The GM Field Service Engineer (FSE) Technician Recognition Awards (U.S.) celebrate the skill and dedication of dealership technicians who have recently worked with FSE’s on challenging repairs.
Technicians at GM dealerships are selected for recognition based on a variety of factors, including their focus on safety, customer satisfaction, personal accountability, training achievements, diagnostic abilities and the level of repair documentation.
Each recognized technician receives a Service Excellence magnetic plaque and an Excellence in Service Award certificate. (Fig. 20)
Fig. 20
1st Quarter 2023 Technician Recognition Award Winners
Technician: Adam Bryant
Dealership: Quirk Chevrolet, Portland, Maine
FSE: John Vaccarello
Service Excellence:
Adam recently worked a shudder/skip case on a 2020 Silverado. Adam went out of his way to road test the vehicle with the customer several times to help pinpoint the exact conditions needed to duplicate concern. All of Adam’s preliminary work prior to the arrival of FSE John Vaccarello made it much faster and easier to identify the concern. Adam’s attention to detail and pride in what he does really shines through. He always demonstrates our “Think Customer” behavior!
Technician: Toby Chixarro
Dealership: Vendetti Motors, Inc., Franklin, Massachusetts
FSE: Deshon Antoine
Service Excellence:
Toby truly deserves recognition as a GM tech for 20-plus years who takes pride in his career. The integrity that Toby displays on a daily basis is impressive as he leaves no stone unturned. Toby understands the TAC process and he uses all GM-approved resources to diagnose and repair GM vehicles.
He recently worked with FSE Deshon Antoine on a water leak condition on a 2022 Sierra. Every idea that Deshon brought forth to find the water leak Toby had already attempted. The last option was to remove the windshield and inspect the spot welds that Toby had suspected even before Deshon arrived at the dealer. They removed the windshield and sealed the spot welds, which repaired the water leak. Working with Toby is refreshing, knowing that he always does his part to the fullest extent.
Technician: Josh Ritter
Dealership: Wind Gap Chevrolet, Wind Gap, Pennsylvania
FSE: Paul French
Service Excellence:
Josh exemplifies the best of the best of young talent in the automotive industry. He has a tenacious spirit when diagnosing difficult problems that leads to accurate repairs. During diagnosis of a Silverado with a faulty input speed sensor, Josh reached out to FSE Paul French several times to confirm that he was on the right path. With a little encouragement, Josh stayed on the correct path and completed the diagnosis and repair of the vehicle. His diligence saved Paul from making a visit to the dealership and got the vehicle back to the customer in a timely manner.
Technician: Kevin Linares
Dealership: Lindsay Chevrolet, Woodbridge, Virginia
FSE: Russell Ringling
Service Excellence:
Kevin has repeatedly demonstrated “It’s on Me” behavior with his positive attitude and thoroughness while working on challenging technical issues. As an entry level technician, Kevin has worked through some difficult vehicle issues, including intermittent GMLAN short-to-ground diagnostics and engine noise concerns. These advanced tasks would normally be completed by more experienced technicians, but Kevin stepped up to the challenge.
Kevin recently completed a 2023 LM2 diesel engine crankshaft removal for a TAC case that supported Brand Quality’s repair vs. replace inspection requirements. Kevin’s dedication to this difficult task helped get the vehicle back into service as quickly as possible.
Technician: Ryan Staffeld
Dealership: Wallace Chevrolet, Stuart, Florida
FSE: Zack Evans
Service Excellence:
Ryan always impressed with his expert knowledge and professionalism. Recently, another technician at Ryan’s dealership was working on a very intermittent condition that could not be duplicated. The customer’s concerns were explained to Ryan in passing when FSE Zack Evans arrived at the dealership. Zack had spent about an hour testing various areas of the vehicle when Ryan approached to say that he had remembered another vehicle with similar issues. Ryan went out of his way to show Zack a chafed area of a wiring harness that ended up being the cause of the issue. Not only were they able to repair the vehicle quickly, but they also submitted a detailed Field Product Report to prevent this same issue in the future. Ryan’s attitude with helping his fellow technicians is a perfect example of our “One Team” philosophy.
Technician: Dave Radke
Dealership: Roe Buick, Grand Island, Nebraska
FSE: Robert Bridges
Service Excellence:
Dave displayed a high degree of professionalism on a recent TAC case working with FSE Robert Bridges. Dave is getting close to retirement and yet continues to learn and embrace new technology. He was working on a 2021 Tahoe that had an intermittent battery draw. Randomly, he could see that the BCM was not going to sleep. When visiting the dealership, Robert used V-Spy to rule out some of the things that were not causing the problem. After this, Dave was able to focus on the areas where the actual problem was occurring.
During the process Dave learned to use the PicoScope and immediately saw its value in his work. Due to the intermittent nature of the problem, Dave documented the voltages on all circuits at the BCM. With his findings, Dave and Robert were able to pinpoint the circuit that was out of spec. From Dave’s organized methods of keeping track of a complex problem, he was able to persevere and determine it was necessary to replace the driver’s door latch to correct the concern.
Technician: Chris Largent
Dealership: Landers Chevrolet, Norman, Oklahoma
FSE: Gregg Brinlee
Service Excellence:
Chris has been a technician for General Motors since 1987 and a GM World-Class Technician since 2003. FSE Gregg Brinlee first met Chris in 1992 when Gregg started at a dealership. Chris always has a great attitude and desire to repair vehicles right the first time. And he is always willing to help train new and upcoming technicians; so anyone who is willing to learn and listen, Chris is ready to help.
One case that Gregg worked on with Chris was a 2022 Tahoe with a 3.0L LM2 diesel engine. The vehicle had a random fish bite sensation that would only occur once or twice every 100-250 miles. Chris took it upon himself to contact the customer to learn more about the concern in the customer’s own words. He also took the vehicle on an extensive test drive to try and duplicate the customer’s concern. After the concern was duplicated, they determined which part to replace and repaired the vehicle. Chris has helped root cause numerous GM vehicle issues and has submitted high quality Field Product Reports throughout his career.
– Thanks to Hank Poelman
