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Solving Your Hiring Dilemma

Guest post by: Christopher Nolan

Article Overview: Hiring new employees in your new franchise can be a stressful experience.

Solving Your Hiring Dilemma

Getting ready to open your new store? Many new franchise owners have never experienced the need to hire and train new workers first hand. Being prepared to greet guests and provide outstanding service quickly is a matter of good planning, especially when it comes to hiring. In my experience as an Area Developer working with new franchise owners who are within a week or two of opening, panic and terror strikes because many franchisees are so busy making sure the final finish work is being completed, food orders are being checked, equipment is running properly, final inspections are being made and so forth. It seems that while hiring is a key job, it too often gets put on the back burner without much thought until the last minute. Hiring new employees is time consuming and demanding since it is critically important to be sure new employees are properly screened, hired, trained and supervised based upon their respective positions. One big mistake is that new franchise owners often decide not to do background checks, because they have spent more money in other areas while building their store than originally anticipated. However, cutting corners on important issues like employee background checking is a serious mistake and will cost you more in the long run if you aren’t methodical about the hiring process you establish and following them when hiring. Also, finding new hires can be challenging, but is not difficult with some practical approaches.

Certainly the location of your store can reflect the quality of local store labor and can, in part, dictate the screening requirements you need to establish for optimal results. One of the most effective “quick fixes” if you just want bodies is to visit other restaurants or businesses in close proximity to your store and introduce yourself and ask for help. Let neighboring fellow business owners know you are hiring. I have often asked them if they have recently hired anyone because if they have, chances are good they will have excess applications on hand and are usually willing to share them. It would be a good idea to also discuss with the neighboring business owners their experience with the local job seekers and find out what mistakes may have been made and how they found good employees. I remember in several cases where the franchise owners were in tears because they weren’t prepared, the stress of opening was overwhelming and they needed employees right now. In our restaurants it was common to hire sixty to seventy staff employees and we knew as a rule about 25 to 35 percent of the new hires would never show up. It is a perplexing yet common occurrence, so planning and having the right expectations is key. This seemingly shattering situation will happen to you in most cases, be ready.

So what can you do? Plan, plan, plan. To be successful, as a part of your early stage due diligence, I always recommend you work in the concept personally for one or two weeks. This approach gives you the opportunity of meeting and evaluating employees and understanding what motivates them, or doesn’t. Also, you must put a policy in place that gives you an ability to screen everybody who works for you and follow the hiring practices outlined by your franchisor. Further, start hiring at least 30 days or more in advance of opening.

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Article Tags: Employees, Franchise, Franchises, Hiring, new, startup
Referred by: http://www.profranconsultants.com



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