Selecting The Best Franchise Candidates
One of the biggest challenge you face when selecting the best franchisee for your chain is... do they have the "right stuff".
There are a lot of tools and services readily available that will help you:
- Do background checks,
- Find out if the applicant can read a balance sheet and
- Understands the basics of running a business.
But just because a candidate knows these things doesn't necessarily mean they do what's needed to be successful.
Here's an example:
How many times have you heard someone say that they value customers, but then whenever you deal with someone in the business, they treat you like you're an interruption?
Back in 1988 when I started Dynamic Performance Systems, I thought that personality would be a good predictor of performance. A lot of people did, and many still do. But after a few years I learned that, although better than tossing a dice, personality wasn't that much better that it justified the expense of measuring it.
So I decided to hire a team of psychologists to find out what does predict performance. What they found was that, although personality could help you hire employees more suited to your business, attitudes - not personality - are the best predictors of franchisee performance in an environment where they're managing others.
Beliefs, not personality - drive results. By measuring beliefs and attitudes, the FranchiZe Profile has an incredible minimum 91% accuracy when predicting if a candidate will perform in the top 25% in a retail environment!
A recent university study demonstrated that, on one of the FranchiZe Profile dimensions, every 1 point increase in a franchisee's score corresponded to an estimated increase of over $19,500 in outlet sales. Another recent study found that there was a $15,675 increase in annual sales for every single point increase on another dimension!
Click Here to Get Your Franchisee Selection Information Kit by E-Mail!
Can you achieve similar results? Yes! By measuring the 7 critical core values and attitudes all successful franchisees have in common.
Have you ever known a "nice guy" that, no matter what you do, just can't succeed as a franchisee? The "nice guy" part is the individual's personality. The actual "succeeding as a franchisee" part is what the FranchiZe Profile measures. By using the FranchiZe Profile you'll know whether the candidate will:
- Treat employees well and understand they are a valuable resource rather than an expense,
- Follow your system,
- Treat customers well,
- Have a positive attitude for success,
- Be comfortable dealing with people,
- Be comfortable with local store marketing and
- Have a strong work ethic.
All areas you know are critical to franchisee success in a retail environment. That's exactly why the FranchiZe Profile measures these seven critical characteristics. It's the only selection tool designed right from the start to predict performance of franchisees.
Q: What's the alternative to the FranchiZe Profile?
A: You can keep on using selection techniques that have little chance of predicting franchisee performance. You can go strictly by "gut feel".... You can use the "fog the mirror test".... You can try to adapt something never designed for franchisee selection.... Or, you can do what many great franchisors are already doing. You can switch to the FranchiZe Profile.
Even if the FranchiZe Profile only told you how a candidate would perform .... you would be ahead of the game.
After all, every single franchisee failure likely costs you at least $100,000.00! And that is only direct, out of pocket expenses.
Never mind what it costs in terms of:
- Aggravation.
- Lost Opportunity.
- Distracting You and Your Staff.
- Unflattering media exposure.
- Potential Lawsuits.
And that's only the beginning. Every candidate is trusting you to make the right decision....they're investing a significant sum in your business. In many case, their entire life's savings.
"My first introduction to the FranchiZe Profile was when we were looking for better tools to help us evaluate franchise candidates. Since then, I have found that the FranchiZe Profile boils the selection process down to basics.
This tool makes it easier to measure the candidate's strengths and weaknesses in some key areas. Combining the profile results with the other elements we look at allows us to make an accurate judgment without guesswork. The FranchiZe Profile is one just one important tool we use at DOTI Design Stores to help us select franchisees.
Better franchisees make for a better brand. I recommend Fred's FranchiZe Profile to other franchisors all the time."
Here's a Profile Comparison Chart in PDF format with details on the PreInterview Checklist, the FranchiZe Profile, and the Retail Manager Forecaster.
Click Here to Get Your Franchisee Selection Information Kit by E-Mail!
Because we believe that the more information you and your candidates have, the greater the chance is of their eventual success. That's why each report focuses on franchisee success in 5 easy-to-read, easy-to-use sections:
- Performance predictions
- Selection Considerations
- Developmental Needs
- Interviewing Workbook
- Candidate Feedback Mini Report
We also understand that your business has its own unique needs and operational methods. That's why we offer 3 easy ways to score a profile:
- You can have your candidate complete the profile on our special scoring site. Once the candidate has completed the 132 question questionnaire, an e-mail is sent to everyone on your distribution list within seconds advising that the profile has been done. Attached to that e-mail is the candidate's report as a PDF file. This is our most popular option.
- You can score the profile yourself on-line from a paper questionnaire the candidate has completed. Useful in cases where your candidates do not have ready internet access.
- A candidate can complete a paper questionnaire and then fax it directly to us for scoring.
You can use any combination of these options. You are never locked in to rigidly doing things in one way. Our whole purpose is to make using the profiles as easy as possible for you.
If a profile is scored using the first or second option, you'll receive a complete report within seconds. If you chose the third option, it may take a little longer. But never more than 24 hours.
If you're like other franchisors, you're probably thinking: "Sounds good, but what's the catch?" Quite simply, there isn't one.
"Financial and business experience requirements are not that complicated to evaluate in a prospective franchisee. Background checks, too, are rarely cumbersome. Our challenge has always been evaluation of the candidate on the basis of "people skills" and "management style" to predict performance.
We subscribed to the FranchiZe Profile to assist us in selecting franchise candidates that more closely resembled our most successful franchisees and to be more objective in the selection process. We're extremely pleased with the results.
One of the most beneficial results of the profiles has been the "training guide" which has been of tremendous assistance in tailoring training for the specific individual."
Skyline Chili, Inc., U.S.A.
We've been working with franchisors since 1988. Currently franchisors in 8 different countries are using our profiles. So we have a pretty good idea what franchisors are looking for.... and how they prefer to operate. That's why we won't ask you to sign a contract, enter into a long-term agreement, or pay any money up front once you decide to use the FranchiZe Profile. Our service is a true "Pay-as-you-go" service. Invoices are cut every Monday for the profiles scored the previous week. You never have to pay in advance for a profile.
We know that once you start using the FranchiZe Profile, you'll continue .... because it predicts performance, not because you are locked into a contract. If at any time you decide you no longer wish to use the FranchiZe Profile, you stop using it. Simple as that. No penalties. No contract buy outs. No hassle. Ever.
Plus, any time you have a question about the profile, pick up the telephone and call me personally on our toll free number or e-mail me with your questions. All consultations are at no extra charge!
Click Here to Get Your Franchisee Selection Information Kit by E-Mail!
Q: In what languages is the FranchiZe Profile available?
A: Currently, the questionnaire is available in English and Quebec French, with more languages on the way soon.
Q: Is it necessary to do a benchmark of our franchisees before using the profile?
A: No. These core values are common to virtually every franchise. We've done studies on the performance of franchisees across many different industries. Very seldom have we found any differences that were statistically significant. The only time we have seen major differences were in single operator, home based businesses. And even then, the core values still predicted performance accurately. The differences were simply a matter of the weighting given to each core value.
One of the really great things about the FranchiZe Profile is the ability to customize the report for each and every client. Most of our clients use the profile exactly as is... because it works so well for them. They haven't found it worthwhile to invest all the time it takes to get performance data on their franchisees together. Why bother? The profile is working great for them and the only improvements would be miniscule.
Why not take 10 seconds and request your own FranchiZe Profile Information Kit? It's available at no cost or obligation. Included is a sample report, and much more information than I can present here.
Just fill out this brief form to get your copy by return e-mail. (We have a very strict privacy policy and will not share your information with any other organization.)