The Australian National Mediator Approval Standards defines mediation as ;

“A process in which the participants, with the support of a mediator, identify issues, develop options, consider alternatives and make decisions about future actions and outcomes. The mediator acts as a third party to support participants to reach their own decision.”

Mediation is used successfully with relationship issues, workplace relations between employees, B to B disputes and certainly in franchise disputes. Read the rest of this entry »

Are you enticing new Franchisees?

…..and if so are you breaching The Franchising Code of conduct?

“Want to go to Hawaii?” the headlines shout.

Is this an advert for a travel company or an airline?

No, this advert appears in the Business and Franchise Opportunities in a newspaper column. The “carrot” is, if you buy this franchise for $ 200K, you will also get a “free holiday.”

This type of advertising for new franchisees is disturbing and hopefully not the beginning of a new trend. Read the rest of this entry »

Some Franchisors can find formulating KPIs to be a confronting exercise but the benefits to both Franchisor and franchisee from having measurable performance targets should not be underestimated.

Establishing KPI’s in your franchise often means going back to basics, and exploring the fundamentals of your franchise.

Are your franchisees achieving what they want from their business? or are they complaining that they can’t make any money?

Is your system flawed? and if it is are you brave enough to firstly acknowledge that there is an inherent problem and THEN seek professional advice to restructure?

Read the rest of this entry »

How many of you know of a disillusioned franchisee? Let’s face it, the current affairs programmes are full of them.

A Franchisee is a business owner who owns a franchised unit, for example a Bakers Delight, Subway and many many more less well known brands.(please note I am not suggesting that any Bakers delight or Subway franchisees are disillusioned!)

As a franchising consultant, I see a fair few franchisees, and due to the nature of my work, many of them are very disillusioned.

Read the rest of this entry »

Much is discussed by franchising “experts” and government bodies about introducing more legislation to improve the world of franchising.

But how much would increased legislation actually reduce franchisee risk?

Potential Franchisees are advised to seek professional advice from a lawyer, accountant and consultant. How many lawyers and accountants are really “au fait” with franchising practice?

How many professionals would admit to clients that their franchising knowledge is minimal?

And how often do potential franchisees not seek any advice at all?

Read the rest of this entry »

The International Franchising Association Code of Ethics states that the following points are essential ingredients in good franchising;

Trust, Truth and Honesty – Are the foundations of franchising. 

Mutual respect and reward – Result in winning together as a team. 

Open and frequent communication – Successful franchises thrive on it! 

Obey the law – This refers to all laws including compliance to the franchise system. 

Conflict resolution – Deal with potential conflict swiftly and effectively.

Read the rest of this entry »

I don’t want to be a Franchisor anymore!

As a Franchisor have you ever felt like that?

The answer to that could depend on:

• The length of time that you’ve been a Franchisor.
• The number of franchises in your network
• Your initial reason for franchising in the first place
• The level of support you have from family
• Your internal management structure.
• The strategic planning within your business
• Your commitment to goals
• Vision
• Succession planning

This is a lengthy topic, but one that my day-to-day contact with Franchisors leads me to believe deserves attention. Read the rest of this entry »

Many people have aspirations of franchising their business but have absolutely no idea at all of the reality of doing so.

 Some people have franchised their business but are not calling it a franchise when legally they should. They think they can choose how to categorise their business, whereas the reality is that franchising is a highly regulated industry. If a business falls within the technical definition of a franchised business, one cannot choose to call it anything else and therefore all franchising procedures should be implemented. Read the rest of this entry »

Franchising, when executed properly, can be the most powerful method of building a business empire. It is a perfect example of the power of leverage.

Every franchisee is a self employed person in their own right. Every franchisee, as a small business person, is equally motivated to succeed in their own business within the franchise system. The Franchisor has created a win-win situation!

A business that franchises should ideally be driven by a desire and a need to service clients.  Read the rest of this entry »

 I’ve posted a blog asking for Franchisor Feedback on the biggest daily challenges they face in Franchising.

Being a consultant to both Franchisors and Franchisees I certainly see both sides of the coin.

I have become passionate about making sure that only people really suited to franchising, proceed with the process. I have seen so many unhappy franchisees who are in, to put it bluntly, rotten franchise systems, where the only thing the Franchisor cares about is lining their own pocket.

Franchising should be so much more, and this is why Read the rest of this entry »