Recognize, Reward, and Retain Your Best Employees

Finding great employees in today’s job market seems harder than ever. Retaining the best of them might be even harder. And we all know it’s more expensive, time-consuming, and often frustrating to hire new employees, compared with keeping the ones you have. We asked five successful multi-unit franchisees what they’re doing to reward, recognize, and retain their top employees.

• Gary Avants is founder and president of Avants Management Group, which operates 35 Zaxby’s

“By giving back 10% to the management team. We believe that when a store is meeting its goals and performing at a high level, it is important to share our profit with them. We also utilize our recognition culture weekly, and it is a part of every upper management meeting. We use unique awards to make the recognition personal and fun.”

• Michael T. Fay is CEO of MTF Companies, which operates 25 Subways, 11 Little Medical Schools, 3 Overtime Athletics, and 1 Flex Enrichment

“Money is important, but I focus a lot on celebrating the success of everyone. Maybe we go to dinner, send a thank-you note, or give an extra day off accompanied by specific feedback on a job well done. Sure, money helps, but I really don’t believe it is the be-all and end-all.”

• Roger Wagner is chief operating officer of BRG, M2R, and W2B, which together operate 20 Burger Kings, 12 Moe’s Southwest Grills, and 5 Tropical Smoothie Cafes

“Aside from bonuses or monetary compensation, I make sure the employee being rewarded feels seen. For example, when we get a positive comment or review from a guest, I personally thank the employee responsible for treating our guests to excellent service.”

• Sedrick Turner is president of Global Midsouth Corp., which operates 8 Checkers (with 1 under construction), and 6 Rally’s

“We have a bonus program in place. Each category a manager meets is rewarded with a different dollar amount. We also have a team outing every month (bowling, dinner, etc.). At the end of the year, we also have a Christmas party. We give out awards to our team members and managers. It’s a big celebration.”

• Jeremy Music is a franchisee of Front Porch Coffee, which operates 16 Scooter’s Coffees, 1 Wingstop, and 1 Billy Sims BBQ

“We praise the employees who go above and beyond, not only by telling them, but also by offering rewards. Sometimes, we’ll have contests between the stores, and the winner gets a pizza party or the chance to go bowling. We also give out gift cards, little stuff like that.”