Mazda North American Operations is hosting its 19th Master Technician Competition where the winner of the North American competition will be entered in the Mazda Global Technician Competition held at Mazda Motor Corp. in Hiroshima, Japan, in 2017. Five Mazda Master and Master Elite technicians from around the United States have earned a spot to participate. This is the first time since 2008 that Mazda North American Operations has hosted the national Mazda Technician Competition.

This year, the Mazda Master Technician Competition is comprised of a mixture of Mazda Master Technicians and Mazda Elite Master Technicians; all of whom have an equal chance of winning and being sent to represent the United States at the Mazda global competition. The participants are: Jason Keeney, North Carolina; Daniel Gleason, Illinois; Eric Boughton, Colorado; James Lorsong, Maryland; and Michael Schurosky, Washington.

“Our goal is to delight our customers. One way we are doing so is by providing top-quality technicians at Mazda dealerships,” said Satoshi Takahashi, director of technical services. “Part of our training is to promote excellence and the Mazda Master Technician Competition helps recognize top performers and establishing best practices.”

This is the 19th time Mazda North American Operations has hosted the North American Master Technician Competition. Finalists earn their spots after competing in their respective regional competitions in October 2015. Winners are flown to Mazda’s headquarters in Irvine, California, to participate in the national competition. The competition consists of challenges where technicians are all asked to solve the same customer concerns in an identically equipped Mazda vehicle.

The technician who solves the problem in the most thorough, quickest manner is determined to be the winner. From there, the winner will be flown to Mazda Motor Corp. headquarters in Hiroshima, Japan, to represent the United States in the Mazda Global Master Technician Competition in early 2017.

This is the highest recognition a technician can receive from Mazda.