The big day has arrived. The auditor goes on location to perform the field evaluation; most of the time unannounced.

Using an application such as the FranchiseBlast Franchisee Field Audits app on their tablet, laptop or mobile phone enables to complete the audit quickly and painlessly. Before starting, the auditor reviews the previously performed audits to be aware of recent issues to which more attention should be given. When starting the audit, questions are answered using an intuitive touch-screen interface and pictures can easily be snapped using the device's built-in camera.

When a problem is detected, the auditor can enter additional details to clarify the issue present at this particular location; in most cases a picture is worth a thousand words. Not only does the auditor flag issues, they also propose solutions in the form of concrete actionable tasks. It is worth re-iterating that follow-up tasks must be actionable (ex; "clean the counter, the floor in the back-store and remove the bird's nest in the front sign") because vague tasks (ex: "the store needs to be cleaner") are obviously subjective and don't incite continuous improvement.

In some cases, these solutions are tasks which are assigned to the franchisee and their staff (ex: clean the counter, order new marketing material, etc.) whereas others are assigned to the franchisor (ex: legal should write up a violation due to the use of unapproved suppliers, etc.). These follow-up tasks are key, as we will see in the next section.

The fun thing about using an app to complete field visits is that different metrics can be extrapolated to increase the confidence that the auditors are performing their visits properly (effectively auditing the auditors!). First, the duration of the audit can be measured which lets the audit manager determine if every franchisee is getting their fair share of help from the franchisor. Second, the geographical location can also be captured, ensuring the auditor is really on site performing the visit.

In any case, once an audit is completed, it needs to be reviewed by the auditor manager before it is formally shared with the franchisee. However, the field consultant does spend time communicating the issues and proposed solutions with the franchisee while on site. Again, the goal here is not to send the franchisee a list of reprimands after the fact. By opening constructive dialog with the franchisee, the auditor helps engage the franchisee to work towards continuous improvement.