International Journal of Marketing and Human Resource Management (IJMHRM), ISSN 0976 –
6421 (Print), ISSN 0976 – 643X (Online), Volume 4, Issue 3, September – December (2013)
1
SIGNIFICANCE OF A FRANCHISE MANAGER IN A FRANCHISING
COMPANY
Mr. Chackochen Mathai,
Ph.D Scholar
School of Management Hindustan University, Chennai
Dr.Pon.Ramalingam
Professor & Registrar Hindustan University, Chennai
ABSTRACT
Franchise managers organize and plan the franchising department of an organization. The
manager ensures that franchisees receive the origination’s message regarding business strategy,
promotions and products. A franchise manager offers support to franchisees, which ensures the
overall success of the organization. Franchise manager is also responsible for all new renewals and
license enforcement. He is responsible for franchise contracts with franchise stores to ensure
participation; Maintaining the company guidelines and cooperation in company values and agendas.
The Franchise manager is the face of the organization and this manager should be empathic to the
investor who is seeking an opportunity to become an entrepreneur by investing his hard earned
money in a product or services franchise. Therefore the responsibility of the franchise manager to the
highest order is to help the entrepreneur to choose the right franchised business. The present study is
to find out the significance of a franchise manager in a franchising company. The conclusion will be
given.
Key words: Franchise Managers, Franchising Company, Significance of Franchise Manager.
INTRODUCTION
Franchise managers organize and plan the franchising department of an organization. The
manager ensures that franchisees receive the origination’s message regarding business strategy,
promotions and products. A franchise manager offers support to franchisees, which ensures the
overall success of the organization. Franchise manager is also responsible for all new renewals and
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MARKETING AND HUMAN
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT (IJMHRM)
ISSN 0976 – 6421 (Print)
ISSN 0976 – 643X (Online)
Volume 4, Issue 3, September - December (2013), pp. 01-05 © IAEME: www.iaeme.com/ijmhrm.asp
Journal Impact Factor (2013): 4.6901 (Calculated by GISI) www.jifactor.com
IJMHRM
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International Journal of Marketing and Human Resource Management (IJMHRM), ISSN 0976 –
6421 (Print), ISSN 0976 – 643X (Online), Volume 4, Issue 3, September – December (2013)
2
license enforcement. He is responsible for franchise contracts with franchise stores to ensure
participation; Maintaining the company guidelines and cooperation in company values and agendas.
The Franchise manager is the face of the organization and this manager should be empathic
to the investor who is seeking an opportunity to become an entrepreneur by investing his hard earned
money in a product or services franchise. Therefore the responsibility of the franchise manager to the
highest order is to help the entrepreneur to choose the right franchised business. He should not sell a
franchise for the sake of targets. The franchise manager should also be responsible to the franchisor
by selecting the right investor for the brand. Valuating the investor before making him an
entrepreneur seriously lies with the franchise manager. The skills of the Franchise Managers should
be of a high calibre where he needs to know a bit of psychology to assess the investor and his
seriousness in the business.
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
� To find out the significance of a franchise manager in a franchising company.
DISCUSSION
Today there are many investors with free money in their hand and wants to invest the same
on some business for their spouse who is sitting ideal, or a brother/sister who has not found a job
etc., but the person coming to take a franchise is a well learned person who is clear with his
intentions to help either his spouse, brother or a relative and make them successful. But the fact is
that if the franchise manager gets carried away by the looks and the knowledge of the investor
without figuring out who is going to run the business, then it’s a bad choice of a franchisee.
However if you see many franchising businesses fail because the investor acts only as an
investor and does not run the business. This not only affects the investor but it affects the brand too. I
strongly feel the selection of the franchisee should have solid process to scrutinize the investor which
will result in both the franchisor and the franchisee’s benefit in the long run. The franchise manager
is like a middle man, in the alliance seeking activity for a man and woman to be wedded. All facts
need to be laid on the table before marrying the franchisor and the franchisee. The franchise manager
needs to be honest to himself and the organization that he works for and needs to rise above all
relations to be a thorough professional to help both the franchisor and the franchisee succeed in their
business objectives.
The franchise manager needs to lay all the facts without any hidden agenda to the franchisee
and should not promise the moon. Explain both the pros and the cons and help the investor to take
the right decision. Once the investor who has the option to take any franchised business needs to take
a well informed decision and since the franchise manager has been honest in his dealing to close a
sale, the investor will decide mostly keeping in mind the returns that he will get as well as think of
what the franchisor will do to help his business as a franchisee. He will remember all that the
franchisee manager had stated and he will take the final decision. A franchise manager is one who
helps the investor take the right decision for his venture.
Talking about the skill of good franchisee manager, he should first put himself in the
investor’s shoes and think if he was taking a franchised business what will he expect from the
franchisor and if he is convinced of the offer will he invest and buy the franchise. If he puts himself
in that position and sells the opportunity, he will make the right choices of selecting the right
franchisee by assessing the attitude and the financial capability to invest in the business, before
signing up.
If the manager believes in his organizational capability to deliver what is promised when he
is signing the agreement, then he will be confident to sell the concept to the franchisee with high
International Journal of Marketing and Human Resource Management (IJMHRM), ISSN 0976 –
6421 (Print), ISSN 0976 – 643X (Online), Volume 4, Issue 3, September – December (2013)
3
confidence and motivation. Therefore empathy, communication skills, business acumen,
coordinating skills, projects handling, event organizing capacity, operational skills, branding,
training, marketing and PR skills are important for a good and efficient franchise manager. Beyond
that he needs to have the grace to build a long term relationship with the franchisee. Many
organization makes their franchise mangers to cut the relation off and transfer the job to the next set
of people who have never built a relationship in the initial stages and many managers do not even
pick their calls after the sales is over. This will not help a good franchisee-franchisor relationship in
the long run.
A franchise manager is one who is a bridge between the franchisor and the franchisee. The
manager understands both parties well and their intentions and should work towards the success of
both parties. It should always be a win-win situation. The manager should look at the franchisee as a
customer; therefore any decision taken should be in this line, benefit to the customer and profit to the
organization that he works for. If this concept is clear in the minds of the manager the relationship
will be rock solid.
A franchise manager is one who will be communicating the organizational strategy to the
franchisee and handholding him to success. He should understand the pain and the emotions of the
investor to negotiate with the organization to ensure that the franchisee is successful by providing
adequate help in the start-up stage of the business. The success of the franchisor is rated in the
success of the franchisee. Therefore helping the franchisee being successful is the key to the success
of a franchisor and the franchise manager.
The franchise manager needs to look at the profit and loss account of the franchisee and
suggests various marketing activities along with the marketing team. He has the moral responsibility
to help the franchisee since he sold the brand; he is also responsible for all the training needs of the
franchisee. He needs to understand what kind of training requirements for the staff and also for the
franchisee. Since he would know while signing the agreement the background of these franchisees,
all of them will not have all the required skills like marketing, finance, human resource, projects etc,
understanding the need the franchise manager should organise for the training to help the franchisee
to be a better entrepreneur to run the brand.
CONCLUSION
In a nut shell, the franchise manager is one who ensures a smooth transaction with the
franchisor and the franchisee ensuring all payments being collected to ensure a good relationship is
being maintained. The franchise manager should be loyal to the organisation that he works for and is
a key person to build the brand along with the marketing or the brand manager based on the feedback
received from the consumer and the franchisee. The franchisee manager is an important person in the
franchising business, both for the franchisor and the franchisee. In the current scenario there are not
many who are looking at the benefit of the both the parties they look at their own benefit; finally the
brand and the franchisees suffer. Therefore being an honest manager with high integrity will take
him to places and he will be able to build brand. A franchisee manager should be part of the system
for a longer period of time to establish stability to the organisation. That will ensure brand stability
too.
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