In addition to announcing a new advocacy campaign in lieu of its annual Washington Fly-In, the American International Automobile Dealers Association said Tuesday it has added Citrin — a provider of porter, car wash and mobility services to dealers — as an Affinity Partner.

With the company as an AIADA Affinity Partners, members can receive, “a robust set of solutions for managing porter, car wash, and valet pick-up and delivery operations,” the association said.

In a news release, AIADA president and chief executive officer Cody Lusk said, “With a rapidly changing automotive retail marketplace, Citrin addresses one of the largest issues facing dealers today, providing staffing solutions to often overlooked, important customer-facing positions.

“Finding the right customer-facing staff is a real challenge today for large and small dealers. Citrin brings unparalleled valet, porter, and employee management services to our members,” Lusk said.

Added Citrin founder and CEO Joe Furno: “While hourly, front-line, associates are often overlooked and labeled as non-revenue producing, they have a significant impact on a dealership's ability to operate to its potential.

“The amount of time and energy that we give back to department managers by implementing structured operations plans and fostering high functioning support teams creates many downstream positive impacts . . . from improved financial results and CSI to better a work environment and culture at each store. We’re thrilled to support the AIADA and leverage our expertise to help their members take their business to the next level.”

In other news from the association, AIADA also said Tuesday it is rolling out a virtual program called “Dealers Make An Impact” in an effort to show Congress the importance of dealerships.

“While it’s a challenge that we were unable to gather in Washington this spring for our Fly-In, it’s also an opportunity. It’s an opportunity to reach Congress in a new way, using cutting-edge technology and the tremendous stories our industry has to share; how we adapt, how we served our communities and how as international nameplate dealers, we make an impact every day on the U.S. economy, on the lives of our American employees and provide essential services to our customers,” Lusk said in a video announcing the program.

Lusk said AIADA is sharing a series of videos and podcasts this summer that include AIADA experts, federal legislators, state association and automaker executives, as well as dealers. Next month, AIADA will be able to use the association’s platform to share self-recorded videos with Congressmembers about the importance of dealers and the industry.

In August, AIADA is ramping up its Dealer Visit Program, encouraging members of Congress to visit dealers. More details are forthcoming.

For more information, see the video in the above window or visit AIADA.org.