General Motors Corp. has revised its dealership operating form to give dealers better insight into the financial performance of their stores, according to published reports.

The new monthly statement records many aspects of dealership's operations, from inventory and sales figures to advertising expenses.

Dealers are required to enter more detailed information in many areas, including finance and insurance, service labor operations and extended service contracts. Pilot dealers began using the redesigned statements this month, according to GM.

Training for the new form will start by the end of October; the form will debut at GM dealerships in January.

The new dealership form requests more information but, according to GM, should be more convenient to complete and submit than its predecessor.

The new eight-page form allows dealers to compare the performance of their dealership with those of other dealers.

Dealers can also calculate how many employees would be appropriate to reach the sales and inventory goals they choose. "A dealer looking to increase inventory and sales can plug in target numbers and calculate how many more employees would be required," explained Bill Mistele, general director of retail strategy for GM in North America.

Initial dealer feedback on the new form has been positive. "[The old dealer statement] is like a car with 90,000 miles on it. It starts every morning and runs fine, but the new model has heated seats and power windows," said pilot participant Jim Tellier, president of Jefferson Chevrolet Co. in Detroit.

The dealership operating form is required by GM and dates back to 1929 in a system initiated under then-Chairman Alfred Sloan.