Distinctions and Common Philosophies of Successful Recruitment Managers

Recently I was asked, “What traits, distinctions, and/or principles do the very best managers and leaders of franchise recruitment exhibit or practice?” Put another way, “What’s the difference between average and great leadership?” After some reflection, I reached out to friends and cohorts in the franchise industry and talked internally with our Recruitment Operating System (ROS) team and community seeking insight.

There was a common spirit in the feedback that great franchise recruitment managers and leaders eat, live, and breathe certain common philosophies and distinctions. To find out where you are, take a quick self-assessment. Ask yourself, “What on the list below do I resemble? What are my gaps? Am I average, above average, or a master?” Recruitment managers and leaders who consistently deliver winning results do the following on a consistent basis.

• Believe deeply in their brand, business model, and the company vision. 
• Conduct efficient and effective one-on-one weekly candidate pipeline meetings with each recruiter.
• Know when, how, and why to engage with the right candidates going through the process.
• Focus on what is going to happen vs. what has already happened. 
• Manage the recruitment process vs. trying to force results and outcomes.
• Properly use confrontation and difficult conversations to hold team members accountable.
• Know and understand the FDD from cover to cover.
• Practice root cause analysis vs. sitting on the merry-go-round of treating symptoms. 
• Have a solid internal compass and intuition on actions to take when faced with a challenge.
• Treat new franchisee recruitment like it’s their own business. 
• Believe it’s team first, not me first. They are passionate about being a hero maker vs. being a hero. 
• Are consistent with their meetings. They are on time. There is always an agenda. Agreed-upon outcomes and actions are always established before the meeting ends.
• Pay attention to data and trends weekly. They know recruitment’s current state better than anyone else. They know what’s working and not working and are fanatical about actions to get on target and stay on target.
• Won’t compromise on doing what is required. They instill trust and confidence in the recruitment team, executives, and ownership.
• Forecast 90 to 180 days out and adjust accordingly. Most recruitment managers are looking 30 days out at best, so results rarely change because what’s going to happen is already in motion.
• Understand the difference between a target and a forecast and use each accordingly. 
• Use data to precisely diagnose a problem or gap. They know how to prescribe the correct mixture of managing, coaching, training, and teaching. 
• Are committed to the process of recruiting franchisees and are fanatical about not deviating from that process. Not having a process or not sticking to one that’s already in place is a guaranteed way to not hit targets and cause a recruitment problem.

But wait, there’s more!

It was incredibly tough selecting the list above from the feedback. There are many more that could have been added. After more than 30 years of working in, managing, leading, and now training and coaching franchise recruitment teams, I can confidently say that how an individual manages and leads franchise recruitment is the difference with results.

Art Coley is CEO of CGI Franchise. CGIF was founded in 2015 with a mission to help franchise companies implement and execute repeatable and sustainable recruitment systems using the Recruitment Operating System. His team, based in Temple, Texas, works with brands worldwide. Contact him at 281-658-9409 or acoley@cgifranchise.com.