Inside the Brave New World of Dale Carnegie

During the pandemic, businesses have had to find creative ways to adapt to lockdowns. As a global provider of corporate training solutions, Dale Carnegie faced unique challenges. Andre Goldstein, their Vice President of Franchise Development, was kind enough to agree to an interview in Philadelphia’s Rittenhouse Square to discuss Dale Carnegie’s history and what lies ahead.

Chris DeTurk: Andre, thank you so much for sharing your time with me. Let’s start with your background. How long have you worked in franchising and what brought you to Dale Carnegie?

Andre Goldstein: I’ve spent 23 years in franchising and professional services. Prior to joining Dale Carnegie, I held a number different leadership positions with a global recruitment franchise for over 15 years. Before that, I lived and worked overseas and honed my experience in international business. With Carnegie, I have combined my global business knowledge with my experience in franchising.

I’m also a Certified Franchise Executive (CFE), a professional designation and certification under the IFA, the International Franchise Association.

DeTurk: Tell me about the history of Dale Carnegie.

Goldstein: As a 107-year-old company, we have a long and rich heritage. Mr. Carnegie started this business as one man with one public speaking course in one city, New York. That has grown over the decades into a global organization, helping companies increase productivity, reduce costs and get the most out of their workforce. We provide solutions in over 30 languages in over 80 countries, in the areas of professional development, leadership and management, sales and communications.

DeTurk: When I think franchising, I think of fast food restaurants, you know, regimented procedures in a three ring binder. Is Carnegie different?

Goldstein: It is different. People have more familiarity with food franchises, but services are a well-established and growing segment of franchising. We have a business system that’s proven successful over many years in helping franchisees start and run their business.. We have great brand recognition. Our franchisees have a network of peers around the world, all working in their local markets, where their businesses are individually owned and operated and they make the day-to-day decisions on their own. Everyone’s part of a larger system with institutional knowledge, best practices, collaboration and opportunities to expand accounts regionally and globally. That’s really the strength of our network.

You’ve got a system and a corporate team behind you, supporting you and your business, developing and executing your sales strategies throughout your tenure. We like to say you’re in business for yourself, but you’re not by yourself.

DeTurk: You mentioned worldwide operations. How did Dale Carnegie move from a one-man operation to a global franchise?

Goldstein: Mr. Carnegie was a pioneer in taking his message around the world. He spent months traveling by steamship to Europe, Asia and the Middle East. Franchising didn’t exist yet, but using a licensing model, he developed partners in many countries around the world. As a result of that, we’ve been operating in some locations such as Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, European countries and the Middle East for many decades.

In the late nineties and the early two thousands, we moved to a more formal franchise business model and structure.

Despite the cultural differences across franchises, the product is the same. For example when I travel to China or watch a class being delivered, I can tell — even though I might not know what they’re saying — what part of what course they are delivering. They present it in the local language, but it is essentially the same delivery, resulting in the same transformational experience around the world.

DeTurk: We’re coming off of a global pandemic where people no longer sit together in classrooms. How did that affect the business?

Goldstein: It had an impact. Our business in early 2020 was largely face-to-face training. We had face-to-face in-person training delivered live in a classroom with participants and a trainer. That modality had to be halted due to the pandemic almost overnight.

However, as an organization we have been involved with a digital platform and a live online training solution for over 10 years. It’s different from what people think of as e-learning, where you’ve got self-paced recordings and modules that you click through just to get to the end. With that type of training there is no real transformation, there’s no lasting change.

In contrast, our Live Online platform is unique in that it’s live-instructor led in a virtual environment, with a platform that allows for collaboration and engagement. It was something that our offices were quick to pivot to in 2020. We could rapidly move scheduled in-person training commitments to virtual training rooms, and begin marketing and delivering those solutions.

DeTurk: Have the challenges of the last year created new opportunities for Dale Carnegie?

Goldstein: As an example, historically a large part of our business in China involves working with young people as they transition to the next stage of their schooling or the beginning of their careers. That was always done in-person and only during summer months when the kids are out of school. COVID allowed the franchises to talk to parents about offering our Youth Programs to those students in a virtual format throughout the year. Our franchises in China did significantly more of this youth business than they’ve done pre-Covid, because they weren’t limited to just a few weeks in the summer. They are going to expand and build on this model. So that’s a silver lining in terms of capacity and changing technology. They took a very compelling part of their business and made it a more significant part that drives revenue and opportunity year round.

DeTurk: Have you changed your technology to adapt to virtual training?

Goldstein: Last year was a transition to our Live Online solutions. That means meeting the clients where they are rather than having them come to us. We’re now poised for the future, with a full digital transformation, based on a new learning platform that we call eVolve.

eVolve is going to be central to everything we do. It’s where participants interact with their trainers and cohorts in their class, regardless of modality — all online, all in-person or a blended solution. The clients will be able to see their participants’ training progress in real-time.

The participants have access to other programs, micro-learning, videos, live coaching and collaboration tools that allow them to engage with the trainer and other participants.

Awards, gamification and certifications keep participants excited and motivated. eVolve is cloud-based, allowing participants to access these tools anywhere with any device.

That’s what eVolve is like for participants. For franchisees managing the customer experience, this starts with a candidate’s initial journey through the process, from prework, the training event and follow up sessions.

Training at Dale Carnegie is not about just a single participant experience. There are before, during and after events. From awareness sessions before the training, designed to prepare the participant, to what we call sustainment events after the training, which are designed to get the most out of what was learned.

We’re pretty excited about the rollout of eVolve.

DeTurk: What traits do you look for in franchisees?

Goldstein: First and foremost, you’ve got to have a passion for working with people, helping them build confidence, transform themselves and see things within themselves that they don’t see on their own. This is a people business, and that’s at the heart of what we do. Being a part of your local community, being involved and having professional networks that you can leverage will help grow the business in your territory.

Direct experience with B2B sales and sales management is also very important. The franchisor will provide top notch marketing, but your team needs to make the sale.

As with any new business, you also need sufficient financial resources. You will need funds to invest in growing your team and building the business.

There are people who have always wanted to work for themselves, but don’t necessarily want to do it on their own and take on the risk of starting a small business. People like that are drawn to this opportunity. That’s the beauty of franchising — there is a proven system that significantly minimizes the risk of owning your own business.

Some established companies are attracted to our franchise opportunity as the best complimentary business to own. They typically are in the professional development or consulting business, and add Dale Carnegie to the services they’re already offering. An accountancy, HR consulting firm or executive search firm often deals with the same clients who would make decisions on training and development.

DeTurk: What’s the new crop of franchisees that you’re seeing like? Who’s interested in buying a franchise right now?

Goldstein: Many people are familiar with Dale Carnegie’s book, How to Win Friends and Influence People, which was written in the 1930s. Some people know the book but don’t know that we have a global training organization which wins awards and is recognized around the world. We are working on telling our story a little better to attract a younger generation of owners, with the energy, vision and passion to make a difference in people’s lives. Making a difference and taking command is the heart of what we do. You’re working with people and changing organizations in the place where you live and own your franchise.

That can be very rewarding. A lot of people are looking for an opportunity that has meaning and trying to find opportunities to give back to the community. With a Dale Carnegie franchise, you will work with a variety of people, building confidence and helping them communicate and have stronger and more meaningful relationships. Whether those skills are used in their family, career or school, you’re helping people, and you can be really proud of that work. There are other great franchise systems out there, but our franchisees directly impact lives through the work they do.

DeTurk: Once you’re successful and you’ve been running your franchise for a while, is it difficult to hand off the business to someone else?

Goldstein: Many people successfully build a Dale Carnegie franchise and later sell it. We also have franchisees who hand it down as a family business. There are third and fourth generation franchises that continue to thrive, reinvent themselves and grow. Ultimately they’re building an asset that they can position for sale or make part of an estate or succession plan. It can provide lasting value, income and wealth for generations. We see that all the time.

DeTurk: Andre, thank you so much for your time. It was a pleasure speaking with you and learning about your work with Dale Carnegie.