Small businesses do not fail for lack of effort. More often, they struggle because growth introduces complexity faster than systems, training, and workflows can keep up. In a recent Training Impact Podcast episode, Jeff Walter sits down with Matthew Gourgeot from Thryv, to unpack how small businesses and franchise systems can scale with clarity instead of chaos.
Matthew brings a perspective shaped by more than a decade at Thryv and by hands-on experience working directly with franchise brands, independent business owners, and enterprise networks. His background includes early work in local marketing, years supporting franchise growth, and the creation of the Thryv Small Business Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to empowering entrepreneurs through education and access to resources. That blend of operational, commercial, and community experience informs how he thinks about enablement.
Throughout the conversation, one idea remains consistent. Growth is not primarily a technology problem. It is an alignment problem.
Matthew describes how many small businesses and emerging franchise brands reach a point where early success becomes a constraint. Founders build strong local operations through personal effort and intuition. As they expand, they attempt to replicate that success across locations, teams, or partners. What worked through direct involvement no longer scales.
This is where many organizations turn to technology, often adopting multiple tools to solve individual problems. Marketing platforms, CRM systems, scheduling tools, and payment solutions are layered on top of one another. While each tool may be effective in isolation, the lack of integration creates fragmentation. Teams are left to decide how and when to use systems, leading to inconsistency and confusion.
Matthew explains that Thryv was designed to address this exact challenge. Instead of forcing businesses to stitch together disparate tools, Thryv provides an integrated operational platform that aligns marketing, sales, communications, and payments around real workflows. The goal is not simply efficiency, but confidence. When systems reinforce consistent behavior, small businesses can focus on serving customers and growing sustainably.
A key theme in the episode is the transition from founder-driven execution to system-driven performance. Matthew notes that early franchisees are often willing to tolerate ambiguity because they believe in the concept and the founder. As brands grow, that tolerance disappears. New owners expect clarity, repeatability, and support.
This is where structured enablement becomes critical. Matthew emphasizes that scalable brands define not only what should be done, but how it should be done. Marketing processes, customer engagement workflows, and sales follow-up sequences must be documented, taught, and reinforced. Without this structure, training becomes reactive and performance varies widely across locations.
These challenges mirror what many learning and development teams see in franchise training environments, where consistency depends on aligning expectations before execution scales.
Another subtle but important insight from Matthew’s perspective is how confidence compounds when systems are designed to remove decision fatigue. Small business owners and franchise operators make hundreds of choices every day, many of them operationally trivial but mentally draining. When workflows, communications, and follow-up processes are standardized and reinforced through integrated systems, leaders regain cognitive bandwidth. That clarity does not just improve efficiency. It improves judgment. Operators spend less time reacting and more time thinking ahead, which ultimately shapes healthier growth decisions and stronger long-term performance.
While the conversation does not frame Thryv as a training company, training is deeply embedded in how the platform is used. Matthew describes how enablement happens through context. Rather than separating learning from work, Thryv supports learning within the flow of daily operations.
This approach resonates with L&D professionals who recognize that knowledge alone does not drive behavior change. What matters is reinforcement. When systems guide users toward the right actions at the right time, training becomes ongoing rather than episodic. New hires ramp faster. Franchisees rely less on guesswork. Corporate teams gain visibility into what is actually happening across the network.
Matthew also highlights the importance of customer-facing consistency. When internal systems are aligned, customer interactions become more predictable and reliable. This opens the door for structured customer education that improves adoption, satisfaction, and retention, especially in service-based and subscription-driven models.
One of the most practical takeaways from the episode is Matthew’s emphasis on sequencing. Many organizations attempt to scale by investing heavily in branding and culture while underinvesting in operational clarity. Matthew argues that successful brands balance why with how. Culture matters, but only when supported by clear processes and systems that make the desired behavior easy to execute.
This philosophy aligns closely with extended enterprise learning models, where organizations must enable franchisees, partners, and customers who operate independently but still represent the brand.
In these environments, training, technology, and operations cannot exist in silos. They must reinforce one another. Thryv’s role is to provide the operational foundation that allows that reinforcement to happen consistently across locations and markets.
For readers who want a more structured breakdown of how these ideas translate into practice, a companion case study titled Thryv: Aligning Technology, Training, and Operations for Confident Small Business Growth explores the enablement framework in greater depth. The case study outlines learner types, training structures aligned with the LatitudeLearning Training Program Roadmap, and best practices for overcoming common scaling challenges in franchise and distributed business models.
Together, the podcast episode and case study offer a clear picture of how thoughtful enablement supports growth. Technology becomes a lever rather than a liability. Training becomes a multiplier rather than a remedial effort. Operations become predictable without becoming rigid.
🎧 To explore the full conversation, listen to the Training Impact Podcast episode featuring Matthew Gourgeot of Thryv.
📄 Download the companion case study: Thryv: Aligning Technology, Training, and Operations for Confident Small Business Growth
🌐 Learn more about Thryv on their website https://www.thryv.com/
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