WorldPac STX 2026 Expo

You’re invited to attend the most comprehensive training event in the automotive industry, the 2026 Supplier & Training Expo (STX). The 2026 event marks the 10th biennial STX, each one greater than the last!

Our Institute Speaker Line Up:

Managing Yourself

By Kent Bullard

In today's fast-paced world, managing time effectively is not just a skill but a necessity for achieving personal and professional success. "Managing Yourself: Personal Time Management Strategies for Ultimate Impact" is meticulously designed to empower ambitious individuals with the tools and techniques necessary to master the art of time management.

This transformative class offers a deep dive into the principles and practices that drive peak productivity and ensures that participants learn not just to manage their time but to master it through a blend of theoretical insights and practical exercises.

Participants leave equipped with essential skills for peak productivity and effective time management. In this class, you'll learn to prioritize tasks, plan strategically, overcome procrastination, and achieve a balanced work-life harmony. We offer insights into leveraging technology to streamline your routine and customize time management frameworks to fit your unique lifestyle. This course is designed to transform your approach to daily tasks and long-term goals, ensuring you lead a more organized, purposeful, and fulfilling life.

This class is not just about finding more hours in your day; it's about creating more value in the hours you have. Whether you're an aspiring entrepreneur, a seasoned executive, or someone looking to inject more purpose and balance into their daily routine, this course will equip you with the mindset and methods to achieve your objectives with efficiency and grace.

Join us to embark on a journey of self-discovery and transformation. Let's unlock your full potential and create a life that's not only productive but also meaningful and fulfilling.

• Prioritize Effectively: Learn to distinguish between what's urgent and what's important. Master the art of saying 'no' to distractions that do not align with your goals.

• Strategic Planning: Develop a foolproof personal and professional life plan that accommodates short-term tasks without losing sight of long-term objectives.

• Overcome Procrastination: Uncover the psychological barriers to productivity and learn strategies to overcome procrastination and decision fatigue.

• Leverage Technology: Integrate the latest apps and tools into your daily routine to streamline tasks, set reminders, and keep track of your commitments effortlessly.

• Customized Time Management Frameworks: Understand that one size does not fit all. Explore various time management frameworks and customize them to fit your unique lifestyle and work rhythm.

• Achieve Work-Life Harmony: Learn how to balance your professional aspirations with personal well-being, ensuring that success in one does not come at the expense of the other.

  
  

Don't just get more hours in your day, maximize the value and leverage of each moment.

This is focused on personal time management - not just tech time. This class offers crucial tools and tactics on leveraging the most valuable asset any one of us has… time.

Chaos to Control

By Kent Bullard

Take control of your business by mastering the tools and strategies to build a resilient, high-functioning organization. In this dynamic workshop, we’ll guide you through the process of creating and implementing effective Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) that foster a culture of excellence, readiness for change, and streamlined operations. Learn how to develop processes that not only align your team but also adapt to evolving challenges, ensuring long-term growth and success. Gain practical insights into managing teams, driving accountability, and embedding structure into your organization for sustainable performance.

Key Takeaways:

• Build a culture of accountability and adaptability.

• Craft and implement SOPs that drive clarity and consistency.

• Manage team dynamics for seamless process adoption.

• Ensure your business is prepared to thrive amidst change and uncertainty.

Ideal for business owners, managers, and team leaders ready to transform their operations from chaos to control.

Automotive Business Financial Intelligence

Everything You Need to Know About Numbers and Profit

By Cecil Bullard

Step into a realm where automotive businesses transcend mere survival and soar to unprecedented heights of profitability! In this course, we unravel the tales of two contrasting shops: one clinging to the edge of profitability, its owners toiling away for over 50 grueling hours per week, and another basking in the glow of success, where owners leisurely clock in under 40 hours.

Prepare to unlock the vault of secrets to skyrocketing profits and discover the art of working smarter, not harder. We'll guide you through the labyrinth of financial balance, unveiling the six sacred keys to financial triumph.

Calling all Automotive Service and Repair Business owners: this isn't just a class—it's your golden ticket to prosperity. Learn how to revolutionize your business without burning yourself out or leaving your clients in the dust. Are you ready to transform your destiny and drive your profits to unprecedented heights? The journey starts here.

TakeAways:

1. Know your true numbers

   Learn how to read and interpret your P&L, balance sheet, and key shop KPIs so you always know exactly where your profit is coming from—and where it’s leaking out.

2. Calculate your real hourly rate

   Discover how to properly set labor rates and parts margins based on your true costs and profit goals, not guesswork or what the shop down the street is charging.

3. Build your break-even and profit targets

   Determine your break-even point and create clear monthly profit targets so you can make proactive decisions instead of hoping it all works out.

4. Design a profitable business model

   Compare “50-hour grind” and “40-hour freedom” shop models, then map out the staffing, car count, ARO, and productivity numbers required to hit your income goals.

5. Control expenses without starving the business

   Identify which expenses are investments and which are waste, and create a simple budget and review rhythm to keep costs in line while still growing.

6. Install a weekly numbers review rhythm

   Walk away with a one-page financial scorecard and a weekly routine to review key metrics, course-correct quickly, and keep the whole team focused on profit.

7. Create your 90-day profit improvement plan

   Leave with a concrete, step-by-step plan to improve gross profit, net profit, and owner hours over the next 90 days—so you can work less and earn more.

   
   

How to Stack the Deck in Business and LIFE

By Cecil Bullard

Most shop owners and managers don’t get into this business to be stressed, overworked, and under-rewarded. Yet that’s where many end up—stuck in long hours, drama, and constant pressure, wondering, “Why does this feel so hard?”

The truth is simple: your results reflect how your deck is stacked.

In this fast-paced session, Cecil Bullard will show you how to deliberately “stack the deck” so that success becomes easier, more consistent, and more sustainable—not just in your business, but in your personal life as well.

Cecil draws from years of teaching leadership, management, financial intelligence, communication, systems, and accountability to break success down into a handful of strategic “cards” that anyone can learn to play:

● The People Card – Are the right people in the right seats, doing the right things?

● The What Can I Do Card - Are you waiting for others to do what you want or need? Or are you doing what you can?

● The Process Card – Do you have simple, repeatable systems, or are you managing chaos?

● The Profit Card – Do you truly understand your financial machine, or are you guessing and hoping?

● The Communication Card – Is your team aligned, or constantly misfiring?

● The LIFE Card – Are your habits, health, and relationships supporting you—or draining you?

This isn’t another “feel good” motivational talk that fades by Monday. Cecil builds in hands-on exercises, so every attendee walks away with something real:

1. Stack the Deck Business Audit: You’ll identify where the odds are currently stacked against you—bottlenecks, weak processes, unclear expectations, poor accountability, or financial blind spots. Then you’ll choose one “high-impact card” to play in the next 30 days to change those odds.

2. Stack the Deck LIFE Map: You’ll take a quick, honest look at key areas of your personal life—health, family, finances, mindset, and time. Where are you sabotaging yourself? Where could one simple habit, boundary, or conversation dramatically improve your quality of life?

3. Your One-Page Stack the Deck Plan: You’ll leave with a concise, written plan: one side for your business, one side for your life. Clear goals, clear actions, clear time frames. No long workbook. Just a focused cheat sheet you can post, share, and use.

By the end of this session, you will:

● Understand why hard work alone isn’t enough—and never will be

● See exactly where your current “deck” is setting you up to win or lose

● Know the next few moves that will improve profit, reduce stress, and strengthen relationships

● Have practical, doable commitments for both your business and your personal life

This course is perfect for shop owners, general managers, and key leaders who are ready to stop playing from behind, stop blaming the “game,” and start creating their advantage.

If you’re ready to feel more in control, more focused, and more hopeful about your future, “How to Stack the Deck in Business and in LIFE” will give you the mindset, tools, and roadmap to start winning—on purpose.

Crystal Clear Communication

By Mark Seawell

Most shop problems? They don’t come from bad intentions—they come from bad communication.

Missed details. Mixed messages. Confused customers. Frustrated techs.

And what could’ve been a simple fix becomes a full-blown fire.

Crystal Clear Communication is a practical, fast-paced workshop designed to help shop teams communicate clearly, confidently, and effectively—no matter the situation. It’s about saying the right thing the right way, so work flows better and stress stays low.

You’ll learn how to:

• Communicate expectations between advisors, techs, and managers

• Deliver repair info and estimates with clarity and confidence

• Avoid miscommunication that leads to comebacks, delays, or upset customers

• Speak with empathy—and authority—at the same time

• Ask better questions, listen actively, and confirm understanding

• Set communication standards that level up your whole shop culture

What You’ll Walk Away With:

• A communication checklist for high-efficiency service writing

• Messaging templates and “phrases that pay” for tough convos

• A framework for giving (and receiving) feedback without tension

• Common shop miscommunication scenarios—and how to fix them

• A printable “Clear Talk” Guide for daily use

Objection Overruled!

By Mark Seawell

You’ve explained the repair. The estimate’s fair. The car needs the work.

And then—boom: “Let me think about it.” “I’ll call you back.” “That’s too much.”

Sound familiar?

Objection Overruled is a high-impact workshop designed to arm your team with the tools, language, and mindset to handle objections like pros—without being pushy or defensive. We'll dig into why customers hesitate, what they're really saying, and how to respond in a way that builds trust and closes the sale.

You’ll learn how to:

• Identify the true objection hiding behind the words

• Use empathy, not pressure, to move the conversation forward

• Handle common objections like price, time, or “I need to talk to my spouse”

• Reframe the value of the repair so customers want to say yes

• Avoid the defensive back-and-forth—and stay in control of the call

This isn’t about canned responses. It’s about real conversations that connect, convert, and keep customers coming back.

What You’ll Walk Away With:

• A battle-tested objection handling framework you can plug into any estimate

• Specific word tracks for the 5 most common customer pushbacks

• Roleplay-ready objection scenarios for training and coaching

• Confidence boosters to help advisors stay calm, clear, and in control

• A quick-reference “Objection Toolbox” to keep at the counter

Mastering the 10 Steps to Your Profitability Engine

By Aaron Woods

Are you leaving money on the table in your shop?

Do you truly understand where every dollar is going—and where you’re losing profits?

What if you could systematically increase your net profit by 20-30% without adding more work?

If your bottom line isn’t where it should be, it’s time to master the 10 critical steps to financial success in your business. In this data-driven, results-focused workshop, Aaron Woods will break down proven financial strategies that the top-performing shops use to increase revenue, slash expenses, and maximize profit margins—without working harder.

You’ll leave with a step-by-step blueprint to turn your shop into a financial powerhouse that generates predictable, scalable income while giving you the freedom to step back and focus on growth.

What You’ll Learn:

• The Profitability Formula – The 10-step system that guarantees higher profit margins and sustainable financial health.

• Maximize Gross Profit – Learn how to price for profit, control cost of goods sold, and increase your revenue per RO.

• Eliminate Profit Drains – Find and fix the inefficiencies in your labor costs, parts margins, and operating expenses.

• Break Even Faster, Profit Sooner – Master the numbers that matter and set realistic financial goals with precise tracking systems.

• Turn Cash Flow Into Growth – Learn how to reinvest wisely so your shop can scale without financial strain.

Key Takeaways:

• How to instantly improve your gross profit margin by 5-10% with smarter pricing and expense control.

• The # 1 financial metric every shop owner must track to predict and maintain cash flow stability.

• How to stop working for pennies and start maximizing every revenue opportunity.

• The financial strategies of top 10% shops—and how to implement them in your business immediately.

You work too hard to settle for mediocre profits.

Join Aaron Woods for this high-impact, financially focused session, and walk away with a profit-boosting action plan that transforms your business into a revenue-generating machine.

Unlocking Inspiring Accountability: The CLEAR Results Model

By Aaron Woods

Led by Aaron Woods, The Institute presents "Unlocking Inspiring Accountability: The CLEAR Results Model," a transformative exploration of accountability practices designed to foster employee engagement and drive long-term success in business management.

Submerge yourself in a journey through the various dimensions of accountability, from traditional approaches to revolutionary methodologies. Discover how the groundbreaking CLEAR Results Model, as referenced in Elaina Noell's seminal work "Inspiring Accountability in the Workplace," empowers leaders to cultivate proactive and responsive strategies that not only yield results but also nurture growth, resourcefulness, and a solution-focused mindset within their teams.

Uncover the intricate interplay between the hierarchy of human needs in the workplace and accountability practices, and learn how to seamlessly align them to pave the way for success and continuous improvement.

With Aaron Woods as your guide, you'll delve into the essence of transformative leadership, gaining invaluable insights and practical techniques to revolutionize your management approach and cultivate a culture of accountability that thrives on inspiration and achievement.

Key Topics Include:

- Exploring the facets of accountability: Traditional vs. revolutionary approaches

- The CLEAR Results Model: Empowering leaders with proactive and responsive strategies

- Navigating the hierarchy of human needs in the workplace

- Aligning accountability practices with the path to success and continuous improvement

Join us and embark on a journey towards unlocking inspiring accountability and unleashing the full potential of your team for lasting success!