A good franchisor knows when it’s time to add a few more members to the team in order to accommodate growth.  It’s worth it to take a few pages out of their book and identify those key moments when you should consider going on a hiring spree.  We’ve come up with a few suggestions that are sure to aid the growth of your franchise.

 

Too Much Work, Not Enough Hands

This is the most obvious issue we can think of, but it’s there for a purpose.  Too often, a franchisor might equate a heavy workload with their own shortfalls.  Maybe they think their processes aren’t refined enough to handle the load, or that there’s something wrong on the service end.  In truth, you may simply have outgrown your staff’s ability to keep up.  This is a wonderful problem to have.  Not only does this signal growth, but it’s an excellent opportunity to micro-restructure your franchise for growing staff.  If an existing staff member has been performing admirably, now’s the time to consider promoting that person and giving their old job to a new hire.  If you were your own General Manager before, you might consider giving that responsibility to a subordinate so you can contemplate the possibility of opening up a second franchise location.  Either way, one person can’t do it all, and neither can a team stretched to the limit.  

 

Is It Cost-Prohibitive?

Chances are that you’re going to hire new people because your franchise is growing.  If you’ve taken the right steps to cut down on superfluous expenses while simultaneously optimizing your daily processes to save money, you’ll probably be secure enough in the pocketbook to take on a new hire.  This is why it’s important to keep tabs on your franchise from the start, and look for ways to constantly reduce costs without sacrificing quality.  The last thing you want is to be stuck between a rock and a hard place when your growth has exceeded your staff’s capabilities.  If you’ve done your due diligence, you’ll be ready to bring on a new hire and apply flexibility to your franchise so that you can continue the upward climb to success.

 

Don’t Throw Employees at a Problem

This is a severe mistake that many business owners make, and it can be quite costly in the long run.  Optimizing your franchise operations can help avoid a bottleneck in your processes which can slow down your growth and cause unnecessary headaches.  Often, this can mistakenly be identified as company growth, but your balance sheet may not agree.  As irrational as it sounds, many business owners will simply hire new people and throw them at a problem in the hopes of it being solved.  While this may serve as a temporary solution, it can equate to tens of thousands of wasted dollars throughout the lifespan of your franchise.  If you don’t need to hire, don’t hire.  It’s as simple as that.  Take a little time to identify whether your company is growing, or whether your operations simply aren’t up to par, and are starting to fall behind.  

 

Measure Your Quality

Your franchisemay end up becoming so popular that customers are flooding it in droves, and that’s because you’re doing a fantastic job.  However, this can quickly turn sour if you don’t have enough hands on board to maintain consistency in quality.  If customers start complaining about a decrease in quality or service, chances are you’ve hit peak capacity and need to expand.  Even one negative reaction from a customer is one too many, and can quickly mushroom into a larger problem.  If you find the stress of day-to-day operations increasing, it could be a sign that you’re ready to add new workers to your fold.  

 

Hire During the Summer

The summer is a great season to bring on new employees, whether temporary or permanent.  College and high school students are out of the classroom and may be looking for work.  This can coincide with the uptick in business usually associated with the summer vacation season.  Hiring students can offset this while giving them an opportunity to get some experience in the workforce, and it could lead to great working relationships down the road.  It can even help alleviate the problem of your existing employees taking vacation days during the summer, by giving you a pool of temp workers who may want to pick up some extra cash for a few weeks before going back to school.  

Hiring new employees can be a positive experience, especially if you’ve kept track of your bottom line and you’re confident that your franchise is running in tip-top shape.  For questions regarding franchise opportunities, we’re here to help, so we invite you to visit us today to learn more about opening your own franchise!