The collision repair industry has been calling them estimators for decades.
We call them what they are:
Damage Analysis Managers.
CITA exists to raise the professional standard for the people who write repair plans, manage carrier relationships, protect OEM compliance, and make decisions that directly affect vehicle safety. This is not estimating school. This is professional development
CITA exists to raise the professional standard for the people who write repair plans, manage carrier relationships, protect OEM compliance, and make decisions that directly affect vehicle safety. This is not estimating school. This is professional development
CITA (Collision Industry Training Academy) proudly unveils its latest offering: an innovative e-learning program meticulously designed for collision center administrative staff. Our curriculum is fortified with cutting edge core concepts based on over four decades of hands-on experience and leadership in the collision center industry.
Embark on a transformative learning journey with CITA, where our comprehensive training equips you with the latest tools, concepts, and techniques essential for crafting efficient profitable repair plans.
Immerse yourself into the mastery of leading-edge core principles, proficient communication skills allowing you to provide effective transparent information to your customer base, grasp project management fundamentals, and refine your ability to create a solid repair plan devising financially sound repair strategies.
Unlock boundless career opportunities within the collision industry by enrolling in
Collision Industry Training Academy's specialized professional development programs today.
The Case for a Higher Standard
The person writing your repair plan is making life-safety decisions. Are they trained like it?
A Damage Analysis Manager isn't writing numbers, they're analyzing structural damage, evaluating ADAS system exposure, negotiating with insurance carriers, managing repair timelines, and documenting decisions that will determine whether that vehicle protects its occupants the next time something goes wrong.
The title 'estimator' sets the wrong expectation for everyone in the room, the carrier, the customer, and most importantly, the professional doing the work.
When you call someone an estimator, you're telling them their job is to guess. When you call them a Damage Analysis Manager, you're telling them their job is to be right.
CITA trains to that standard.
What CITA Trains
A curriculum built at the front line-not in a classroom.
ADAS Calibration & Liability Documentation
Understand which repairs trigger calibration requirements, how to document compliance with OEM procedures, and how to build the paper trail that protects your shop and your customer when insurance carriers push back.
Insurance Supplement Strategy
Stop writing supplements reactively. Learn how to build repair plans that are defensible from the first write, using OEM procedures, manufacturer repair requirements, and documentation strategies that win the approval before a dispute is ever necessary.
Structural Analysis & Repair Planning
Repair plans that miss structural requirements don't just cost the shop money, they put drivers at risk. CITA training develops the technical depth to recognize, document, and communicate structural damage with precision.
Dealership Collision Center Operations
Collision centers inside dealership groups operate differently than independent shops. Understand the inter-departmental relationships, OEM certification obligations, and operational workflows specific to the dealership environment, including how to leverage the data your management system is already generating.
Customer Communication & Transparency
The ability to explain complex technical decisions in plain language is the most overlooked competitive advantage in collision repair. CITA trains the communication skills that build customer trust, reduce complaints, and improve CSI scores.
Project Management & Cycle Time Control
A Damage Analysis Manager is the central coordinator of every repair. CITA builds the project management fundamentals that keep repairs moving, keep customers informed, and keep the shop performing at capacity — every single day.
Who CITA Is For
Working Collision Professionals
If you work in any administrative role in a collision center — whether you're at the front desk, managing parts, writing repair plans, or running the operation as a Shop Manager or General Manager — CITA was built for you. Our curriculum develops the technical depth and professional framework to operate at the highest level of your role, giving you the credentials to back it up. This is your career next level.
Shop Owners & Dealership Group Leaders
If you lead a collision center and your administrative team isn't operating at the level the business demands, supplement wins are being left on the table, cycle time is suffering, and CSI scores are showing it. CITA's group enrollment options are designed to elevate the entire team, not just one individual.
Military Veterans
The discipline, precision, and systems thinking that defines military service is exactly what the collision repair profession needs. CITA's dedicated military pathway provides a structured transition into collision repair administration, with curriculum designed around the ADAS calibration center operations that represent the industry's highest-growth career track.
Created by someone who built the standard — not just studied it.
CITA's curriculum was built by Jim Saunders, a collision industry veteran with 40 years of hands-on experience — from the floor as an Engineer through shop management, general management, and ownership.
That career earned Jim a seat at the table with the world's top luxury automotive brand, where he was tapped to help build their first OEM certification program. That work opened direct relationships with manufacturer representatives and the engineers who actually designed the safety systems in today's vehicles, the people who understood not just how the technology works, but why it was built the way it was.
Combined with decades of experience working at every level of the carrier-shop-customer relationship, what CITA teaches isn't theory. It's what actually works, because it was developed by someone who was there when the standard was being set.
The standard in collision repair doesn't raise itself.
Whether you're a professional ready to step up, a leader building a stronger team, or a veteran looking for a career that matches your discipline, CITA is where that journey starts.
Start Your CITA Journey
Questions about group enrollment?
Contact us directly: +1 833 225 7226