Your tech just completed a comprehensive diagnostic training course. Passed the final exam. Got certified. Knows how to use scan tools, interpret codes, trace electrical issues.
Back in the shop, first diagnostic job takes 3 hours. It books for 1.5.
What happened? They have the knowledge. They don't have proficiency yet.
What Training Actually Delivers
Training teaches knowledge. How systems work, how to diagnose problems, what steps to follow. It's the foundation: understanding concepts, learning theory, passing tests.
Your tech learns how to read scan data, how to trace circuits, what tools to use. That's valuable. That's necessary. But that's not proficiency.
What Proficiency Requires
Proficiency is being able to do the work efficiently and accurately. It's built through consistent repetition.
First diagnostic job after training takes 3 hours for a 1.5-hour job. The tech knows the steps but they're slow. Fifth diagnostic takes 2.5 hours. Twentieth diagnostic hits book time at 1.5 hours. That's proficiency.
The Gap Between Knowing and Doing
Most shops confuse training completion with job readiness. Tech completes training, passes the test, and shops expect immediate improvement.
But there's a gap between "I know how this works" and "I can do this with my eyes closed."
That gap gets bridged through repetition on real work, not more classroom time.
What It Takes to Build Proficiency
Building proficiency after training requires two things:
- Structured pathways showing what skills to master through repetition
- Visibility into progress, where each tech is in building proficiency and what they should focus on next
Without structure and visibility, proficiency builds slowly and unpredictably.
How Mentor Mentee Builds Proficiency
Mentor Mentee gives techs structured pathways and visibility into exactly what they need to master next.
You see where each tech is in building proficiency on diagnostics, alignments, transmissions. You know who's ready for more complex work and who needs more repetition on foundational skills.
Training provides the knowledge. Mentor Mentee provides the structure and visibility that turns knowledge into capability.
Result: Techs move from "I know how" to "I can do it efficiently" in months, not years.
Knowledge Without Proficiency Costs You
Here's what it looks like when training doesn't translate to proficiency: techs who know how to do the work but take twice as long to complete it. Labor hours consumed that don't match what you're billing. Capacity constrained not by bays, but by efficiency.
Training gives techs the knowledge foundation. Building proficiency on that foundation requires Mentor Mentee.
Schedule a demo and we'll show you how.