Manager-run
Daily operations led by capable management.
Franchise advisory for professionals
A disciplined approach to franchise ownership.
Next Step Franchise Group helps professionals evaluate franchise opportunities against their objectives, capital, market, and desired operating role.
A practical first conversation. No fee to you.
Multi-unit
Built to expand across territories or locations.
Data-driven
Grounded in disclosure, economics, and validation.
Transferable
Designed to create value beyond the owner.
Who this is for
Professionals considering business ownership.
NSFG works with people from a wide range of professional backgrounds. What they share is a desire to apply their experience, capital, and judgment to building something they own.
You do not need to be an executive or an experienced entrepreneur. You do need clear objectives, sufficient capital, and a willingness to remain engaged—whether you start with one territory or several.
The profiles we serve
Employed professionals
Building alongside a W-2 with a defined transition plan.
Professionals in transition
Converting experience and capital into an ownership position.
Business owners and investors
Adding a manager-run or multi-unit platform to a portfolio.
Veterans and military leaders
Applying operational discipline and proven systems to ownership.
The ownership model
Build an organization—not another job.
A manager-run, multi-unit strategy is built around recurring demand, capable leadership, deliberate territory growth, and systems that can operate beyond the owner.
Not every client starts there. Some begin with a single territory, or a business operated alongside a career, with expansion as a later decision. The model is the destination; the entry point is yours.
Recurring demand
Preference for memberships, contracts, repeat services, and other durable revenue patterns.
Professional management
The operating plan identifies who runs the business and what responsibilities remain with the owner.
Territory strategy
Growth is evaluated at the market level—not just one unit or one ZIP code.
Transferability
Documented systems and capable management create value beyond personal labor.
What you receive
A written case for every finalist.
Before you speak with any franchisor, you receive a Brand Investment Brief for each finalist—a written document, prepared for you, that puts the case on paper where it can be examined:
- The ownership model and what the operating role actually requires
- Initial investment and any financial performance information disclosed in the FDD
- Your market, territory availability, and growth considerations
- The material risks—stated plainly, not buried
- The specific questions you'll put to the franchisor and current owners
If a recommendation cannot be supported in writing, it is not made.
The process
From objectives to an informed decision.
Five defined stages. Written standards. Direct evidence. No pressure to proceed.
Profile & standards
Define the ownership role, capital position, target market, time commitment, and long-term objective.
Market & brand analysis
Evaluate franchise systems against the criteria, local market, territory, economics, and growth potential.
The written case
Receive a Brand Investment Brief for each finalist covering the model, investment, disclosed performance, risks, and open validation questions.
Direct validation
Meet the franchisor and current owners with prepared questions designed to separate evidence from positioning.
The decision
Proceed, investigate further, or walk away. Each can be the right outcome.
Franchisors compensate NSFG when a client invests in a franchise we introduce. You pay no direct consulting fee, and the analysis remains the same whether you proceed or walk away.
About Mike
Experience on both sides of the ownership decision.
Mike Kenny spent his corporate career in Silicon Valley leading global organizations with thousands of employees and negotiating multiple billion-dollar commercial agreements.
He has also built and operated small businesses. That combination matters: Mike understands strategy at scale and what the decision feels like when the capital, time, and risk are your own.
NSFG is a solo advisory practice. Every client works directly with Mike—from profile and market analysis through brand selection, franchisor meetings, and owner validation.
Mike Kenny, CFCFounder · Next Step Franchise GroupCertified Franchise Consultant (CFC) · FCMAMember, International Franchise Professionals GroupSonoma County, California · Serving clients nationwideView Mike's LinkedIn profile →
Questions
Frequently asked.
What does it cost to work with NSFG?+
There is no direct consulting fee to you. If you invest in a franchise introduced through NSFG, the franchisor generally pays NSFG a referral fee. That does not increase your franchise fee.
Do I need franchise experience?+
No. We evaluate opportunities against your leadership experience, skills, capital, desired involvement, and objectives.
Can I do this while keeping my current job?+
Some businesses are designed for part-time or manager-run ownership; others are not. Your available time and daytime flexibility become part of the selection criteria.
How many brands do you work with?+
The number is less important than the process. We search a broad franchise portfolio, then present only the businesses that meet your agreed criteria.
How is this different from browsing franchise listings?+
A listing starts with brands. NSFG starts with what the business must accomplish for you, then builds and documents the case for each recommendation.
Your next step
Determine whether franchise ownership fits your objectives.
Thirty minutes is enough to clarify your goals, review your target market, and decide whether a disciplined evaluation makes sense.
Schedule a Confidential ConsultationOr call 707-791-0920