Franchising and Business as Mission In the September e.zine we highlight the potential of franchising as a business as mission model. Does franchising have the potential to accelerate the impact of business as mission? Read the story of Kim Edwards and the SEA English Academy, a globally franchised business. We ask an expert panel about the opportunities and challenges franchising presents for business as mission. Mats Tunehag also contributes a guest article, asking is 'BAM in a Box' really possible? Want more? Don't miss a unique opportunity to meet experienced practitioners and get intensive teaching at the business as mission conference: iBAM Impact, 4-6 November in Denver, USA. 
SEA English Academy A Global Franchise Business
Kim is an award winning business woman based on the Sunshine Coast of Australia. She is the founder and co-owner of SEA English Academy, a business that has grown over the last 5 years into a string of international franchises. Kim is driven by a passion for high quality education and equally by the desire to make a positive impact through her business. She is a high profile business woman who seeks to leverage her experience and success to make a difference in her community and in the nations. As Kim sees it, business excellence and integrity is a powerful combination. "Daniel is a good biblical example of someone who had both integrity and a respected position in society. There was no tension, he was just honouring God and being himself in that place and as such he was able to have tremendous influence,” describes Kim. “As well as being Christians in business, we are also led by a passion for mission, especially to be a blessing to the Muslim world. However, that has to happen through the natural growth of the business, as an integral part of the business strategy. It’s not a compromise, we are are absolutely committed to the success of our franchisees and the business." Franchising and Business as Mission Perspectives from an Expert Panel
"Franchising thrives by tapping into local knowledge and connections, combining them with the franchise operations system to achieve success. Franchising offers a faster rate of expansion with a lower business risk. As a ‘BAM’ tool, franchising taps knowledge of the locals in the field, enabling them to earn a living by the labour of their hands. Some franchises could be easily replicated across the mission field, penetrating even small towns or large villages..." We asked a panel of three experts with firsthand experience to give us their perspective on business as mission and franchising. We asked them 'What opportunities does a franchising approach present?', 'What are some of the challenges...?' and then 'How can we minimise the risks and get started?'
BAM in a Box? Accelerating the Impact of Business as Mission Mats Tunehag shares this challenge, "Although the number of BAM businesses has been growing steadily, this growth has been relatively slow. There is still much more ‘BAM talk’ out there than BAMers taking up the challenge of starting and developing BAM companies. How do we bridge that gap? Are we missing something in BAM because we are assuming everybody can start from scratch? Is there an untapped pool of committed people who have ability but aren't going to start a business from nothing? Are we missing out because we don’t have a ‘BAM in a Box’ to offer? Could these people become good BAMers if there were franchising options?"
Lessons from the Edge Insights from a BAM Practitioner Keep both the big picture and the detailed picture in view
Don't get so bogged down in the detail that you lose sight of the big picture and the rationale for what you are doing. Conversely, make sure you don't spend all your time dreaming about vision and thus take your eye off the day to day operational details of the business. Keep a healthy tension between the two.
Have the bible in one hand and the balance sheet in the other
Knowledge of God's ways in business is critical, but so is understanding the mechanics of business. Spend time getting skilled in the disciplines of business. As an entrepreneur you have to understand everything, even if you don't do everything. Business has it's own laws, don't over-spiritualise them! - imgimgimgimg
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Issue 7 : September 2011
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