In my twenty years of working in the
franchising industry, still to this day I am
surprised about the sensitivity of the topic,
the not wanting to recognise the differences,
the impact and the lack of business strength
to talk about it, address the issues and shift
how we do things to accommodate the current
and the future workforces which will lead
small business enterprise. Diversity is one of
the constants that we all encounter, we are all
different and work in very different ways and
we must embrace our individual skills and
characteristics so that we don’t fall behind the
curve.
The way we choose to work varies from person
to person; how we work, where we work, when
we work and even who we work with ranges
depending on who you ask. Yet we all have an
underlying mission: to provide value and to
have a purpose in all that we do.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics reports
that one in four of Australia’s 22 million
people were born overseas, one in two have
a parent born overseas and in 2013 overseas
migration accounted for 60 per cent of
Australia’s population growth. The numbers
don’t lie, they support the notion that we as
individuals and businesses need to adapt to
the way things are moving and unfortunately
many business fail to see the need.
Franchising:
I’m going to be selfish and focus on the
industry that I live and breathe, franchising.
Franchising continues to be a business model
of choice in Australia with approximately
1,180 different systems according to
IBISWorld. Franchising is no longer just an
easy way for a company to raise funds for
growth, it’s an option for Australians to be
small business owners with the support of
national and international systems.
Franchising is a business method which
succeeds as a result of its systems which
drive replication, the financial model being
achievable both for the franchisor and the
franchisees and finally the relationship
between franchisor, franchisees and the
community which binds all parties to the
brand and its long term success through
the offer and the innovation which keeps it
relevant and wanted; it is not exempted from
the diversity conversations.
The franchising industry already embraces
diversity through equal opportunity – but we
need to focus on how we are using diversity
to better our businesses for franchisors,
franchisees, and for the end user. Franchisors
and franchisees are better off increasing their
understanding of how diversity impacts their
day-to-day business - it is a growing aspect of
the business and social environments within
which we exist and within which relationships
are built.
As with most things in life: communication is
key. Whether it’s face-to-face, phone, email,
or advertising - it’s the first stepping stone
to making sure that everything else works
as expected. Get this wrong and there is no
relationship or business outcomes.
“When dealing with different cultures who
have different operating systems, nothing
should be assumed,” says Beth Pocklington,
Systems and People Champion for the Back
in Motion Health Group. “Franchisors need
to adapt their conversations, processes and
systems to facilitate consistent outcomes with
franchisees irrespective of cultural nuances.”
The mentality of a one size fits all franchise
system no longer exists in the market place –
and ensuring that systems are able to support
both franchisees and customers on all levels
is key to the future longevity of Australian
franchise systems.customers:
Never assume you know everything about
your customers. Don’t assume that the
customers know your brand, don’t assume that
the customers are seeing your advertisements,
don’t assume that someone won’t buy your
product or service simply because they are too
old, too young, or not in your target market.
The most iconic of Australian brands with
the catchiest of jingles are always advertising
to new customers and re-advertising to their
existing customers. Why? Brand Awareness. If
your potential customers don’t know who you
are or that you’re a key player in the market
place, they aren’t going to consider you as
an option when it comes down to making a
decision.As an iconic household brand, do not assume
you are known!
Just because your current offering and
delivering is how it’s always been done, doesn’t
mean that it’s the best or only way. Phone
calls, emails, direct messaging, advertisements
are all valuable techniques – but ensuring that
you have a multitude of active campaigns will
ensure that you aren’t missing out on potential
customers.
Your business needs to go above and beyond
to look for a point of difference, what is your
brands unique selling proposition? What sets
you apart from your competition?Franchise recruitment:
Stereotypical franchise recruitment has been
thrown out and replaced with a modern
approach attracting quality franchisees who
are right not only for the brand, but also for
the system.
Sara Pantaleo, La Porchetta CEO says,
“In recent years we’ve found that during
the recruitment process, some potential
franchisees agree to most things and then once
they take over the business, they do things
differently from what they committed to.
This is not because they set out to deceive us,
but because in their culture this is accepted
behaviour.”
Many franchisors are scared to share what
they think is intellectual property with
prospective franchisees, and in-turn they
receive ‘yes men’ who will do anything to get
through the door.
By oversharing as many details as possible in
early discussions you will learn where different
franchisees have different concerns and be able
to address them accordingly.
Sara continues, “We are developing new
online training platforms and reviewing our
processes to ensure that our on-boarding and
training is more tailored so that we can all
understand what is not negotiable and what is
flex ible.”“the way we all choose to work varies from person to person;
how we work, where we work, when we work and even who we
work with ranges depending on who you ask. Yet we all have an
underlying mission: to provide value and to have a purpose in all
that we do.”