Franchising is built on the principle of reciprocity. The franchisor must pass on his proven knowledge to his franchisees. The franchisor is also obliged to make a differentiated concept available to franchisees, and to assist them throughout their contract. Franchisees, for their part, must respect the signs and unique elements of the know-how.
Franchisees who fail to respect part of the concept can jeopardize the brand and make it less unique. In this case, it's the franchisees who suffer. To ensure that customers have the same experience at every point in the network, the franchisor must ensure that the knowledge he passes on to his franchisees is properly applied.
Controlling franchisees is therefore a necessity to ensure the network's longevity.
Control can take many forms if necessary.
Many networks use "mystery shoppers". It's an excellent way of measuring process compliance. In the retail sector, for example, mystery shoppers check whether customers have been received correctly and served on time. They also check whether or not additional products have been offered. Mystery shoppers can provide an unexpected insight into what's going on in the network. This solution is limited to the front-office view. It can also lead to less-than-objective and exploitable analyses, as mystery shoppers are often not trained according to brand standards and may have different perceptions of the same situation.
Other franchise networks have set up more structured compliance control procedures aimed at checking both the front and back offices. As network coordinator, he is responsible for carrying out control audits of all franchisees, using a common form. The audit is carried out in the presence of the franchisee or outlet manager. This enables us to gain a better understanding of the franchisee's situation, as the analysis of back-office processes provides elements for identifying non-conformities. We can quickly determine if a product is missing from a store or if there are stock problems.
This approach is more effective than mystery visits, because it is preventive. Facilitators can provide personalized support to franchisees and help them identify areas for improvement.
The network manager must be able to analyze, understand and propose solutions, to act as a coach rather than a cop. Animators are not only in charge of control, they must also be able to give feedback and offer concrete advice to franchisees.
The compliance audit is a positive process that involves both the franchisee and the network head. It will be all the more effective if it uses digital tools specifically designed for network animation. These tools must have a number of features.
Provide automatically updated, digitized checklists.
You can compare data over time and consolidate them at regional or national level.
Integrate various functions, such as electronic signatures, job traceability, action reminders and electronic signatures.
These elements will provide a complete view of the network, enabling individual and collective action plans. Many networks have begun to provide their franchisees with digital tools to encourage self-monitoring. This goes beyond control and encourages continuous improvement.
