Under the Hood CPA Podcast

Eric Joern
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  • Management

Most shop owners don’t have a profit problem. They have a clarity problem. Under the Hood CPA is where we break down the numbers, decisions, and strategies that actually move your shop forward. No fluff. No theory. Just real-world financial insight for operators who want to build something that lasts. Hosted by Eric Joern, CPA, and advisor to high-performing automotive repair shops, and Partner at Kaizen CPAs + Advisors. This podcast pulls back the curtain on what is really driving profit, cash flow, and long-term enterprise value inside your business. Each episode is built around one question: What would I do if this were my shop? Alongside solo breakdowns, we bring on top operators and experts each week to give you clarity across the areas that impact your business and life most: Personal finance and wealth building Retirement planning for business owners Technology and operational efficiency Lending, capital, and growth strategies Tax strategy that actually moves the needle You will learn: How to read your numbers like an operator, not a bookkeeper Where profit is leaking and how to fix it fast How to scale without losing control of your cash What top-performing shop owners do differently Whether you are an established shop owner or an aspiring operator looking to make the leap, this podcast will give you the financial clarity and perspective you need before making your next move. If you are tired of guessing, reacting, and hoping your numbers work out, this is for you. Because the shops that win are not the busiest. They are the ones who understand what is under the hood.

Episodes

  1. 1d ago

    The Hidden Costs Draining Your Auto Repair Shop with Lucas Underwood - Ep. 7

    Want to know what your auto repair shop is worth, whether you’re charging enough for labor, or where profits may be leaking? Kaizen CPAs + Advisors offers five free, easy-to-use tools for shop owners—just enter your numbers and get practical answers at kaizencpas.com. In this episode, Eric is with Lucas to break down the financial and operational challenges behind a slow start to the year and ongoing cash flow pressure. Using the shop’s profit and loss statement, they explain why revenue does not always translate into cash and how car count, average repair order, gross profit percentage, and vehicle throughput affect profitability. The conversation also covers warranty expenses, policy creep, quality control, staffing, marketing costs, and the importance of matching advertising to the shop’s capacity. Lucas and Eric share how to work backward from financial goals to set realistic sales targets and build a practical plan for improving cash flow and profitability. Timestamps: 00:00 Perfect Storm Slowdown00:40 Clean Books Reality Check02:47 Reverse Engineering Targets06:43 Why Sales Aren’t Cash07:25 Parts Margin Squeeze10:41 Labor vs. Parts Mix13:13 Debt Service Blind Spot15:01 Car Count vs. Throughput19:19 Warranty Policy Creep21:12 Marketing Costs and Location23:17 Availability and Pricing Psychology24:07 Onboarding Capacity Crunch25:13 Scaling Ads Without Overload27:00 Year to Date Profit Trends29:27 Expense Control Reality Check30:19 Reverse Engineering Targets35:15 Warranty Drag and Fixes36:54 Parts Optimizer Gotcha38:51 Three Month Action Plan40:34 Using AI in the Shop44:12 Wrap Up and Next Steps

  2. Oct 24

    Hiring Isn’t the Problem. Your Process Might Be. | Sara Fraser and Bill Haas - Ep. 6

    Want to know what your auto repair shop is worth, whether you’re charging enough for labor, or where profits may be leaking? Kaizen CPAs + Advisors offers five free, easy-to-use tools for shop owners—just enter your numbers and get practical answers at kaizencpas.com. In this episode, Eric is with Bill and Sara from Auto Ignite Management about hiring, retention, and building stronger teams in the automotive repair industry. They discuss why shops struggle to hire and keep good employees, including unclear job descriptions, poor communication, missed promises, and weak onboarding. Bill and Sara explain how their recruiting process helps shops define the right role, evaluate candidates, and find people who fit the shop’s culture, motivation, and expectations.The conversation also breaks down the real cost of technician turnover, including lost gross profit, longer vacancies, onboarding time, and added pressure on the rest of the team. They share practical ways shop owners can improve hiring, retention, delegation, and team development. Timestamps:00:00 Job Hopping Reality00:42 Podcast Cold Open01:10 What’s Good Icebreaker04:49 Family and Work Balance08:24 Why Start Recruiting12:20 How Their Hiring Process Works15:20 Pay Transparency and Offers19:25 Retention and Shop Culture24:40 Productivity Gaps and Fairness28:17 Role Mapping Tool30:38 Maslow’s Hiring Angle33:08 PTO Flex and Fit34:57 Turnover Cost Math40:17 Onboarding for Retention43:07 Recruiting Process Deep Dive46:07 Delegate What You Lack48:40 One Thing to Do50:27 Events and Networking57:14 Wrap Up and Thanks

  3. Oct 17

    More Revenue Doesn’t Always Mean More Profit - Ep. 5

    Want to know what your auto repair shop is worth, whether you’re charging enough for labor, or where profits may be leaking? Kaizen CPAs + Advisors offers five free, easy-to-use tools for shop owners—just enter your numbers and get practical answers at kaizencpas.com. In this episode of Under the Hood CPA, Eric and Clay discuss why increasing revenue does not always lead to higher profit or cash flow. They break down technician efficiency, productivity, pay plans, job tiering, shop processes, and the hidden costs of interruptions, comebacks, and turnover. They also explain how tools, training, DVIs, and AI can help shops keep up with increasingly complex vehicles. The conversation highlights the importance of knowing each technician’s true loaded labor cost and using that number to make better decisions about staffing, pricing, and productivity. The goal is simple: fix the process, not the person. Timestamps: 00:00 Complexity Needs Investment00:40 Show Intro and Setup01:10 Audio Glitches and Banter05:48 Efficiency and Turnover09:37 Pay Plans and Comebacks11:30 Tech Tiering and Dispatch15:20 DVI and New Tools20:28 Define Efficiency Metrics24:53 Cost of Inefficiency Math26:02 Productivity Hits Profit27:20 True Technician Costing30:25 Calculating Loaded Cost34:45 Rates vs. Efficiency35:39 Costing Tool and Setup38:39 Complexity and Training Edge40:01 Tools as Retention Strategy44:41 Turnover and Tax Benefits48:16 Wrap Up and Productivity Playbook51:39 Final Takeaways and Outro

  4. Oct 10

    The Deal Looks Good… But Are You Missing Something? with Aaron Woods - Ep 4

    Want to know what your auto repair shop is worth, whether you’re charging enough for labor, or where profits may be leaking? Kaizen CPAs + Advisors offers five free, easy-to-use tools for shop owners—just enter your numbers and get practical answers at kaizencpas.com. In this episode of Under the Hood CPA, Eric sits down with Aaron to discuss buying, selling, and transitioning into an auto repair shop. Aaron shares his journey from music and dealership service advising to opening Extra Mile Auto Care and explains why exit planning should start long before you are ready to leave. They discuss valuation, negotiation, funding, owner financing, working capital, and different paths to shop ownership. The conversation also covers succession planning, key employees, due diligence, owner dependence, culture, and the risks that can affect a deal. The goal is to understand the risk, plan ahead, and build a deal that works for everyone. Timestamps: 00:00 Risk vs. Reward00:42 Show Intro01:06 From Music to Auto02:26 Early Work Roots04:18 Starting the Shop06:17 First Shop Reality08:12 Exit Strategy Mindset13:52 Approaching Owners16:13 Funding the Buyout18:16 Legacy and Trust23:54 Structuring Win Wins28:18 Evaluating the Deal30:20 Bank Valuation Rule30:53 Upside and Payback32:40 Funding Strategy and OPM35:31 Owner Financing Tradeoffs39:00 Deal Risk Red Flags41:41 Integration and Culture Fit49:18 Cash vs. Sweat Equity52:31 Institute Role and Resources56:49 Final Takeaways and Outro

  5. Oct 3

    The Company Is Always For Sale: Hard Truths About Owning a Shop with Mike Allen - Ep 3

    Want to know what your auto repair shop is worth, whether you’re charging enough for labor, or where profits may be leaking? Kaizen CPAs + Advisors offers five free, easy-to-use tools for shop owners—just enter your numbers and get practical answers at kaizencpas.com. In this episode, Eric and Mike Allen discuss the realities of building, buying, and selling an automotive repair business. They cover succession planning, family ownership, private equity, buying out employees, and the financial mistakes that can create major problems. The conversation also dives into revenue vs. profit vs. cash, IRS issues, EINs, bookkeeping, entity structure, shop software, and tax planning. The big takeaway is simple: understanding the numbers is critical to making better business decisions. Timestamps: 00:00 Hard Truths on Ownership00:36 Show Intro and Whiskey Banter01:36 Ads and Paying the Bills02:22 Hockey and Home Teams03:35 Concert Tickets Sticker Shock04:40 Final Four Box Story06:25 Why Shops Fail to Scale09:58 Third Generation Shop Roots12:47 Buying In and Succession Plan15:09 Succession vs. Private Equity21:31 Deferred Comp for Managers22:55 Buying a Shop for Cash24:57 IRS Trouble and Asset Deals27:59 EINs and Legal Shields30:23 One EIN vs. Many Costs32:08 Selling Stores and Reorgs33:32 S Corp Basis Traps34:22 Podcast Ownership Structures36:33 AI and Better Bookkeeping37:47 Charts of Accounts and Peer Groups39:10 Coaching Groups and Profit Talk41:26 Tekmetric and QBO Debate43:54 Desktop Legacy and Old Systems46:54 Kaizen Pricing and Risk48:38 Aggressive but Legal Tax Planning49:59 Race Cars and Complacency52:18 Giving Value and Closing Thoughts

  6. Sep 26

    The Mindset That You NEED Before Buying a Shop with John Chiapetta - Ep. 2

    Want to know what your auto repair shop is worth, whether you’re charging enough for labor, or where profits may be leaking? Kaizen CPAs + Advisors offers five free, easy-to-use tools for shop owners—just enter your numbers and get practical answers at kaizencpas.com. In this episode of Under the Hood CPA, Eric sits down with financial planner John Chiappetta to discuss money, mindset, and building long term wealth. They cover emotional spending, tax write offs, saving to buy a shop, lifestyle creep, investing, Roth IRAs, and succession planning. John explains why small financial decisions can have a big impact over time and why having a plan only works when you follow it. Timestamps: 00:00 Small Cuts Add Up00:32 Show Intro and Guest00:58 John’s Career Journey02:39 Psychology of Money04:44 Taxes and Emotions08:09 Avoid Tax Driven Spending09:49 Slow Play Wealth11:06 Saving to Buy a Shop13:14 W2 Mindset vs. Owner14:51 Monthly Saving Targets17:42 Cut Daily Spending Leaks18:50 Investing and Compounding20:14 Tool Truck Trap21:13 Goals and Truth Tapes22:19 Wealth in Auto Repair23:21 Why Shops Attract Investors23:41 Saving Early to Buy In25:01 Lifestyle Creep Reality Check26:36 Rent vs. Buy Math29:47 Kids Roth IRA Strategy30:56 Succession Planning for Owners34:15 Budgeting on $120K Income35:13 Cut Convenience Spend39:05 Plan Before You Bootstrap41:15 Execution and Closing Thoughts

  7. Sep 19

    The Financial Red Flags That Could Cost Your Shop Millions | Lucas Underwood & David Roman - Ep 1

    Want to know what your auto repair shop is worth, whether you’re charging enough for labor, or where profits may be leaking? Kaizen CPAs + Advisors offers five free, easy-to-use tools for shop owners—just enter your numbers and get practical answers at kaizencpas.com. In the first episode of Under the Hood CPA, Eric Joern sits down with Lucas Underwood and David Roman to expose the financial mistakes quietly putting auto repair shops at risk. They explain why clean-looking financial statements can hide missing cash, unpaid taxes, bad accounting, and even fraud or embezzlement. The conversation explores balance sheets, profit-and-loss statements, shop management systems, internal controls, and the dangers of giving one person too much financial authority. Lucas also reveals why talented technicians can end up earning less after opening their own shops—and why “hope” is never a business strategy. Whether you already own a shop or hope to open one, this episode will help you recognize the warning signs before they become expensive disasters. Timestamps:00:00 Someone Took the Money—and No One Sounded the Alarm00:32 Welcome to Under the Hood CPA01:13 Why “Hope” Is Not a Business Strategy03:47 Why “Ask Your CPA” Isn’t Enough05:18 The Warning Your Accountant May Never Give You07:16 Stop Waiting for Someone Else to Find the Problem08:59 Cash Flow vs. Profit: Why the Balance Sheet Matters10:00 Why QuickBooks Alone Can’t Run an Auto Repair Shop12:07 Good Data Is the Foundation of a Profitable Shop14:34 You Can Outsource Bookkeeping—but Not Understanding17:16 How to Tell Whether Your Books Are Wrong20:19 When Broken Financials Must Be Rebuilt23:32 Should You Share Financials With Your Team?26:23 Why Starting Your Own Shop Could Pay You Less30:07 How Bad Business Advice Destroys Financial Futures33:45 Tool Debt, Personal Finance, and Living Beyond Your Means37:01 What to Expect From Under the Hood CPA39:41 How Common Are Fraud and Embezzlement?43:12 The Payroll-Tax Debt You Can’t Escape45:09 Vendor and Loan Fraud Every Owner Should Understand47:47 Why Business Owners Must Set Financial Benchmarks49:23 Internal Controls: Who Can Move or Spend Your Money?54:15 What Successful Shop Owners Do Differently57:21 Pop the Hood on Your Business58:32 Closing

  8. Episode 2

    What is Under the Hood CPA?

    Under the Hood CPAs gives automotive repair shop owners practical insight into what’s really happening in their businesses—before problems show up in the bank account. Hosted by Eric Joern, partner at Kaizen CPAs and advisor to automotive repair shops, the show breaks down financials, tax strategy, productivity, hiring, succession, and wealth building. Each episode will help you build a more profitable shop, a more valuable business, and more options for your future. There’s no fluff and no jargon—just clear answers grounded in one question: What would I do if this were my shop? Subscribe and join us under the hood.

  • 1 Trailer
    7 Episodes

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About

Most shop owners don’t have a profit problem. They have a clarity problem. Under the Hood CPA is where we break down the numbers, decisions, and strategies that actually move your shop forward. No fluff. No theory. Just real-world financial insight for operators who want to build something that lasts. Hosted by Eric Joern, CPA, and advisor to high-performing automotive repair shops, and Partner at Kaizen CPAs + Advisors. This podcast pulls back the curtain on what is really driving profit, cash flow, and long-term enterprise value inside your business. Each episode is built around one question: What would I do if this were my shop? Alongside solo breakdowns, we bring on top operators and experts each week to give you clarity across the areas that impact your business and life most: Personal finance and wealth building Retirement planning for business owners Technology and operational efficiency Lending, capital, and growth strategies Tax strategy that actually moves the needle You will learn: How to read your numbers like an operator, not a bookkeeper Where profit is leaking and how to fix it fast How to scale without losing control of your cash What top-performing shop owners do differently Whether you are an established shop owner or an aspiring operator looking to make the leap, this podcast will give you the financial clarity and perspective you need before making your next move. If you are tired of guessing, reacting, and hoping your numbers work out, this is for you. Because the shops that win are not the busiest. They are the ones who understand what is under the hood.

Information

  • Creator
    Eric Joern
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    8
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © My Repair Shop Marketing

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