In order for a franchisee to operate a successful franchise, they need to invest the time and effort to develop their employees. Given the hectic schedule that most franchisees have, it can be difficult to find the time to develop employees. The challenge for most franchisees is to find the time for personnel training. One approach is to delegate additional duties to their employees. In order to delegate more responsibilities, the employee has to be qualified and capable of assuming this increased role.
Many franchisees are in the position of having to depend upon their employees to play an important role in the franchise operation. As a result, an employee will approach a franchisee with a problem. When this happens it’s easy for the franchisee to take ownership of the problem rather than use the opportunity as a teaching moment. For many franchisees, it can be easier to resolve the problem for an employee. Yet, the best approach is to invest the time in allowing the employee to take responsibility for the problem and let them tell you how they will handle it.
It can be difficult to follow this process, but it’s the most effective way to train your employees and help develop their business skills. Since many franchises are small operations each employee is a critical component of the franchise.
Franchisees can take the following steps to better develop their employees:
- Include your employees in more decisions so they are better trained.
- When an employee presents a problem that requires a resolution encourage them to offer you their recommendation for resolving the problem, recognizing that occasionally they might suggest the wrong approach.
- Closely monitor the challenging situations your employees face and invest the time to develop their decision making.
- Discourage your employees from running to you every time there is a problem but teach and encourage them to solve the problem on their own.
If you follow these suggestions and invest the time to develop your employees you’ll have a more effective and competent employee team.
