Franchise TEA, a newsletter about the three behaviors that differentiate between high performing franchises from low preforming franchises, got an opportunity to ask a series of questions about the training practices of KidzArt and Club Scientific. Sue Bartman, Chief Executive Officer at KidzArt and Club Scientific reflects on the similarities and differences of the training program.
Although KidzArt and Club Science have different missions, the training is similar. The initial support to opening a franchise is the same, both systems use the same software for management & registration of customers and the marketing training is done the same, as well. The main difference is how the classes and camps are taught. The following Q&A is a deeper look into KidzArt and Club Science's training success.
Q. What training programs does KidzArt and Club Scientific encompass?
A five step process including:
1. On-Boarding in which a Franchisee has a support person work with them to complete a list of steps the Franchisee needs to finish to be ready to open and run their business after training is complete.
2. Four extended training days at the main office to learn about: Systems, HR, teacher training, learn the various revenue streams and profit margins, marketing, QuickBooks, Intranet and to learn how to access materials.
3. Post Training (8 weeks)
- Vendors train and set up systems for the franchisee the first two weeks following training.
- Weekly support and coaching calls. Some weeks are individualized. Other weeks are group training. This keeps Franchisee on targeted growth plan.
- Business Center library of video training to watch and review for additional support if and when they need it.
4. Unlimited phone support. They call corporate as they need help on anything.
5. Conference held every 2-3 years as determined by franchisees and corporate.
Q. How do you ensure continued training?
Post training is scheduled prior to training starting. The franchisees at training sign a Post Training Agreement taking responsibility to attend the scheduled dates and times each week for 8 weeks.
Q. Who does your organization train?
Each franchise owner receives hands-on training from a team of specialists on the corporate level. .This even includes the CEO! We will also train new partners or managers if needed. We want to make sure all the key people have the knowledge needed and are ready to contribute to the success of the business. These key people can often be the “other” in a marriage. So, we encourage and support married couples to attend. And of course, we value families, so we’ve even been known to include children in the family due to having some kid-friendly and very fun sessions of hands-on projects. Often these same children become paid staff later on.Our program includes certification of instructors and trainers using our techniques.
Q. Do different roles get assigned different training curriculum?
Yes, an owner is trained in all areas. A manager may be trained in one or multiple areas depending on their job responsibilities. A Certified Instructor is trained to teach the class. A Certified Trainer is trained to teach the teachers our system.
Q. Why do you feel training is important to KidzArt and Club Scientific?
Our step by step training is made up of 25 years of proven best practices learned by franchisees offering KidzArt and Club Scientific programs in schools all over the world. Our proven results will save franchisees money and time in building their business. They will eliminate the “what if” the majority of business owners experience when on their own without guidance. A wrong “what if” decision can bankrupt a business. Our step by step education and continual support help a franchisee get the most out of their investment by knowing what to invest, where to invest it and what to expect from it. A franchise system offers insurance and peace of mind that the investment, with hard work, can duplicate results.
Overcoming the following training challenges franchisors typically face:
Challenge: Franchise User Management/Employers are unknown: One of the biggest challenges facing a franchisor when managing a franchise training program is managing franchise employees access to the training system. Since franchises are independent companies, franchisors rarely know who the franchise has hired, what their position is and how much training they need.
A. We get copies of certain employee’s records when they are hired by franchisees. We have identified positions within the companies so we know what training each gets. It is in our HR manuals.
We use permission levels of access to our Business Management Systems that tracks classes, customers, payments, etc. Teachers get access to their classes and schedules. Directors, Office Managers, and then the owners each have a level of access.
Our proprietary curriculum and business materials can be accessed only by people with an email given by us. A franchisee could give an employee their personal email. Most franchisees operate out of home offices because we hold classes in schools, not rented locations. We monitor the IP addresses from every computer that accesses our Proprietary Materials files. We record what was downloaded, date, time, etc. The IP addresses let us know the franchisee area. If someone is accessing outside of the franchisees normal IP’s we know it and we get a call from our webmaster.
Challenge: Owners of Multiple Units: Success breeds success and many of your franchisees own multiple franchises. In fact some of your franchisees may own dozens or hundreds of franchises that stretch across your field organization. Managing training across such a large population can be problematic for your franchisees.
A. Our training is pretty easy to manager because we only have a few positions. We hire and train more teachers than anyone else. We use systems that keep the need for other staff low. Payroll is low because staff work part-time right after school. It can take a franchisee who hasn’t had employees before a little time to learn who to hire to fill these positions.
Challenge: Franchisor Assign Training Goals: How does a franchisor make sure franchise employees are properly trained?
A. All teachers are trained by Certified Trainers that understand the importance of consistency. We provide Franchisees with processes that help manage employees.
Challenge: Making training compulsive without direct management: Franchisors cannot require training or establish minimal performance standards to employees of franchisees simply because they are not the employee of the franchisor.
A. Our Franchisees see immediate results in students when taught correctly. We stress this in every lesson. Everyone understands the critical nature of our methods and they don’t want to change what is so successful. We have a process of support that can be used if a franchisee is unsure what might be causing a problem in the delivery of the lessons. Our founder has 25 years of teaching experience and is able to work with franchisees individually to identify and suggest solutions to problems.
Challenge: How do you Support a unique & successful business model: Franchisors have a unique successful business model which they sell to franchisees. This includes unique training processes and workflows that are core to the franchisor’s mission and cannot be changed to generic workflows.
A. The consistency of our process has been developed over 25 years. You don’t change what isn’t broken and proven day after day in thousands of locations.
KidzArt has 85 locations and Club Scientific has 7 locations. Club Scientific and KidzArt are headquartered in Jackson, MI. KidzArt is an art program for youth, while Club Scientific is a science program for youth.
After 25 years of observing millions of students, KidzArt knows that artistic creativity exists in everyone. KidzArt 's techniques remove the fear of failure that can block creative expression, as well as offer a safe environment where mistakes are not an issue but an opportunity. Students are encouraged to take risks and challenge themselves to new levels.
Club Scientific Introduces students to the fun of science through hands-on interactive experiments, adventures and entertainment. Club Scientific develops curriculum allowing students to experience how science works in the real world -- presenting programs in a nurturing, encouraging environment where students build self-esteem while learning.
About Franchise Training series
As part of our own expansion and growth, we’re excited to continue our Franchise Training series. This series encompass a wide variety of franchise topics designed to help franchisors and potential franchisees gain knowledge of business practices.
Latitude is confident that you will find great value in its content in the Connection Newsletter and hopes that it will aid you in your own goals to grow and thrive.
Latitude CG, home of LatitudeLearning, an industry leader that drives performance through training, communication, measurement, incentives and consumer engagement provides a compelling newsletter for franchisors about the behaviors that drive performance. Franchise TEA is a newsletter about the three behaviors that differentiate between high performing franchises from low performing franchises, Training, Engagement and Analytics.
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