultant and property manager for a Temple apartment complex. After seven years, she felt she had gone as far as she could and was ready for a change.

Lacy joined Johnson Bros. in 2007 as the business development manager. She worked with the sales department generating new business, coordinating events, following up on internet sales leads and making calls on customers.

After three years in sales, Lacy moved to the service department. “I worked the service drive,” she said. “When people brought in their vehicle they dropped it off with me. I was the liaison between the techs and customers.”

Over the course of the next five years, Lacy worked as a new vehicle sales manager and customer experience manager before becoming the marketing director. She began the General Management Executive Program at the NCM Institute for automotive training in 2013 and graduated No. 1 in her class.

“It was a year-long process. I spent every other month in Kansas. We did a deep dive into every department of the dealership. I was exposed to our dealership in a new light,” she said.

“I am not sure there is an exact time when I knew Lacy was ready to be the general manager,” Harry said. “For me it was more of a progression. She has been actively employed here for 10-plus years and I think the learning process takes longer for some parts of the automobile business than others.

“The sales side and service side of our business are very different. People skills are critical in our business, both in how we communicate with our customers and how we communicate with our own team. Lacy has always been a people person so it was just a matter of time that she would apply that asset to her position here.”

Lessons Learned

One important business lesson Lacy learned came from her dad. “I’ve watched my Dad lead for many years. He leads by example and he invests his time in his employees. That has taught me that you can’t just tell people what you want them to do, you have to show them. You have to spend time with them,” she said. “You have to ask yourself: What motivates someone? People react positively to different things. Identify that early on and build on that foundation to make them the best employee they can be.”

While traveling for business or pleasure Lacy said she learned about interacting with clients and staff by watching how hotel personnel work with their guests. She took the best ideas she saw and brought them back to the dealership.

“Traveling has exposed me to so many different experiences and cultures. Because we are in the business of people, I believe it’s important to take those experiences and try to integrate them into bettering our dealership processes. If you keep an open mind, you can learn from almost any customer-facing industry, and hotels are an excellent example of that. Most hotels do customer service very well,” she said. “So when I’m traveling, I’m always thinking of how I can take this specific experience back to help us create a (company) culture with a WOW factor.”

Harry began taking Lacy to the dealer meetings about seven years ago. “As time passed she became the voice of our dealership at those meetings and I accompanied her.”

Harry said the meetings are an intimidating setting for a young woman learning the automobile industry. “As I watched Lacy interact with the other dealers in those meeting rooms, they asked me why I was still hanging around.

It was very apparent that she was ready to be the general manager.”

Community involvement

Lacy works 12-hour days Monday through Friday. It’s not unusual to see her in the office on a Saturday or Sunday to catch up on things.

In addition to her work, Lacy is involved in a number of community activities — another trait she learned from her father. She is on the advisory boards for Temple Parks and Recreation Department and the Salvation Army — where she is vice president of the executive board. She is a board member for the Ralph Wilson Youth Club in Temple and works with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. She also mentors a fifth-grade girl twice a month from Cater Elementary school through the Temple Wildcat Mentors program.

Harry was Lacy’s mentor, teaching and encouraging her in the automobile business. “When you own a family business, I think a parent always dreams and hopes that the business can and will pass to the next generation, and the next,” Harry said. “That is certainly the case here. What is really rewarding is to see one of your children fall in love with the business and want to make it even more successful.”