In the common interest of all parties involved in a franchise agreement, the head of a network must ensure at the outset that the candidate will be able to run his business according to the methods and recipes he has been given, while respecting the network's image and reputation.
While employees have a legitimate right to training, life in a franchise makes the need for training an intrinsic part of the franchisee's job. But rather than a quid pro quo - or even a constraint - inherent to the formula, training must be seen as a pillar in the realization of a network's ultimate promise: know-how-success. To achieve this, the franchisor must follow three key steps.
Knowledge: the operating manual
By offering a complete "manop", it is important to give sufficient consistency (and legal enforceability) to the know-how transmitted. Exhaustive of the elements to be mastered at the launch of the operation, the support serves as the architecture for initial training, and the brand communicates regular updates to its franchisees.
Designed to be the franchisee's permanent point of reference, the operating manual can not only be consulted online, but must also take on an increasingly "responsive" form, intuitive to the uses of "digital natives". Franchisees must be able to access it at any time, on tablet or mobile, at their bank, their suppliers, their customers, their partners or among their peers. The more friendly the tool, the more franchisees will consult it, automatically reducing the risk of "off-tracking".
Savoir-réussir: assistance
The evolving nature of know-how requires ongoing training and assistance. The services put in place by the brand, which are fair compensation for the royalties, reassure the franchisee and establish the brand's reputation. Other tools complement and support this system, such as network head certification, performance monitoring and management software, etc.
Franchisee satisfaction and turnover rates, the pace of the network's development (particularly in relation to its direct competitors) and the "procedural ratio" are good indicators of the level of know-how demonstrated by the brand, in addition to more factual elements such as the methods and technical knowledge, sales procedures, financial management or inventory management methods developed by the network head.
By mastering these different parameters, the brand is able to build loyalty among its affiliates: even those who don't reach their forecasts can be supported by their manager and the network's partner chartered accountant. The model then becomes sustainable, and the market eventually embraces this new player.
Savoir-faire-réussir: training
Ultimately, a network's success depends on the network head's ability to continuously infuse its franchisees with the right best practices, and provide them with the necessary support. To do so solely through "human" and "in-house" resources would be too costly. In reality, however, this effort covers a number of different areas, some of which are outsourced: partners come in to give workshops and lectures, the chartered accountant provides management support and highlights elements that are complementary to the animator's scope, not to mention, of course, the ongoing self-learning effort that is directly driven by the brand and takes shape in the online manop and newsletter. The network will benefit from entrusting the creation of the latter to a specialized structure that can develop the need over time.
Through this "extended" or "distributed" system, the franchisor provides his affiliates with support that respects their independence, is non-intrusive but sufficiently "supportive", and is cost-optimized and collaborative. These are the characteristics of know-how-success today.
This text is published under the responsibility of its author. Its content is not binding on the editors of Echos de la franchise.
The authors
Nicolas Coutel is one of the driving forces behind the Organized Commerce department at Mazars.
Holder of a professional coaching certification, he has a keen interest in supporting franchisee performance, in particular the tools of psychology and the motivational forces behind it.
Nicolas Coutel is also in charge of rolling out Mazars' Lab Ecosystem in France.
Valérie Guillevic is Managing Director of Amplitude Réso. A lawyer with a post-graduate degree in law, Valérie Guillevic spent 15 years helping to create and develop a French and then European franchise network with over 90 outlets, before deciding to put her expertise at the service of franchise and partnership networks.
As the head of a consultancy firm for the past 5 years, she brings her skills in network management and development to bear on meetings between brand managers, keen to increase and harmonize their development, and project leaders eager to succeed.
Article published on October 21, 2015 - Opinion column - Les Echos de la Franchise
