profiles in excellence
From the GROUND UP O It’s all about having a strong foundation for O’Regan’s Rick Dey. By Megan Ng
Above: Rick Dey at O’Regan’s flagship Collision Centre in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. Rick and his staff generate about $5 million annually at this location alone.
ne of the virtues of the collision repair industry is that it’s still possible to work your way up from the bottom. Men and women can start as apprentices on the shop floor, become a journey person and, after years of hard work, find themselves at the top of the operation. The story—the triumph of collision repair—is epitomized by O’Regan’s Collision Centres’ director of operations Rick Dey. “Rick’s story is truly one of personal growth,” said O’Regan’s vice president of fixed operations Colin Silliker, who was responsible for promoting Dey to his current position. “With a foundation of personal integrity, Rick has built a leadership style [by] incorporating excellent communication skills with his exceptional ability to coach and develop employees. It is this leadership we are most appreciative of at O’Regan’s.” Entering the collision repair industry 23 years ago as a metal technician, Dey never anticipated achieving as much as he has. Within about three years of working as a technician at O’Regan’s, he was promoted to estimator. Not too long after that he became the assistant manager, which led to the
30 collision Repair collisionrepairmag.com
By Megan Ng
natural progression to manager. About a year later in 2002 he expanded his horizons and became the director of collision operations for O’Regan’s, overseeing collision centres in Halifax, Bridgewater and the flagship Dartmouth location. All together, shops under Dey’s leadership bring in about $8 million annually, $5 million of which is from repairs at the Dartmouth location. With three collision centres under his care and the responsibility of maintaining O’Regan’s highest grossing facility, Dey is a master delegator, entrusting the managers at each of the collision centres to constantly communicate and develop staff. Dey does his part by ensuring that he does the same with his managers. When challenges arise, they work together as a team to fix the problems or search for a new solution. S.E. O’Regan started work at Parrsboro Motors as a mechanic in 1915. He eventually bought the operation, which included Ford and later Chysler and Chevrolet Oldsmobile dealerships in the Parrsboro, Nova Scotia area. His sons, Paul and Stephen grew up and worked in the business until S.E. closed the shop and retired in 1956.