Why This COO Believes Scaling Starts With People, Not Profit with Tyler Paparello of AMG

Tyler Paparello is the Chief Operating Officer at AMG, overseeing 28 Midas locations across New England. With a background rooted in sales, Tyler learned early on that while selling can solve short-term problems, it takes leadership, people, and process to scale a business sustainably. Today, he focuses on building systems that empower employees, earn customer trust, and create long-term growth opportunities across the organization.

In this episode…

What happens when a company grows faster than one person can manage? For Tyler Paparello, it meant learning a lesson every leader eventually faces: you can’t sell your way out of every challenge. Leadership in business growth requires more than talent for closing deals; it’s about building teams, developing people, and creating processes that work at scale.

On this episode of Gain Traction, Mike Edge welcomes Tyler for a candid conversation about transitioning from sales-driven success to people-first leadership. Tyler shares how his early sales experience shaped the way he runs operations at 28 Midas shops, and why he believes employees are the foundation of long-term success. He also explains how customer trust, retention, and perception directly impact growth and why focusing on people, not profit, is the true path to sustainable business leadership.

Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn:

[01:27] Tyler’s career background and how he got started at Midas

[02:47] The mantra that guides his leadership philosophy

[04:04] How digital vehicle inspections (DVIs) influence customer trust and sales

[05:21] Why storytelling makes DVIs more effective in customer communication

[08:03] Why the auto repair industry struggles with customer trust

[09:48] Using Net Promoter Score (NPS) to capture authentic customer feedback

[13:09] Tyler’s transition from sales to leadership as AMG scaled

[15:08] The impact of tariffs on pricing and operations

[18:35] A sales story that shows the power of honesty in business

[21:36] Tyler’s love for New Haven pizza — and why he calls it the best in the country

[25:33] Future growth plans for AMG and the career opportunities they create

[27:47] Why promoting from within drives retention and strengthens leadership culture

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• Tyler Paparello on LinkedIn
• Midas’ Website
• Tread Partners
• Mike Edge on LinkedIn
• Gain Traction Podcast on YouTube
• Gain Traction Podcast

Quotable Moments:

• “You can’t sell your way out of 20 stores’ problems, you have to lead.”
• “It always comes back to people. Employees and customers are the foundation of success.”
• “Perception is reality: How you present pricing matters as much as the price itself.”
• “Processes and systems create consistency, and consistency builds trust.”
• “Leadership in business growth starts with investing in your team, not chasing profit.”

Action Steps:

1. Invest in people, not just sales results: Focus on developing employees and promoting from within to build loyalty and leadership.
2. Leverage digital tools like DVIs and NPS: Use technology to strengthen trust, gather feedback, and improve customer experience.
3. Rethink how you handle pricing: Present costs with confidence to reinforce value rather than apologizing for them.
4. Build systems that scale: Processes, not one-off fixes, drive sustainable growth.
5. Keep people at the center: Customers and employees must remain the priority, profit follows when people are cared for.