In its role as the vanguard of franchise standards, the Franchise Association of New Zealand (FANZ) is intending to add value to its services and membership by active involvement in the development of a New Zealand pre-entry franchising course.
The course will be run in cooperation with the Professional and Continuing Education Centre (PaCE) at Massey University and Dr Callum Floyd of Franchize Consultants (NZ) Ltd.
Franchize Consultants are the principal authors and Massey University will act as the independent course reviewer, and course provider. Although there are almost 24,000 independently owned New Zealand businesses operating in a franchised format, currently no NZ- based pre-entry education programme exists for people considering buying a franchise. The availability of relevant information is part of the total solution for greater informed decision making by prospective franchisees.
Major franchising inquiries in Australia note that improved pre-entry education is likely to have significant positive impact on the franchise sector. One key study found that 71.3 per cent of respondents felt completion of pre-entry education should be a mandatory requirement before entering into a franchise agreement.
In reviewing the results of the similar Australian pre-entry course run by Griffith University of Queensland, Prof. Lorelle Fraser said that franchisees enter their franchise operation with much more realistic expectations of what their experience will be like in terms of performance aspects such as operational, relational and financial. She went on to say that it appeared that the information provided in their program enabled prospective franchisees to glean a better understanding of what to expect and, thus, make more informed decisions. Even if an individual’s pre-conceived notions of franchising are slightly dampened by undertaking the program, they were better equipped to effectively operate within a franchising arrangement knowing the possible challenges they may face and having a better understanding of the risk associated with any new business venture. Ultimately, having this awareness eventuates in higher levels of satisfaction because the franchisee’s experience it is not too far removed from their pre-entry expectations.
The FANZ course will comprise of five modules covering franchising basics, financing, systems and support, operational issues and legal considerations including due diligence. The content will encompass a combination of both video and accompanying notes. At the end of each module, a set of questions will be posed and, once answered successfully, a Certificate of Participation will be generated by Massey University as proof of module completion. The course will be available through the FANZ website www.franchiseassociation.org.nz around the middle of this year.