Nancy Bono

Is Following the Rules
Still Worth It?

Recently, I read an article in the local newspaper that set my tail feathers in a flutter for the rest of the day. As is my standard modus operandi, I am using this column to share my beliefs with others in business, women or men, who may think the same way that I do.

By the time my article hits the streets, the story that incited me will have surely cooled, but the scarier thought to me is that corporate life continues to churn with little or no reaction to breaking the rules. Call it Catholic guilt (as my coworkers joke) or just a solid upbringing, but I know right from wrong and it’s time to say so! I am enraged that following the rules has somehow become extinct!

Has our society become so worried about being politically correct that we, as business people, are afraid to push the “BS button” when a colleague breaks the rules? Should we condone a blatant disregard for signed contracts, letters of agreement, or franchise stipulations? If so, what’s next? Or worse, who’s next in falling victim to this “the rules don’t apply to me” mentality?

I’m referencing one particular incident that got me steamed today, but I have seen countless examples of shunned accountability and weasel techniques to break contracts over the years. It’s no secret that I work in advertising and marketing, so I’ve heard classic lines like: “contracts aren’t worth the paper they’re written on” or “we’re just not satisfied with the relationship” (after the work is completed and it’s time to pay the bill)! In both of these examples, we are no longer working with these clients—thankfully! But the common occurrence of disrespect in business is troubling to me.

When did we, as a society, stop playing by the rules?

My rant began specifically over the breaking of a franchise agreement by a business that just opted to close their doors and open the same type of business at a new location, with a new name. The newspaper put a positive spin on this story (thanks to the expert positioning of a PR professional), but the reality of the situation is that a local business, after benefiting over the past decade under the parent franchise umbrella, simply decided that it was within their rights to opt out of their franchise agreement and continue operations under a new name, with the same 20+ employees and the same 400+ accounts! The specific offender and the business names are not listed here, but the magnitude of this action reaches all of us in business!

How can any franchise owner think they can break from the parent company without penalty? Did the owner think they would have reached their present level of profitability on their own? The bottom line is that a franchise model allows for instant positioning, established brand, marketing materials, and most importantly, internal systems and manuals for getting started and moving toward success. But, the difference in opening your own business from scratch or buying a ready-made franchise model is huge. You cannot take the benefits of the franchise model, craft your own terms when you have reached a self-sustaining profitability, and then just walk away. If that is your intent, then start your own business. Piece together your own business model and marketing materials. Work tirelessly to get your business off the ground. And then the growth, the employees, and the accounts are your own. But when you use someone else’s brand, someone else’s success model, or someone else’s business resources to get started, someone else owns a piece of you and the business. That is, until the contract is fulfilled.

Are there bad contracts? Of course. Are there relationships that should be terminated early? Absolutely. But as adults, in business, it is our responsibility to remain educated to the terms of our contracts. To access relationships and make provisions for growth, arbitrations, dissolution, succession, ownership, and whatever other legal term you can throw in the mix. But for heaven’s sake, face up to your responsibilities and pay the piper when you want out! Otherwise, you’re flat out stealing by taking intellectual property, forms, procedures, employees, and—yes—clients.

Unfortunately, we have become a nation of entitlement and we have forgotten the lessons of our parents’ generation. Hard work should be the basis of our business lives. Either through book smarts or bull strength, we should strive to be our best. And if we don’t like the playing field, then we should respectively opt to take another path. But follow the rules in getting out. Otherwise, you’re no better than a petulant child taking your ball and going home.

If you don’t respect the rules and contracts, then why should your coworkers, employees, or associates adhere to yours?

It’s a vicious cycle of backbiting and anarchy. A “rules don’t apply to me” philosophy breeds the same mentality in those around you. We’ve all heard the old saying: “You reap what you sow” and it still holds true today, as does this one: “You only have one name—don’t tarnish it”!

For me it always returns to leading by example. Have ethics in business, play by the rules and expect respect. The future of good business depends on it!