Do You "Know" Your Franchise Training Program

Robert Bilotti with Novita www.novitaunique.com recently published a paper that was written for the benefit of the potential franchisee, entitled, “Discovery: The Questions a Potential Franchisee Should Ask About Training.” http://www.novitaunique.com/blog/ (March 26, 2010). In this paper, he does a fantastic job of educating prospective franchisees to ask questions of the franchisor about the training program that they might receive if they decide to invest in the system.

After reading that paper, it should make you think. When was the last time that you stepped back and took a good look at the training program that you provide to your franchisees? I am not talking about the table that you have included in the FDD about what you WANT the training to be like. I am talking about the product that the new franchisee actually receives. Is it organized? Do you provide sufficient training materials? Do you utilize all of the media available to you such as video, e-training, printed materials, etc.? Does your training program actually follow the Franchise Operations Manual that is supposed to be the master document of all of your system standards?

HAVE YOU ACTUALLY SAT IN ON AN ENTIRE TRAINING PROGRAM to “enjoy” the entire experience? Maybe you should.

You should read the article and ask yourself the questions that prospective franchisees may be asking you. Can you answer all of the questions? If you were a prospect, would you be satisfied with your answers?

In reality, you are probably not the best judge of the effectiveness of your training program. Even if you did take the time to sit through your entire training program (assuming that you are not the person that usually delivers it), there is still the problem of perspective. You have a base knowledge of your business that that should be more comprehensive than anyone else in the world. You are the “World’s Leading Authority” on your franchise system. That means that when a concept or procedure is explained in a training program, it could possible sound perfectly clear to you while the rest of the class receives the message with glassed-over eyes.

So, how do you get a fresh perspective on your training program? The best way is to solicit the opinion of a company that specializes in training, more specifically, franchise system training.

To quote Tom Peters, it is always a good idea to “Manage by wandering around” (MBWA). Take off the manager’s cap and wander around your business and observe. Observe your training process for yourself, through the eyes of the student, and see if it meets the same levels of quality that you expect in all of the other areas of your business.