Feeny says dealership still a fun place to work

The Feenys made the right decision when they moved to the Chicago area 30 years ago to open a car dealership. And they followed up with more good decisions along the way as their flagship store has grown into seven dealerships.

Dan Feeny was only 32 in 1986 when he and his wife, Teri, moved here from the Detroit area. Feeny Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram is now in its 30th year in business and will celebrate its big anniversary next March.

In addition to the Elgin location, the Feeny family, along with Dan's brother Bobby and Dan's nephews, have been able to grow to five Chrysler dealerships and one Ford dealership. They all believe in the same inherent philosophy of employees and people first.

The family's first dealership, Arlington Park Dodge (later Feeny Dodge) in Palatine, remained part of the group until 2005 when it was sold. At that point, the Feenys bought a Dodge dealership in Elgin and combined it with an existing Chrysler Jeep store to create its flagship superstore.

"My biggest mission is to take care of my people so we can take care of the customers," said Tim Feeny, Dan's and Teri's son, who has worked as general manager for the past two years. "When you come here, you deal with open, honest, real people. The people here are what makes us different."

While Tim Feeny indicates it can be tough to keep one's focus on making people happy, his father notes that it's the little things that occur everyday that make the true difference in the way people perform.

"Oh sure, we do things like have parties for our employees, but that's not the thing that matters most," Dan Feeny said. "The true way to measure success is by how you achieve it. Friends and family come first; it is the reason that we work and our people know their families are the priority - work never comes before that!"

Maintaining such an environment is critical because employees often spend more of their waking hours at their jobs than they do with their families. The elder Feeny points to Google Inc. in Mountain View, California, as a prime example because it regularly makes lists as being one of the happiest companies for workers in the United States.

"If work can be fun, then this is a place you want to be at," Dan Feeny said. "What happens if you create that kind of environment? We have people who have been here forever. We have had people who have left for other jobs and have come back.

"One of our most valued employees, Juan (Martinez), has been here over 20 years and trains all of our new porters. Can you imagine the interest level he takes in his job?"

Dan Feeny credits his success to having family members, including his brother and three nephews, who share the same philosophy and helped the business grow along the way.

"Our business prospered by building a good customer base and you do this by finding out their needs, by getting them the right car, the right color, the right set of equipment, instead of just selling them a car," Dan Feeny said. "What do you think they're going to do? They're going to go and tell their friends what a good experience they had at Feeny Chrysler Jeep Dodge."

Yet again, it comes back to having a quality group of employees.

"I made a vow to myself long ago to treat people right," Feeny said. "Everyone has a bad day from time to time. When employees do something that is not quite right, you don't yell at them and make them feel bad. It's a like a baseball team. All it is, is a matter of tweaking."

Feeny employees are also frequently involved in decision-making that further contributes to the overall team effort and provides a feeling of comfort that leads to staff members "going through a wall" with extra effort needed to meet customer requests.

Both Feenys admit their strong bond is an unusual one as they often vacation together, and like the same sports, particularly hockey and golf. The dealership continues to sponsor the Feeny Flyers, a men's league hockey team out of Johnny's Ice House in downtown Chicago. While the elder Feeny still tries to skate several times per week, the younger one says he fits in a game of hockey whenever he can. The family continues to grow, too, as Tim Feeny will marry his fiancé, Monica Ledesma, who also works at the dealership, in December.

The bond was definitely forged long ago as evidenced by a story that Tim Feeny relates.

"My mom was recently cleaning out some things and found a project box from when I was little," Tim Feeny said. "In there was a paper that said, 'What do you want to be when you grow up?' I answered, 'My Dad.' "

Just as Tim Feeny has immense respect for his father, so do the Feeny employees. Even when the elder Feeny is not at the store and decisions need to be made, the prevailing sentiment is, "What would Dan do?'

"Any company that is successful surrounds itself with good people," Dan Feeny said. "I like to think that's why we have been able to sustain our longevity."

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Feeny Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram

1010 Chicago Ave., Elgin

(847) 697-0900

<span class="fact box text bold">www.FeenyAutos.com</span>

<span class="fact box text bold">Sales:</span> 9 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday to Friday, 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Saturday.

<span class="fact box text bold">Service:</span> 7 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Monday to Friday, 7 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Saturday.