Grow Market Lead
Human
resources
Potential for
Greatness
Now is the time to
train your talent
By Steven S. Little
“All of us do not have equal talents,
but all of us should have an equal opportunity to develop our talents.”
—John F. Kennedy
“O
ur people are our
greatest asset.”
If somebody
were ever to build
the Hollow Business Phrase Hall of
Fame, this one stands right up there
with “Your call is very important to
us.” Everyone says it because it makes
sense. Yet when times get tough, too
many businesses abandon investment
in their people. Studies and surveys
for years have shown that business
leaders recognize the value of training. You don’t need me to regurgitate
these consistent findings to tell you
something you know is true.
Developing your internal employees
and your franchisees should never be
viewed as a cost center. Like marketing
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communications, when done properly,
it is an investment in your business’s future success that is directly measurable.
Devoting time, money, and effort
enhancing the skill sets of your entire
work force helps your system in so
many ways. Bettering your employees
and partners betters your chances for
innovative problem-solving, customer
retention, employee retention, and
ultimately, sustainable and profitable
growth.
Conventional wisdom about training in an economic downturn says
it’s too important to cut off abruptly.
Unfortunately, many franchisors have
been forced to do it anyway. I maintain
that their behavior is simply a survival
instinct. They know it’s only a shortterm cash-flow fix, but they believe they
have no choice. Therein lies your opportunity for a long-term competitive
advantage in today’s market.
I sometimes have a problem with
the word “training.” The concept is so
general it doesn’t really mean anything.
I am concerned that too many franchisors focus their training investment in
the wrong areas. I call it push-button
training: “Here’s how you push the
button on that point-of-sale system to
make it work. Here’s how you push the
button on your computer to produce
this report. Here’s how you push the
button on the phone system to transfer a call.” Too often “training” means
teaching new hires and new franchisees
how to work with your internal processes and procedures. Obviously, some
of this is necessary for any system, but
it’s not the opportunity.
Here’s your real training opportunity: Be sure that everyone who
works with and for you is steeped in
customer-driven training. What satisfies
your ultimate customers and potential
customers is never obvious. Your entire
team benefits from training systems
that continuously teach them what really matters to those they purport to
serve. Answers to the following questions are what effective employees at
all levels really need to know:
• Why do people buy from us?
• How do we do things differently
than anyone else? What makes our
brand and our system unique?
• When people buy from our competitors, why do they do it?
• What do our best customers and
potential customers care about most?
• What are the primary tasks an
individual needs to master to deliver
on total customer satisfaction?
• After someone has mastered the
primary tasks related to a specific job,
is there an opportunity to cross-train
on other tasks to ensure even better
customer experiences?
When you can identify the answers
to these questions and effectively train
people on them, you will have earned
a distinct and sustainable competitive
advan х