Are you reaping the benefits of good consultation?

In franchising, consultation is crucial. Effective communication and structured meetings between the franchisor and franchisees determine success and sustainability.   

As a franchisor, you can use structured franchise consultations to timely identify questions arising from franchisees and prevent time-consuming conflicts.   

Moreover, the exchange of knowledge in franchise consultations contributes to both parties being able to respond more proactively to practical issues, often resulting in more efficient time management in the franchise business and a better business outcome.  

The Dutch Franchise Act acknowledges the importance of consultation and stipulates that at least once a year a meeting must take place between the franchisor and the franchisee. This consultation, often structured in various forms such as the franchise council or franchisee association, committees, and advisory groups, ensures that both parties remain well informed, and that decisions are made in the interest of the entire organization. And although these are all logical and useful structures, they do not always work well.   

Common causes of lack of results

1. Emotion prevails. Entrepreneurs are driven but often emotionally involved, work long hours, experience entrepreneurial challenges like no other, and can easily become confrontational. Quite understandable, but not always productive. The involvement of an external consultant and/or chairperson can be extremely fruitful here. 
2. Lack of transparency between franchisor and/or franchisees, such as spending on franchisee contributions, causes parties to enter consultations with assumptions and incorrect information. This causes friction, misunderstanding and can frustrate the process. Although providing insight into franchisee contributions is now a requirement from the Franchise Law, providing insight into figures mutually often proves to be a tricky point. 
3. Lack of structure in consultation. In other words, acting ad hoc. How often do we encounter that committees or advisory groups are initiated with no anchoring with the council or association. Despite all good intentions, it then awaits communication problems.  
4. No involvement from the management/contact too low in the organization. All parties make time and prepare matters, as both want tangible results. Yet, it often happens that the representatives from the franchisor don’t have decision-making authority. This results in too few issues being addressed, and practical issues do not sufficiently reach the highest level of management.    

Are you satisfied?  

Are you satisfied with the outcome and the involvement of entrepreneurs in the representative consultation and the policy of your organization? If you can confidently rate this with at least an 8 out of 10, then the following is not relevant to you.   

But if not, it is often useful to discuss this topic openly with your franchisees (in the representative consultation) during good times. This way, the desire to grow and improve together is also transparently on the table. It becomes a shared responsibility; there's a good chance that if you're not satisfied, your franchisees aren't either.   

Are you not satisfied?  

This is the moment to consult with one of the consultants from Koelewijn & Partners. Possibly to facilitate a good discussion about this or to organize a masterclass on franchise consultations for the franchisor and franchisees so that collectively a new approach can be chosen, and sometimes also to place the chairmanship externally.  

Recognizing that consultation can be improved is important, discussing it transparently and improving it can sometimes be daunting. Ask us about it freely because we have many examples of organizations we have guided or are guiding towards an (even) more professional consultation. Plenty of references.