“If you don’t structure your AI correctly, it’s like hiring an employee who doesn’t know where anything is.” – Rob Glance Hiring a Utah Top 30 CIO like Rob Glance isn’t feasible for most franchises… That’s why I sat down with Rob on The Top 10% Podcast to bring you elite-level AI advice at no cost. We’re grateful he shared his expertise.
Cut to the Chase: How Should Franchisors Use AI?
Here are five best practices that will increase the capacity of AI intelligence in your business. Many of these require the right tech infrastructure, but applying them correctly will unlock AI’s full potential.
1. Have a WHY – Why do you want AI?
Don’t implement AI just for the sake of it. Have a clear purpose for why you want AI in your franchise. According to a 2023 PwC report, 86% of companies that define clear AI objectives outperform those that don’t in efficiency and profitability.
Action Step: Identify your franchise’s top struggles and goals. Pick one area to focus on and explore how AI can help.
2. Protect Your Data
Employees and franchisees will use AI tools whether you provide them or not. But did you know that OpenAI models like ChatGPT and Gemini can use any prompt or uploaded information to train future models?
Action Step: Build a closed AI environment that prioritizes your company’s knowledge and protects sensitive data.
3. Integrate Systems
AI is most powerful when it can combine data from different sources (POS, QuickBooks, CRM) to provide holistic business insights. Research by McKinsey shows that companies integrating AI across multiple systems see a 25% increase in operational efficiency compared to those using isolated AI tools.
Action Step: Make sure your data, documents, and software are connected under a single AI-powered system.
4. Normalize & Structure Data
If the input data is messy, the AI output will be unreliable. Raw data from multiple systems must be cleaned and structured to ensure accurate AI-generated reports.
Action Step: Work with an expert to integrate, clean, and structure your data in a way that minimizes hallucinations and errors. Consider using platforms like Databricks or Snowflake.
5. Secure Access
Not everyone in your franchise should have the same access to AI-powered insights. Managers, franchisees, and executives need different levels of visibility.
Action Step: Create role-based access controls to ensure that each team member sees only relevant information while protecting sensitive data.
The Future of AI in Franchising
Rob predicts that AI will become the standard for business intelligence, helping franchises:
Improve business coaching by providing instant analytics on franchisee performance.
Enhance support by eliminating email chains and replacing manual lookups with conversational AI that retrieves key information instantly.
Optimize operations by automating repetitive tasks, allowing franchisees to focus on growth.
“The companies that master AI will dominate the next decade of franchising.” – Rob Glance
Take Action: Start Your AI Journey Today
AI is already reshaping franchising. Don’t wait until your competitors gain an unfair advantage—start exploring AI solutions tailored for your franchise now.
