Book Review: The Franchise E-Factor
The Franchise E-Factor by Greg Nathan, 2007
The Franchise E-Factor is well known within the franchise industry and was recommended to me by one of the franchisors we work with when I asked him about good resources on the franchisor-franchisee relationship. It is a small book with 8 chapters that almost serves as a workbook. Each chapter covers one key concept and then has concrete Action Tips to help you actually implement (and keep implementing!) the concepts. Greg Nathan is an internationally respected corporate psychologist with a specialization in franchise relationships. In 2007 he was named one of the top leaders in Franchising by the Franchise Times.
The core of the book is the stages in the relationship between Franchisor and Franchisee. Greg Nathan breaks these up into 6 key stages; Glee, Fee, Me, Free, See and We, and talks about key elements of each stage in the relationship as well as how to best manage each stage. I won’t tell you more about each stage – this is where you really want to read the book.
The core of The Franchise E-Factor’s concept is that in any relationship, we go through three stages. He calls these dependence, independence and interdependence. I have heard them described in other contexts as heaven, hell and then reality. We’re all familiar with the experience; when we start a new relationship (personal, business or communal), the first phase is exciting and everything seems wonderful – it’s the honeymoon phase. Then cracks start to appear and everything seems awful – disappointment reigns. Then if the relationship continues, it get to a more realistic phase where the good and the bad are both recognized and accepted and there is a possibility to build for the future in partnership. Nathan uses his expertise in psychology to examine what’s happening underneath each stage for both the franchisor and the franchisee.
The Franchise E-Factor is concrete, easy to read – and funny. It is full of real life experiences with franchisors and franchisees. This is definitely a must read for anyone involved in building a franchise. The only disappointment for me was that I could not find it in a local bookstore or on Amazon. You can order a copy through the website and have it delivered in one – two weeks (to Canada).
One great take away from this book is the line “When Perception meets reality, reality always comes out second best.”
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