Multi-Unit Franchisee Magazine Issue I, 2015 | Page 40

things changed. “I wanted to be home
and see my kids grow up,” he says, and
began to consolidate his operations
closer to home.
These days he’s comfortable with the
number and more centralized location
of his stores. However, the New Jersey
native, who loves living in his home
state, says he’s worried about the fallout from the closing of casinos in Atlantic City. “This could be devastating
for people here,” he says. “The layoffs
could be 50,000 to 60,000 people. I’m
already thinking about what we can do
to help. Maybe offer free tax returns. I
don’t know, but we want to do something if we can.”
Leese says he never could have made

it as far as he has in business without
his dedicated and talented management
team. Together, he says, they have faced
NAME: Ken Leese
TITLE: CEO/President
COMPANY: The Tax Authority Inc.;

Video Game Authority LLC

NO. OF UNITS: 45 Jackson Hewitt,

1 Play N Trade
AGE: 47

FAMILY: Single dad with boy/girl

twins, 12

YEARS IN FRANCHISING: 20
YEARS IN CURRENT POSITION: 20

increased governmental regulations,
the emergence of online tax filing, and
growth in tax preparation competition.
“I promised my team several years ago
that I would keep them and that we
would all get through this,” he says. “I
think that time has come. We made it
and things are looking promising for
the future.”
Leese always has his eyes and ears
open for business opportunities. One
avenue he is actively investigating is
large retail stores, such as Walmart or
Sears, that allocate space to Jackson
Hewitt to prepare customer taxes instore. “It’s a managed risk that offers a
less expensive option for me,” he says.
“That makes sense.”

MANAGEMENT
Management method or style: Centralized administration and decentralized management.
Greatest challenge: Hiring, training, and motivating a seasonal workforce.
How do others describe you? Laid back on the outside, but a fierce
competitor on the inside.
One thing I’m looking to do better: Hiring and motivating.
How I give my team room to innovate and experiment: I often
solicit suggestions from my team, from the managers to the tax preparers. I
will reward an idea that we implement.
How close are you to operations? I am involved. But I allow my team
to run the business, and to use me and my experience as a resource.
What are the two most important things you rely on from your
franchisor? Software and products.
What I need from vendors: Seasonal programs.

Have you changed your marketing strategy in response to the
economy? How? Definitely. We are using online advertising more frequently. We use more email and text campaigns, as opposed to direct mail. We also
have switched from television to radio to save money.
How is social media affecting your business? More and more of our
customers are online and using social media, so we have to have a strategy
that keeps them informed.
How do you hire and fire? Hiring is difficult in a seasonal business and
something my team needs to get better at. We try not to fire team members
unless we are left with no other choice.
How do you train and retain? Every year we train and retrain our team,
mostly online.
How do you deal with problem employees? Discuss issues with
them. We train and retrain. We let them go when necessary.
Fastest way into my doghouse: Don’t do what you say you will do.

BOTTOM LINE
Annual revenue: $4 million.
2015 goal: $5 million.
Growth meter: How do you measure your growth? Office count
and revenues.
Vision meter: Where do you want to be in 5 years? 10 years?
In 5 years, 75 offices; in 10 years, retired.
How is the economy in your region affecting you, your employees, your customers? Currently, we are having a big problem in Atlantic
City with regard to all the casino closings.
Are you experiencing economic growth in your market? No, see
above. This affects the whole area.
How do changes in the economy affe ct the way you do business? The economy affects how many offices I open/close.
How do you forecast for your business? From experience and type

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of office.
What are the best sources for capital expansion? Internal cash
flow.
Have you used private equity, local banks, national banks,
other institutions? Why/why not? It’s difficult in our industry to get
funding owing to the lack of hard assets.
What are you doing to take care of your employees? Low-cost
incentives and win-win bonus programs.
How are you handling rising employee costs (payroll, minimum
wage, healthcare, etc.)? Trying to become more efficient as a company.
How do you reward/recognize top-performing employees? Additional time off and bonuses.
What kind of exit strategy do you have in place? Work in progress.

MULTI-UNIT FRANCHISEE IS S UE I, 2015

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