Garage Manager / Autocare Operations Lead
Build the operating platform that takes KM1 from one site to Dublin’s leading
independent autocare provider and then nationwide.
Salary: €60,000–€80,000, depending on experience
Bonus: Target performance bonus of up to 10% of base salary, paid annually with
discussions for future growth.
The Opportunity
KM1 is not looking for someone to simply keep a garage open.
We are looking for an experienced automotive operator who can create control, raise
standards, lead people, protect profitability and help build the first-site playbook for
national growth.
This is a key leadership appointment. The successful person will take ownership of day-to-
day site performance while helping us build the repeatable operating model that will
support KM1’s future locations.
The opportunity may suit an experienced Garage Manager, Automotive Service Manager,
Aftersales Manager, Workshop Operations Manager or Automotive Branch Manager who
wants genuine ownership and a much wider runway for progression.
About KM1
KM1 is being built from a live trading base on the Long Mile Road, with an established local
presence and technical capability across:
- Tyres and wheel alignment
- Servicing and mechanical repairs
- Brakes, suspension and steering
- Diagnostics and fault-finding
- Batteries and quick-fit work
- Mobile mechanical support
- Fleet and commercial vehicle maintenance
- Vehicle recovery and roadside support
Our ambition is to become Dublin’s leading independent autocare provider and then expand nationwide through a repeatable operating model.
We are not trying to become the cheapest garage in Dublin. We want to win through
transparency, dependable timing, visible proof of work, clear communication, strong
technical standards and disciplined follow-through.
This is not a cosmetic rebrand. It is a serious business build, backed by a hands-on
ownership and leadership team with experience across automotive operations, logistics,
commercial fleet management, customer service and scaling high-performing businesses.
Why This Role Matters
KM1’s next stage will not be achieved through technical capability alone.
We need one visible operating leader who can bring the workshop, front desk, parts, mobile
operations, recovery, customer experience and commercial performance together.
This person will create the operating rhythm that protects today’s performance and makes a second site and later a national platform realistic.
The Garage Manager will be responsible for ensuring that every part of the site operates as
one coordinated business rather than a collection of separate functions.
Role at a Glance
Reports to: Group CEO
Direct reports:
- Head Mechanic / Workshop Foreman
- Service Advisor / Office and Contract Administration
- Parts, Stores and Procurement Coordinator
- Recovery team
Works closely with:
- Senior Mobile Technician / Mobile Operations Lead
- Wider ownership and leadership team
- Fleet and commercial partners
Core scope:
- Site performance
- People leadership
- Workshop and customer flow
- Fleet and retail delivery
- Commercial and financial performance
- Systems and process development
- Growth and multi-site readiness
Role Purpose
Own day-to-day site performance and turn KM1’s strategy into a controlled, profitable and
repeatable operating machine that can support major fleet work, serve retail customers
properly and scale beyond one location.
The Head Mechanic will retain responsibility for technical standards, diagnosis, repair
quality and technical sign-off.
The Garage Manager will own the operating system around the technical work: people,
capacity, workflow, customer promises, commercial performance, margin, communication
and accountability.
What You Will Own
1. Site Operations and Daily Control
- Run the daily operating huddle and establish clear priorities across the site.
- Control workshop loading, bay use, job allocation, staffing and operational escalation.
- Keep the workshop, front desk, parts department, mobile units and recovery operation working as one coordinated system.
- Ensure there is a clear owner and next action for every live job.
- Intervene early when timing, capacity, parts availability or customer commitments are at risk.
- Balance fleet, commercial and retail work without allowing one area to create uncontrolled disruption for another.
- Create a calm, structured operation that does not depend on daily firefighting.
2. Commercial and Financial Performance
- Own site revenue, labour sales, gross margin, productivity, utilisation, overtime and operating-cost control.
- Monitor workshop capacity and ensure available technician hours are being used effectively.
- Establish a visible weekly KPI rhythm and turn performance data into practical actions.
- Protect margin through strong approval, discount, purchasing and job-cost control.
- Ensure estimates, approvals and invoicing are accurate and commercially disciplined.
- Work with the leadership team to agree targets, identify performance gaps and deliver improvement plans.
- Protect profitability without creating a pushy sales culture or compromising customer trust, safety or quality.
3. Customer and Fleet Delivery
- Ensure bookings and completion promises are realistic.
- Maintain clear approval processes before additional work is completed.
- Ensure customers and fleet partners receive proactive updates when timing, cost or repair scope changes.
- Act as the senior escalation point for retail customers, fleet operators and commercial partners.
- Resolve complaints and operational issues calmly, fairly and decisively.
- Build dependable contract discipline across fleet portals, authorisations, service levels, proof of work, invoicing and exceptions.
- Ensure every customer receives clear documentation and a confident vehicle handback.
4. People Leadership
- Lead the Head Mechanic, service and administration team, parts function and recovery operation.
- Set clear responsibilities, goals and performance expectations for each function.
- Establish regular one-to-one meetings, team reviews and visible accountability.
- Recruit, onboard and retain high-quality people as the business grows.
- Support managers and technicians through coaching, feedback and development.
- Address poor performance fairly and promptly rather than allowing issues to continue.
- Build succession plans and develop future workshop, mobile and site leaders.
- Create a culture that is calm, organised, fair, direct and standards-led.
5. Safety, Quality and Operating Discipline
- Make health and safety part of the daily operating rhythm.
- Maintain high standards of workshop housekeeping, tool control, equipment care and site presentation.
- Support the Head Mechanic in reducing avoidable comebacks and repeat repairs.
- Ensure higher-risk or more complex work is properly checked and signed off.
- Embed consistent inspection, photograph, proof-of-work and quality-control processes.
- Create practical standard operating procedures that people can understand and use.
- Ensure agreed processes are followed in practice rather than existing only on paper.
- Protect KM1’s principle that safety and quality come before speed.
6. Growth and Nationwide Readiness
- Turn the first KM1 site into a documented operating model that can be repeated.
- Reduce dependence on individual knowledge, personal heroics and informal processes.
- Identify genuine capacity constraints, capability gaps, tooling needs and future recruitment requirements.
- Help define the operational and financial readiness gates for a second location.
- Support the recruitment and development of future site leaders.
- Help launch and stabilise additional KM1 locations as the business expands.
- Contribute directly to KM1’s long-term ambition of becoming a leading nationwide autocare provider.
What Great Performance Looks Like
Daily Operating Control
- Clear priorities across the business.
- Visible ownership of every live job.
- Fewer operational surprises.
- Earlier escalation when work, timing or customer promises change.
- Better coordination between the workshop, front desk, parts and mobile teams.
Commercial Performance
- Revenue, labour sales, margin, utilisation, productivity, overtime and costs are understood and actively managed.
- Workshop capacity is used effectively.
- Discounts, additional work and purchasing decisions are controlled.
- Performance discussions are based on clear information rather than opinion.
On-Time Delivery
- Customer promises are realistic.
- Jobs are planned according to available capacity.
- Delays are identified early.
- Customers and fleet partners receive proactive updates.
- Completion performance improves without compromising quality.
Quality and Safety
- Fewer avoidable repeat repairs and customer comebacks.
- Reliable quality-control and sign-off processes.
- Strong proof-of-work and job documentation.
- Clean, safe and organised workshop standards.
- No pressure to compromise safe repair decisions for speed or revenue.
Customer and Fleet Trust
- Fewer preventable escalations.
- Clearer estimates and approvals.
- Accurate invoicing and supporting documentation.
- Stronger fleet and contract delivery.
- Professional customer communication and confident vehicle handback.
People and Culture
- Employees understand what is expected of them.
- Managers take ownership of their areas.
- Poor performance is addressed properly.
- Strong performers are developed and recognised.
- The team becomes more capable and less dependent on constant intervention.
Scalability
- Core operating processes are documented and consistently followed.
- Capacity decisions are based on evidence.
- The business has a credible operating playbook for a second site.
- Future leaders are being developed before expansion takes place.
Who We Are Looking For
The right person will have:
- Proven leadership experience in automotive service, aftersales, garage, workshop, branch or fleet operations.
- Experience managing a busy workshop or automotive service environment.
- A strong understanding of workshop flow, capacity planning, customer service and commercial performance.
- Experience managing revenue, budgets, labour performance, margin and operating costs.
- A track record of improving operational performance rather than simply maintaining an existing operation.
- The ability to lead technical specialists while respecting the authority of the Head Mechanic.
- Strong people-management skills, including recruitment, coaching and performance management.
- Calm judgement and clear communication, particularly when the operation is under pressure.
- The ability to create systems and discipline rather than relying on reactive firefighting.
- Strong commercial awareness without compromising trust, quality or safety.
- A full driving licence.
Experience in fleet contracts, commercial vehicle operations, dealership aftersales, multi-
site management or opening and scaling a new location would be a strong advantage.
A technical automotive qualification would be helpful, but the person does not need to be
the strongest mechanic in the business. Operating leadership, automotive credibility,
commercial judgement and the ability to build a high-performing team are more important.
Your First 90 Days
During the first 90 days, the Garage Manager will be expected to:
- Assess the current team, workflow, customer journey, systems and operational control points.
- Understand the existing commercial and fleet commitments.
- Establish a strong daily and weekly management rhythm.
- Introduce clear ownership and escalation across all live work.
- Tighten workshop scheduling, bay use and capacity planning.
- Improve communication and handoffs between the front desk, workshop, parts and mobile teams.
- Establish a clear baseline for the main site-performance measures.
- Agree a practical performance-improvement plan with the leadership team.
- Clarify role boundaries, expectations and accountability across the operation.
- Identify capability gaps, development needs and priority hires.
- Produce a roadmap for first-site optimisation and future second-site readiness.
Reward and Progression
The proposed base salary is €60,000–€80,000, depending on the candidate’s experience and evidence of delivery.
The role will also include bonus that will be discussed in person.
A higher base salary may be considered for an exceptional candidate with proven experience leading large automotive operations, managing multiple sites or building and launching new locations.
The long-term progression path is toward Regional or National Autocare Operations leadership as KM1 expands across Dublin and nationwide.
Why Join KM1?
This is an opportunity to do more than manage an existing garage.
It is a chance to:
- Shape how a growing automotive business operates.
- Build and lead a high-performing team.
- Influence investment, recruitment, systems and future locations.
- Create the operating standard that future KM1 sites will follow.
- Work directly with an ambitious and hands-on ownership team.
- Play a central role in building Dublin’s leading independent autocare provider and taking the model nationwide.
We are looking to speak with someone who has already demonstrated that they can lead a
serious automotive operation and who is motivated by the opportunity to build something
bigger.
This is not simply a Garage Manager position. It is an opportunity to help define how KM1 grows.
Pay: €60,000.00-€80,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- Employee assistance program
- On-site parking
Work Location: In person
