Playbook Mastery: Coaching Your Way to Multi-Location Excellence

Most people see playbooks as little more than an "instruction manual" which documents your company's systems, procedures, and expectations. But in today's competitive world, you don't want to be "most people." You want your business and your brand to stand out in the mind of the consumer, so that they keep coming back to your business, again and again.

A good playbook isn’t just about maintaining standards – it’s about exceeding them, rewriting the rules of franchise and multi-location success, and amplifying profitability.

Keith Gerson, President and CEO at Gerson Advisory Services, alongside Brian Garrison, COO at Buzz Franchise Brands, and Jaffrey Ali, Chief Product officer at FranConnect, discussed how to make your playbook the key to unlocking the full potential of your multi-location business.

Specifically, they discussed:

Constructing a playbook that embodies your brand ethos and operational distinction.
Using playbooks during coaching sessions, to boost franchisee outcomes.
Applying and modifying your playbook strategies as your business landscape evolves.
Tracking the effectiveness of your playbook

We want you to walk out after watching this session with actionable insights that deliver tangible outcomes.

About the Presenters

Brian Garrison

Brian Garrison, Chief Operating Officer, Buzz Franchise Brands

Brian Garrison has served as Chief Operating Officer for Buzz Franchise Brands since May 2015, and also serves as the Buzz Franchise Brands President. Prior to joining Buzz Franchise Brands, Brian worked as a consultant with McKinsey & Company, where he focused on operations and strategy in a variety of industries, including aerospace and defense, energy, financial service and government. Brian served in the Navy for 22 years in a variety of leadership roles, including command of an F18 squadron, before retiring in 2012.

Grant Walker

Grant Walker, CFE, Director of Operations, Propelled Brands

With 13 plus years in franchising and having worked many different roles in the FASTSIGNS organization, Grant has a unique perspective on Franchise Operations. He grew up in his parents FASTSIGNS locations and then came to FASTSIGNS International in 2011. He has helped manage many different sides of support from Point of Sale roll outs to leading a team of 15 Business Consultants for over 750 locations. Grant has a degree in Business Management and a master's degree in Business Administration with a focus on Entrepreneurship.

Jaffrey Ali

Jaffrey Ali, Chief Product Officer, FranConnect

With 20 years of technology product leadership, Jaffrey Ali utilizes lean start-up principles to create highly differentiated product offerings. His work with Red Herring 100 winning firms and Gartner Magic Quadrant leaders has resulted in top-tier VC funding. Jaffrey has a degree in Economics (University of Texas) and a master’s degree in international economics (University of North Carolina).

Keith Gerson

Keith Gerson, CFE, CEO, Gerson Advisory Services

Keith Gerson, CEO of Gerson Advisory Services, brings 50 years of executive level expertise as a passionate and driven consultant, franchisor, and franchisee with a proven track record in building rapid-growth, and highly profitable franchise organizations. Keith established Gerson Advisory Services in January 2024 and previously served as President of Franchise Operations for FranConnect where he was able to work closely with many Executive Boards and Leadership Teams that are part of FranConnect’s portfolio of 1500+ brands and 350,000 locations. His focus is on helping franchisors get to their desired future state in sales, operations, communications, and engagement. Recognized in franchising circles for his extensive leadership experience, and ability to drive execution, Keith is a highly regarded consultant, advisor, and keynote speaker and has had the rare opportunity to create several leading franchise systems from their very conception through launch and sustained growth taking these systems from micro-emerging status to that of successful enterprise-level brands.