How Strong Is Your Franchise's Quality Control?

Written by Mark Siebert of Entrepreneur.com

For decades, franchisors have pretty much used the same system of quality control. They'd start with several weeks of initial training, provide the franchisee with an operations manual, and sprinkle in occasional field visits and some ongoing training. But today, with the advent of Learning Management Systems technologies, virtually every franchisor can develop an online training and quality control program for his business without breaking the bank.

Intranets, of course, have long been a staple of the franchise community, providing a forum for both training and monitored internal communications. But an LMS can provide more robust features than a franchisor's traditional intranet. In addition to housing operations manuals, an LMS can offer access to training materials, training videos and tests that will allow your franchisees to better replicate your unique system.

If It's Not Broke, Break It!

For any franchisors looking to upgrade, the question comes down to "Why make the change?" After all, traditional methods of quality control have been used for years without a hitch. And even the least expensive LMS comes with a development and maintenance fee.

Perhaps the most significant advantage of an LMS is the ease by which content can be customized, based on either individual users or groups of users. This unique system enables franchisors to push personalized training to every level of employee in their organization. This allows franchisors, for the first time, to be directly involved in the quality control and training of every person who represents their brand -- even for positions where employee turnover exceeds 100% annually.

No longer is a franchisor's only option to "train the trainer." Today, video, supplemented by online testing, can improve quality control throughout the organization. Some franchisors are even training crew-level staff via podcasts and other remote media devices that connect directly to the LMS.