Instead of attending a state university like his friends in Coppell, Texas, Green decided to go somewhere he could ski, which landed him at Ft. Lewis College in Durango, Colo. There he met his wife, Tiffany, and soon they had a baby on the way. “I had to rewrite my reality of what I was going to do with my life,” he explained.

When he discovered that his brother-in-law’s job at a nearby Nissan dealership brought in more money than he was making as a clothing store manager, he set out to get a job at that same dealership. After about a year, however, Green became unhappy with what he called the “regular dealership grind.” One particularly slow day—bad weather, no customers—Green was on the phone with a friend who had once worked with him at the dealership but had left for a job at Automotive Avenues. His friend had to excuse himself from the phone conversation because he had two customers waiting to buys cars. “No way, not on a day like this,” he thought. That was enough for him to decide to trade his job for a career at Automotive Avenues.

Six years later, fellow Texan Bill Green, president and general manager of Automotive Avenues, is glad Green made the move. While the two aren’t related, Bill has been known to claim Green as a son on those occasions when he’s selling well. That’s pretty often, given that he averages 20 or more sales per month. According to Bill, “Robert exemplifies the kind of person dealerships need in order to attract and retain quality sales professionals and change the landscape of auto sales for the 21st Century.”

Bill receives many testimonial letters from customers praising Green, whose CSI is always 98 to 100 percent. Bill says Green is great at relating to customers over the phone and builds a rapport with them before they ever set foot on the lot. He believes Green’s exceptional at listening to a customer’s needs and getting that person into the right vehicle.

Green prefers to do most of his work over the phone and would rather follow up on Internet leads than take a fresh up on the lot. He said he’s able to work more deals and meet more people by phone. And people seem to be what it’s all about for him. He doesn’t work on commission and emphasizes that he’s a consultant, not a salesperson. His job is to help a customer determine what he or she needs, do the research and present that person with options. He says it feels great when customers open up to him and trust him to do what’s right for them. “Being able to help people really feels good to me,” he admitted. He enjoys the process of finding the right vehicle for someone, rather than the instant gratification of making a sale. It’s no big deal if he doesn’t make a sale immediately, he said, because that person will probably come back to him later.

When not at the dealership, Green can be found at his other job, being a dad to sons Weston, 8; Clayton (“Bubba”), 6; and Carter, 3. On his days off, he volunteers at the boys’ school. He and his wife also serve as den leaders for Weston’s and Clayton’s Cub Scout troops. While Green is on a different path than the one he set out on, his attitude toward life has served him well, both personally and professionally: “I try to be positive at whatever I’m doing, whether I’m in a ditch or on top of the world.” Sounds like the view’s pretty good from up there.

Nominate Your Sales Professional Now!