To date I have written a number of blogs which centre on the topic of “collaboration”. Here are some of those earlier blogs:
I was thinking tonight just how fortunate franchises, buying groups and cooperatives are when it comes to having the potential to build scale through promoting collaboration. The scaling potential of such entities is considerably beyond that of small businesses – particularly single business units….
…IF…
…the decision-makers within these entities are prepared to be realistic when it comes to setting the “entry cost/ investment” for new members/ franchisees to join.
When I read through Franchise magazines, and based on my own past experience managing and finding ways to grow a national franchise, I can’t help but think that in many cases the “entry cost/ investment” set by some of these entities is actually a considerable barrier to entry – and is a major contributing factor of the slow rate at which scale/ growth is being achieved.
My suggestion to decision-makers within cooperatives/ franchises/ buying groups who are charged with addressing organisation structure and exploring growth opportunities, is have a close look at the entry parameters that you have set and perform a series of analyses which consider the potential/ likely different budgets of target prospects available to join your organisation. Your organisation has a colossal comparative advantage over a single business unit when it comes to increasing market share through growing the representation of your brand by adding new members/ franchisees/ shareholders – i.e. by building your collaborative network.
However, this form of scaling will only happen if your value proposition to attract new members/ franchisees/ shareholders is composed of the right elements – including the entry parameters being set at the right (affordable) level.