For_Alma_Mater only

The PhD topic is on “Knowledge Management in International Franchising”

I intend to participate in your forthcoming issue on Outsourcing: Value or Vulnerability with a paper on outsourcing in the context of international franchising. The paper will look at how the franchisee can outsource to the franchisor. The paper argues that outsourcing in international franchising is highly beneficial

The major hypothesis of the paper is: The franchisee can outsource two services to the franchisor: telemarketing and financial services.

1. Telemarketing- In business to business franchise concepts, the franchisor could perform targeted telemarketing services for their franchisees. A franchisor managed team could contact prospects in a franchisee territory and schedule appointments and perform other activities. This cost of these services could be much lower than what a vendor would charge.

2. Financial Services- There is financial services that a franchisor could provide for their franchisees. These include payroll, billing and accounts receivables management. By providing some or all of these services at a reasonable cost the franchisee could be more focused on sales generating activities.

The paper will be divided in two parts:

1. A theoretical part which reviews the literature available in the field of outsourcing and franchising. This section will serve to justify the link between the two domains of franchising and outsourcing

2. The second part is practical: the second part will test the hypothesis of the paper by conducting a survey on a number of franchisees in KSA and how the outsourcing to the franchiser helped/hampered their success