Mexican fast food chain Guzman y Gomez (GYG) invests heavily in recruiting the right franchisees, putting prospects through a 12-month training program.
Nikki Richardson, director of franchise operations at GYG, said “Our recruitment process is an intentionally long process, for all the right reasons. We are not looking for a business sale, we are looking for long term partners who will be with us for 10 or 20 years,” she said.
Early in the recruitment process, franchise buyers get a glimpse at the reality of running a restaurant. Beyond the Burrito is a three-to-four-hour restaurant visit with a senior operations manager.
“A lot of our franchisees are families, couples with kids, and this is a real decision on how this business interacts with their lifestyle,” Richardson said.
A provisional franchisee will undertake a 12-month process before the final sign-up, prepping them for all elements of running the restaurant.
In-depth training program preps GYG franchisees
Candidates spend the first eight weeks working as restaurant crew on their own time. They are then onboarded and paid as a crew person for the remainder of the training time.
The spend the first 12 weeks learning restaurant stations; the second three-month spell running shifts and managing the flow across dine-in, drive-thru, takeaway, online and app ordering.
Candidates then learn restaurant manager systems, inventory, rostering and stock rotation. In the final 12 weeks, they focus on recruiting and training staff, setting up payroll, and prepping to open their business.
“This is a high-revenue, fast-paced business. If we don’t think someone can manage food safety, manage a crew team, or lacks the leadership and influence they need to drive a restaurant business, we have an honest conversation,” Richardson said.
GYG looks to identify potential multi-unit owners who can grow their own teams and develop talent depth within a restaurant.
“Multi-unit franchisees grow managers, who then become general managers and with a robust organisational structure, there’s a better experience for everyone,” Richardson said.
