24-7 Members Hub • Leadership Xchange Groups • Service & Warranty Lifecycle
March 11, 2026 Newsletter
Member Priorities Are Driving the Conversations
AI, Metrics, and Dealer Insights: What You Need to Know
We’ve wrapped the first meetups for five of the six Leadership Xchange Groups launched this year—and the conversations didn’t disappoint. Members brought priorities, challenges, and fresh perspectives to the table, and we’ve already set second‑meetup agendas to dig deeper into the topics that matter most.
The insights don’t come from sitting on the sidelines. They come from being in the room—hearing what peers are wrestling with, comparing approaches, and getting the real-time take on what works (and what doesn’t).
This week’s MyWarrantyNetwork Connect shows how MAPconnected brings these conversations to life through member-driven benchmarking and peer dialogue—helping leaders tackle complex decisions across the service & warranty lifecycle, from recall management and technical support strategy to supplier collaboration and warranty administration.
Read on for:
- Member Key Priorities
- Parts Return & Quality Analysis Xchange Group Blog
- March’s Not To Be Missed Events
- Next Up Virtual Xchange Group Meetups
- Launch of AI-SWLM Think Tank 2026 Agenda
- First Look at 2026 Industry Study: Warranty Through the Eyes of Your Dealers
- Member Experience Video: Ashok Kartham, CEO Circuitry.AI
Member-Driven Agendas, Real Industry Priorities
Each group’s agenda is shaped by member‑identified needs—keeping discussions anchored in the issues that matter most to today’s service and warranty leaders.
Along with how AI is beginning to support and streamline these processes, the Established Key Member Goals inside these groups include:
TAC Xchange:
- Strengthen TAC effectiveness through better metrics, KPIs, and performance benchmarks
- Evaluate hybrid Techline strategies to optimize contact methods and technician support
- Elevate the quality and consistency of case inputs from dealers and field teams
- Define clear requirements and processes that enable technicians to begin diagnostics more efficiently
Financial Products Insurance Xchange:
Extra Benefits! Next Meeting Includes Self-Assessment Framework Roll-out
- Benchmark strategies to expand extended warranty & service contracts
- Examine how service contracts support equipment sales and long-term customer relationships
- Strengthen distributor participation and sales enablement in indirect channels
- Identify opps to engage customers earlier in the ownership lifecycle
- Evaluate metrics for measuring end-user loyalty and lifetime value
New members are still welcome to join and begin benefiting from this executive benchmarking community.
Read The Post Meetup Blogs
🔗 TAC Xchange: TAC Strategy & Technology Enablement | Why Technical Support Is Becoming an Operations Discipline
🔗 Recall, Customer Campaigns & Legal Xchange: Navigating OTA Updates | When Should You Issue a Recall? Navigating OTA Updates & Regulatory Risk
Learn more about Xchange Group meetups and reserve your spot!
Peer Perspective
Key Takeaways: Parts Return & Quality Analysis Xchange: Parts Return Strategy & Cost Optimization | February 24
Turning Parts Returns Into Quality Intelligence
At the inaugural Parts Return & Quality Analysis Xchange Group, OEM leaders from Bridgestone, Cummins, Kia, Mopar, Slate, Stellantis, Winnebago and more benchmarked how to turn returned parts from a cost center into strategic quality intelligence. Facilitated by Daryl Kreskowiak, the discussion covered smarter parts selection, operational KPIs, and supplier accountability. Participants shared best practices for targeting the right parts, analyzing them efficiently, and ensuring suppliers take corrective action—transforming parts returns into actionable insights that drive measurable improvement..
🔗 Read the full Parts Return & Quality Analysis Xchange blog
Happening in March
Recall, Customer Campaigns & Legal Xchange | March 19 | 3-4pm ET
Vehicle Buyback Management & Accountability
Facilitator: Wayne Mitchell, Global Vice President of Automotive Solutions, Sedgwick
Benchmark strategies, metrics, and tools used to prevent repeat issues, hold stakeholders accountable without friction, and leverage KPIs and analytics to accelerate resolution, strengthen support, and improve customer satisfaction across OEM, dealer, supplier, and field teams.
Join conversations with GM, Ford, Honda, Jaguar Land Rover, Kia, Mazda, Slate...
Purchasing & Supplier Cost Sharing Xchange | March 24 | 3-4:15pm ET
Reducing Supplier Administrative Burden
Facilitator: Jim Holloway, Former General Manager of Purchasing, Toyota
Benchmark how OEMs streamline supplier interactions, reduce duplication and manual work, and balance control, compliance, and usability through optimized portals, submissions, and feedback mechanisms.
Join conversations with Bridgestone, GM, Kia, Cummins, Stellantis, Toyota, VW…
Virtual Xchange Group Meetups (Second Round!)
April 14 | 3-4:15pm ET
- Financial Products & Insurance Xchange
Product Performance, Penetration & Profitability
Join us to benchmark product performance, penetration, and profitability across OEM financial product portfolios—looking closely at attach rates, margins, and lifecycle profitability, with a focus on strengthening extended protection program engagement and results.
April 16 | 3-4:15pm ET
- Warranty Administration Xchange
Optimizing Warranty Claims: Efficiency, Accuracy and Fraud Prevention
Join this peer benchmarking session to explore strategies for reducing manual claim assessments—particularly for claims paid using outside labor guides—while improving efficiency in reviewing labor rate and parts mark-up increase requests, including potential AI applications.
April 21 | 3-4pm ET | Free Event
- Recall, Customer Campaigns & Legal Xchange
Exploring The Decision To Recall
Join us in a benchmarking session that takes a qualitative and quantitative look at how organizations incorporate regulatory actions, warranty claims, field incidents, customer complaints, technical investigations, and other emerging risks.
May 14 | 3-4pm ET
- Technical Assistance Centers (TAC)
TAC Strategy & Technology Enablement
Join this peer benchmarking session to explore technician certification requirements for TAC access, the integration and use of scan tool and diagnostic data, TAC’s role in dealer diagnostics and workstations, and how organizations measure issue resolution rates and involve TAC teams in OEM prior approval decisions.
May 19 | 11am-12:15pm ET
- Parts Return & Quality Analysis
Defining A Robust Parts Analysis Process & Logistics Cost Control
Join this peer session to explore ownership and escalation models, link parts analysis to engineering and warranty actions, improve first-time fix rates, benchmark logistics strategies, and review advanced approaches for complex assemblies.
They are back! AI-SWLM Think Tank Sponsored Showcases
The AI-SWLM Think Tank connected OEMs and AI service providers across seven events last year, including hands-on sessions at the Spring Club Study and Service & Warranty Lifecycle Summit—producing five AI Project Roadmaps ready for POCs.
Don’t miss the next wave: sponsored virtual webinars where members dive deeper and explore how AI can streamline every step of the warranty lifecycle.
ServiceNow | April 23: Warranty leakage quietly drains OEM margins—and most manufacturers don’t see the full extent until it’s too late. Join a conversation with Jerome Clerc, IT Domain Manager, Aftersales – Warranty & Recall Campaigns at Stellantis for a practical discussion on how AI and workflow automation are helping manufacturers close claims gaps and protect margin across the full warranty lifecycle.
Upstream | April 30
Pegasystems | May 12
Circuitry. ai | June
These key AI providers will also be on-hand at the Club Study June 18 at Mitsubishi Logisnext Houston as we walk through the full Repair to Claim lifecycle and seek out actionable AI use cases.
Submit your interest to join AI-SWLM Think Tank.
Coming Soon: 2026 Warranty Study: Through The Eyes Of Your Dealers
Get ready for a clear, inside look at how dealers actually process warranty claims—from required fields and submission timelines to the nuances that shape accuracy and speed. The core of the report features real claim‑entry screens from more than 30 OEMs, giving you a rare, side‑by‑side view of how systems really work. The study breaks down real‑world workflows, system usability, and process effectiveness to help OEMs and service leaders pinpoint friction, validate processes, and benchmark performance with confidence
Key insights will include:
- Dealer Perspective: How do your warranty processes actually perform at the dealership level?
- Key Workflows: Prior approvals, help desk support, DMS integration, and submission time limits.
- Performance Insights: Metrics, system usability, and process effectiveness.
- Cross-Industry Comparison: Automotive, heavy truck, powersports, agriculture, and industrial sectors.
- April Release: Objective, real-world workflows experienced by warranty administrators
Contact us for sponsorship information, interviews and inclusion opportunities.
Member Experience: Applying AI Where it Matters Most
“When AI is applied to real warranty and service use cases, the return is immediate: better decisions, stronger dealer relationships, and improved product quality.”
-Ashok Kartham, CEO at Circuitry .ai
Ashok Kartham, CEO of Circuitry .ai and founding member of MAPconnected’s AI-SWLM Think Tank, is helping peers across the service and warranty lifecycle see AI not as an experiment, but as a practical tool for decision-making. Through the Think Tank, Ashok has been able to intimately collaborate with OEMs and industry leaders to translate complex data—from claims and product history to contracts and policies—into consistent, actionable insight.
Within MAPconnected, he’s seen firsthand how peer-driven learning accelerates AI adoption. From claim adjudication and technical assistance to early quality signal detection, participants are turning real-world challenges into measurable results, improving dealer support, operational efficiency, and product quality.
🔗 Read the full blog and watch Ashok explain how AI is reshaping service and warranty operations.
Why Leaders Participate in MyWarrantyNetwork Events & Engagement Tools
- Role-specific peer benchmarking across the service & warranty lifecycle
- Facilitated, executive-level discussions with direct peers
- Ongoing collaboration through the MyWarrantyNetwork Members Hub
- Access to session insights, recordings, and Think Tank initiatives
Looking Ahead: Key Events
Upcoming MAPconnected Events
- June 17-18 | Spring Club Study & AI-SWLM Think Tank Meetup | Houston
Modern Warranty Decision-Making: Manual Foundations to AI Diagnostics - Oct 19-21 | Service & Warranty Lifecycle Annual Summit 2026 | Detroit
Analytics, Data, and Service: Fuel For A Customer-First Connected World
| I’m happy to answer any questions as you consider which membership is the best fit for your organization. Email me at info@mapconnected.com or fill out an online form. |
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