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New Open | 顧問開講 撰文／魏 韶嫈
Recently, two videos have gone viral on social media, causing significant damage to the brands involved. The first video shows a female employee at the KEBUKE Guandu store spitting into the pearls and stirring them with her hand because she was unhappy with a customer placing an order just before closing time. The second video features a Life convenience store employee in Kaohsiung fooling around in the store, lying in a freezer with his shoes on. These incidents have sparked widespread discussion online.
These events have not brought any positive reputation or increased revenue for the brands. Instead, they have caused severe harm to their images. Similar incidents have occurred in the past; for instance, in 2014, a 7-Eleven employee also caused an uproar by uploading a video of himself fooling around in a freezer. The headquarters responded by stating that they would enhance store employee training. Today, these two recent incidents highlight two critical issues in managing employees and fostering crisis awareness within franchise brands:
1. Lack of Corporate Culture and Crisis Awareness Training
Many franchise headquarters focus on training store employees in sales and food preparation but fail to provide adequate training in corporate culture and crisis awareness. Without a sense of corporate culture, employees are less likely to cherish and protect the brand. Moreover, the lack of crisis awareness means that not only store employees but also franchisees and store managers fail to recognize the potential consequences of inappropriate behavior, leading to negligence.
2. Inadequate Supervision Mechanisms
Most franchise brands operate on a voluntary franchise model, primarily supplying goods. As a result, headquarters' supervision and requirements tend to focus on performance and order volume. Even if the contracts specify relevant agreements, they often serve more as declarations than practical enforcement. Consequently, there is a failure to promptly and effectively monitor and correct improper employee behavior.
The secret to managing franchises lies in implementing comprehensive training and supervision mechanisms. Headquarters must regularly conduct training on corporate culture, professional ethics, service spirit, and crisis awareness. Continuous promotion helps employees develop correct values and work attitudes. Coupled with rigorous supervision, detailed checks based on contractual provisions ensure that employees and franchisees understand the headquarters' stance, thus avoiding negligence.
The value of a brand comes from consumer trust but is often destroyed by a single incident, especially one caused by internal employees. Implementing effective management measures to enhance employee crisis awareness is a crucial role for franchise headquarters. Rather than punishing employees, terminating contracts, or compensating customers after an incident, it is more meaningful to establish preventive measures in daily management to protect the brand's value, wouldn't you agree?
