Working Together and Sharing ideas
Pfizer Healthcare Solutions (PHS) and the Healthcare Strategy Team (HST) , had a very successful and positive ‘Working Together and Sharing ideas’ joint meeting at the Alexander House Hotel, Turners Hill, West Sussex, thanks to the significant part played by the Racing Challenge SUPER 8.
Exchange of ideas
For the day, four teams were produced from the two groups present to encourage the exchange of ideas and to get the best from the four presentations given during the day. Named Ferrari, Mclaren, Red Bull and Lotus, the teams wore shirts branded to represent their race team.
The SUPER 8 large hospitality awning provided a relaxed but business like environment for the presentations and lunch, yet superbly served as the spectator area (team pits) when the racing on the SUPER 8 race transporter got under way between each presentation!
Keenly contested racing
Some very keenly contested racing resulted as two drivers from each team raced in each 8 driver race on a choice of famous Grand Prix circuit with points awarded to each driver depending on their finishing position at the end of each race.
The winning team on the day was the Mclaren team, shown collecting their prizes (below)
“We had a fantastic day that was really positive, enjoyed by everyone and hugely beneficial to the future joint workings of the two teams” said Anuj Sharma.
Learn more about how Racing Challenge can be used to galvanise your team.
In an attempt to build strong relationships with their franchisees, some franchisors feel they should become friends with their franchisees and vice versa. I believe this is not a good idea and franchisors who take this approach can place themselves of their franchisees in an embarrassing situation when tough decisions need to be made.
The franchise relationship is first and foremost a commercial relationship. As such, from time to time, commercial decisions have to be made, or issues raised by one party that may create discomfort for the other. in such cases, the relationship may become strained for a time until the reasons for the decision are fully understood.
Friendships can cloud these important issues or prevent them from being addressed, leading to inappropriate compromises or problems being swept under the carpet.
I am not suggesting that business relationships should not be cordial and friendly. Indeed, healthy business relationships often involve frivolity and fun. However, too many people confuse friendly relationships with close friendships. If you have built a close friendship with a franchisor or franchisee, I suggest that when business issues need to be discussed, a professional and businesslike approach is maintained.
Have you noticed the awesome power that relationships have to create or destroy? Both in business and in life?
For instance, the quickest and surest way to wreck a marriage or business relationship is to create an environment of poor communication, conflict and mistrust.
The converse is of course also true. Awesome things can happen when people trust each other, communicate effectively and work well together.
Take for example, a team of four ‘average’ executives who have scarce resources but work well together and are committed to a common goal. More often than not, they will consistently outperform a group of ten or more intelligent and talented high flyers who have extensive resources but compete and undermine each other.
See this in sport and witness the 2010 England World Cup team!!!
Learning how to communicate and work well with other people is not just common sense; it makes excellent business practice, particularly in today’s highly networked economy.
‘Ultimately, the power of franchising is in gaining a competitive edge through the sharing of knowledge and resources; sharing being the operative word. This is so fundamental that I will repeat it : The power of franchising is in gaining a competitive edge through the sharing of knowledge and resources. The definition of ‘competitive edge’ being to have superior capabilities over your rivals.
Research has found that where franchisees and franchisors worked together on marketing and product development issues, they achieved a greater competitive edge.
In a franchise network, when people stop sharing knowledge and resources you no longer have a network, but a bunch of individuals battling it out alone. This is what happens when relationships break down, and the costs can be enormous.’
‘One of the Franchisor’s most important responsibilities is to protect the strategic position of the brand. They must firstly define and communicate what the brand stands for.This can be a challenging process that requires in depth thinking and discussion. the Franchisor must then keep abreast of changing market trends and ensure it is positioning and promoting its brand in a way that fits the expectations and needs of the target market. they also need to identify the group’s sustainable competitive advantage and communicate this clearly to franchisees and customers through relentless internal and external marketing and communication programmes.
Brands are like children who need constant monitoring and care if they are to grow and develop in a healthy way. good parenting involves having a clear vision of the sort of values and behaviours you wish your children to embrace. A child that is neglected or fails to receive adequate guidance or care, is at risk of adopting values and behaviours that are inconsistent with its parent’s wishes. The same principle is true of Brand management. The Franchisor is like the parent of the brand. A Franchisor that allows their brand to become “bastardised” is simply not fulfilling one of its most important responsibilities.
Good franchisors are continually asking the question ” how can we help our franchisees to be more successful?”
Firstly, they ensure that their franchise systems , marketing programmes and field support are all adding value to the franchisees’ business. They also continually seek opportunities to enhance franchisee profitability through supplier negotiations and continuous improvement initiatives.
Franchisees also like to have the opportunity to contribute their ideas and share the things that have helped them to be successful. Participation in committees and discussions at conferences and meetings all help to generate a greater feeling of franchisee involvement and achievement.
I have looked at the 3 areas of the franchisee’s roles and responsibilities to the franchisor 1. To run a profitable business 2. To grow a happy customer base 3.To support the franchisor’s systems and brand values.
Now it is the turn of the Franchisor, and the first area of responsibility is to provide clear positive leadership. Over the years research has been conducted into what promotes or detracts from franchisee satisfaction and one of the most important things that franchisees expect from their franchisor is good leadership.
This can be broken down into 5 components;
1.Vision and goals. This needs to be firstly defined and then shared with the franchise network. inclusions are long and short term goals to do with market share, numbers of franchisees, service delivery and marketing issues.
2. Competence of senior management staff who are able to respond intelligently to franchisee requests for information and to discriminate between trivial and important issues with the knowledge and skills to ensure tasks are completed to a high standard.
3. Integrity at all times and delivering on all promises made.
4. Consistency. Being fair and consistent on all decisions. Inconsistency or favouritism do NOT go down well with a franchise network.The franchisor will also have to take unpopular decisions but franchisees will generally support such decisions if the franchisor is acting fairly and in the best interests of the franchise network.
5. Enthusiasm. Franchisees expect the franchisor to be enthusiastic and positive at all times in its dealings with them. There is simply no room for dour, negative or lethargic behaviour from anyone on the franchisor’s management team.
What do you want your customers to think about your company?
Support the Brand Values of the Franchisor
The third area of responsibility for a franchisee is to support the Brand Values of the franchisor.
What do you want your customers to think and feel about your company when they see your Brand? More to the point, what do you think as a Franchisee when another franchisee is damaging the Brand (affecting both the Franchisor and your very own business).So while franchisors may have systems in place to ensure a high level of brand consistency, it is the franchisee’s job to support and implement these values at the local level to ensure brand integrity universally.
Next, we shall look at the Franchisors responsibilities to their franchisees.
Three areas of responsibility
The Stig at the controls!
There are three distinct areas of responsibility for a franchisee. I will look at the second today. This is to grow a happy customer base. It is the franchisee who interacts with the end customer and the Franchisor who has little direct contact ever with the franchisee’s customers has limited power to impact on each individual customer’s buying experience.
Keep customers happy
So clearly, the franchisee is responsible to deliver the type of customer service that will a) keep customers happy and satisfied so that they will return, but b) will recommend the business to others. It is these two points that will lead to growing a happy customer base.
Will a simulator ever be as good as the real thing?
Racing Car Simulator from Racing Challenge
Well to answer this question, we are assuming that the real thing is the ultimate. Is this actually the case?
Of course you say, but is this in the fun stakes,or in the adrenalin rush or applied skill leading to ego boost or in value for money terms for Mr average “Motorway man”? We need to examine the many areas ‘
The real thing
The real thing’ now takes in the form of active motorsport in the UK from 2 lap taster sessions driving around a race track under the watchful eye of an instructor, through Track Days and then low level profile but high cost racing activity.
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The SUPER 8 large hospitality awning provided a relaxed but business like environment for the presentations and lunch, yet superbly served as the spectator area (team pits) when the racing on the SUPER 8 race transporter got under way between each presentation!
Themocracy