I often work with corporate executives who want to make the leap to entrepreneurship. Sometimes, however, I get calls from nonprofit professionals. Many of these individuals have a common question: Can I succeed in franchising if I don’t have a corporate background? The answer is a resounding “Yes!” Nonprofit leaders can become successful franchisees, in part because nonprofit leadership skills translate well to the franchise industry.
Helpfulness
Most of us like to help others, and many people occasionally volunteer with community service organizations. For nonprofit leaders, however, helping others is more than a hobby. It’s a calling. That’s why they organize their careers around it. They get a deep sense of fulfillment from identifying a need and solving it.
In the franchise world, this helpfulness mindset translates into excellent customer service. Helpfulness-oriented franchise owners are better at listening to their customers, being patient with them, and working with them to solve problems. And excellent customer service, in turn, translates into business success. Customer service-oriented businesses get more new customers, have less churn, and produce more revenue than their competitors, among other advantages.
Resourcefulness
Very few nonprofits are rolling in money. Even those with healthy endowments must manage their money wisely. After all, when your organization exists to give something away–or to solve crucial social problems–long-term existence is both a challenge and an imperative. As a result, successful nonprofit leaders are often highly resourceful. They’re used to doing more with less, finding creative solutions to problems, and bringing together diverse groups to make things happen.
This resourcefulness is extremely useful in franchising, especially during the launch phase. Resourceful franchisees are more likely to reach profitability without running out of money, maximize profits over the long term, and find creative ways to overcome obstacles. They know how to stretch cash reserves as far as possible without compromising operations. They can also motivate themselves and their teams to accomplish great things with limited resources. Sounds very much like nonprofit work, doesn’t it?
Persistence and Optimism
Nonprofit leadership is not for the faint of heart. It involves tackling child hunger, homelessness, human trafficking, and other issues that can quickly become depressing and discouraging to contemplate. And nonprofit leaders have to do this work on limited budgets while relying on a constantly rotating and dwindling case of volunteers. You can’t build a successful career under those circumstances without being persistent and relentlessly optimistic.
As you might expect, persistence and optimism are nonprofit leadership skills that translate well to the franchise world. Though the franchise business system helps limit trial and error, all businesses encounter challenges. The last few years have taught us that. But persistent, optimistic people recognize an important truth: while you can’t always control the circumstances that affect your business, you can control your response to them. That kind of attitude can help nonprofit leaders-turned-franchisees maintain a solutions-oriented mindset and keep moving toward success, even when they have to fight through or go around obstacles to do it.
Comfort With Diversity
What’s something all nonprofits have in common? They serve diverse groups of people. As a result, nonprofit leaders usually have experience working with individuals of various ages, races, income levels, and more. They also often know how to interact compassionately with people under difficult circumstances or in unfamiliar situations.
That kind of background is useful for franchising, which typically involves dealing with the public. Some of the most popular franchise types (e.g., quick-service restaurants or automotive shops) serve a very wide range of people. In addition, as blue-chip consulting firm McKinsey & Company puts it, “diversity wins.” Diversity-friendly nonprofit leaders are more likely to build diverse franchise teams–and diverse businesses are precisely the kind most likely to succeed.
Fundraising
If you’ve ever led a nonprofit or know people who do, you know that nonprofit leaders spend much of their time fundraising. (See “Resourcefulness,” above.) While their teams do the day-to-day work of meeting community needs, nonprofit leaders meet with individual donors, foundations, and corporations to obtain the funding needed for that work.
The ability to raise money has an obvious connection to sales. Nonprofit leaders who are good at convincing donors to open their checkbooks will likely also be good at convincing customers to do the same. They know how to schmooze, for lack of a better term, and make a compelling case for spending money in a particular way. There’s also a less-obvious connection between fundraising and franchise leadership. To fundraise effectively, nonprofit leaders have to be good at getting people excited about their organization’s vision. Sound familiar? That’s because it’s also a key skill for franchisees who want to motivate their teams.
These are just a few of the nonprofit leadership skills that can translate to franchise success. If you’re a nonprofit leader who’s interested in franchising, I hope I’ve encouraged you to take the idea seriously. And if you’re still not sure, let’s talk about it. I only succeed when my candidates do, so I’ll be honest about whether I think franchising is the right fit for your skillset. We can start with just a 20-minute chat. Book some time on my calendar today!
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