ALL TOGETHER NOW
Teamwork makes the dream work when you’re a Paramount franchisee
Each franchisee has their own work zone within the site, with similar job specs meaning each franchisee can work as a back-up, or provide cover for another franchisee when required because of holidays or staff shortages.
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Feedback on the shared contracts has been overwhelmingly positive, from both clients and franchisees, says Rajan.
s you’d expect from an award-winning franchise, there are many features that make Paramount stand out. One of the most remarkable is the level of teamwork demonstrated across its entire national network, which has helped hundreds of people achieve their dreams. For example, take a look at Paramount’s ‘shared contract’ arrangement, which brings together individual franchisees to share work on a single large site. At Rangitoto College on Auckland’s North Shore, Paramount’s key account manager Rajan Patel works in partnership with individual franchisees Bo Yang, Alice Chen and David Zhang to provide cleaning for the entire school. Rajan, whose career spans the retail, safety and telco sectors, remembers why he originally joined Paramount. ‘I was looking for a more service-oriented position, and started out as Paramount’s customer service relationship manager. My main job was to understand the expectations of each client and then help the franchisees on-site to work out how to do the job quickly and efficiently every time – and profitably, of course. It was very satisfying.’ Rajan developed a marketing strategy to secure additional clients in various multi-tenanted buildings through the references of existing clients, with the extra work going to franchisees who wanted to build their own business, or to new franchisees to get them started. Today, Rajan is a national key account manager for Paramount, and his portfolio includes a major bank, a hotel group and numerous large schools – including Rangitoto College. So what does he enjoy the most about his role? ‘Getting the best possible value for our clients and, at the same time, seeing all our franchisees grow their businesses by providing good solutions for those clients,’ he says. ‘Together, we become a one-stop shop for their facility management. Our clients see more accountability and productivity from us, and it means they’re only dealing with one person rather than multiple suppliers and service providers.’
Working partnerships equal better outcomes
Rangitoto College is a great example of how Paramount franchisees can benefit considerably from a shared contract arrangement when it comes to servicing larger clients. As Rajan points out, by working together on a site, franchisees like Bo, Alice and David can employ their own teams and get a business opportunity that they can comfortably afford. ‘It enables them to reduce the risk of going into business without sacrificing reward. And, because Paramount carry out the invoicing and collection, it reduces the risk further – we provide a turnover guarantee to franchisees for their initial term.’
It works for me Bo Yang has been a Paramount franchisee for over 10 years, and is pleased with the steady growth his business has experienced. After graduating from Unitec, Bo worked as a public servant for a couple of years. But with a growing young family, he decided to make a major career change. ‘I was attracted to Paramount because it has a fully-mature franchise and support system, which is a really big help to someone who is new to the business,’ he says. ‘When I was a college student I worked part-time for a Paramount franchisee, which gave me some initial knowledge of commercial cleaning – but running your own business is different.’ Bo says the franchise’s excellent management, solid profits and reasonable fees were all important factors in making his final decision. He financed his franchise from his savings, paying the balance off, interestfree, over four months. And while his friends were a bit sceptical at first, they were soon impressed as his business took off. He says the level of training provided by the Paramount support team has been key to his success: ‘It’s been huge, magnificent. Thanks to them, we are always improving our tools and our knowledge on new cleaning methods or cleaning rules, particularly in recent times.’ He refers to Rajan Patel as his leader and guide. ‘Rajan is like a bridge that connects me with my customers, like at Rangitoto College. He passes on new information and feedback from the school and we discuss how to satisfy their requirements. It’s about working efficiently – we both identify any problems and search for the right solutions, which I then implement.’ Bo agrees that having three teams on the College site results in easier management and encourages a more efficient job outcome. ‘Each team has its own zone to work within, which means more energy and time to resolve any issues as quickly as possible. It’s also nice to have someone who knows the site cover for you when you’re away for any reason.’ Looking beyond 2022, Bo is keen to expand his business further, and perhaps specialise more in floor sealing or carpet cleaning – both of which are among the options available to Paramount franchisees. He has some advice for anyone looking at joining Paramount. ‘Start with
Bo Yang with Rajan Patel, and (far right) David Zhang
Alice Chen
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Franchise New Zealand
Summer 2022
Year 30 Issue 04
