Incoterms_® and Commercial Contracts

Once the agreement is signed, the Franchisee will select its team to attend the Franchisor’s onboarding and initial training program. This initial period, which is critical to the future success of the development of the System in the Territory, has four main objectives:

• Building relationships Onboarding is an opportunity for the Franchisor to make a great first impression and to set the right tone for the relationship. It is probably the first time when an extended team from the Franchisee will experience, firsthand, the culture and the values of the Franchisor’s organization. The Franchisor should try to mix work with other activities to allow the Franchisee’s team to experience the Franchisor’s culture and build a strong personal connection with the Franchisor’s team. How the Franchisor’s team presents itself will say a lot about who it is and what is important to it.
• Learning The Franchisee needs to learn about the Franchisor’s brand, its concept, and its System; but, the Franchisor should also use this opportunity to listen and to learn about the Territory. The Franchisor and Franchisee should make onboarding a two-way learning experience and use it as a way to identify key issues that will need to be taken into account as the Franchisor’s brand is launched in the Territory.
• Strategy Onboarding is a great opportunity to start developing the Franchisor’s and Franchisee’s strategy for launch. Regardless of how strong the Franchisor’s brand and concept is in its home country, it will need to be localized in some aspects to be more relevant to the consumer in the Territory. The Franchisor will need to validate that its brand positioning and messaging resonate with the target consumer in the Territory. The Franchisor can use onboarding as a platform to identify the key strategic issues, determine how it intends to address them, and discuss launch strategies with the Franchisee.
• Planning and project management Launching a new brand in a new Territory is a big endeavor that will require a very tight project management over the months leading to the opening. The Franchisor can use onboarding to start planning all that needs to get done and agree on how it intends to manage the project and the work going forward.