OBJECTIVE 1: Give students an opportunity to understand the role of franchising in the small business sector of the American economy.

OBJECTIVE 2: Expose students to business research resources, and with the help of those resources, encourage them to think critically and form options on various business disciplines

Entrepreneurship:

*How was the business created? (whose idea, history of the company, where the company was started)

*Research how many stores are currently in operation, how many are franchises vs. company owned stores, and when why/the first franchise opened

*Explain the advantages and disadvantages of a parent business franchising its operations

International Business:

*Prepare a PMI (plusses, minuses, implications) for your firm's international expansion (provide at least 3 examples of each)

Operations Management:

*Does your firm have centralized or decentralized authority for decision making?

*Given today's global marketplace, explain the benefits and drawbacks of your firm's authority structure.

Finance:

*Explain all start up fees for your franchise

*Identify any ongoing fees for franchise ownership (how much, payment schedule)

*Determine the advertising fee charged to franchisees

Management:

*Prepare a SWOT analysis for your franchise. (3 examples per section)

*Compare your franchise's culture to that of a non-franchised competitor. What are the benefits and drawbacks of your firm's culture in today's global environment?

Human Resource Management: 10% of your grade

*What are the steps one must follow in order to become a franchisee?

*Why might an entrepreneur be inclined to buy a franchise?

EXCEL:

*Using EXCEL, provide a graphical representation of your franchise's profits and stock price relative to a non-franchised competitor, covering the most recent 3 consecutive years.

*What observations can you make about the competitive advantage or disadvantage of franchise ownership?