The Franchise Leaders Forum Podcast

Stepping into a company your parents built sounds like a natural transition. It’s not.In this episode, Tracy and Shannon sit down with Anne Huntington Sharma, CEO and President of Huntington Learning Center, to talk about what it actually looks like to lead a nearly 50-year-old franchise brand into its next chapter. From growing up in the business to building experience outside of it, Anne shares what it took to step into leadership, earn credibility, and navigate the reality of leading a system where trust isn’t automatic. This conversation goes beyond leadership titles. Anne breaks down what it means to act as a steward of a legacy brand while still pushing it forward, from leading through COVID and driving a system-wide shift online to managing large-scale innovation across hundreds of franchise locations. She also shares how Huntington is investing in the future, including building custom curriculum powered by both AI and human expertise, and what it takes to roll out change in a way franchisees will actually adopt.They also get into the parts most people don’t talk about, balancing family dynamics inside a business, making long-term decisions while franchisees are focused on today, and why consistency, communication, and local community presence still matter more than ever.If you’ve ever wondered what it really takes to lead, evolve, and protect a legacy brand at the same time, this episode will give you a much clearer picture.So if you’re building, leading, or stepping into something bigger than you, this is the episode to listen to.Resources:Business conference: https://chiefexecutive.net/Connect with Anne:Website: https://huntingtonhelps.com/Franchise Info: https://huntingtonfranchise.com/Phone: 1-800-CAN-LEARNLinkedIn: @anne-huntington-sharmaEpisode Highlights:Growing up inside a franchise system and what that actually looks likeThe decision to work outside the family business firstThe moment that led Anne to join Huntington full-timeNavigating leadership as the founder’s daughterLeading through COVID and system-wide changeHow to introduce innovation in a legacy franchise systemThe role of trust, consistency, and communication in leadershipWhy local marketing still drives franchise successBuilding credibility with franchisees over timeWhat franchisees need from leadership todayConnect with TracyPersonal LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tracy-panase/JBF LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/jbfsaleJBF Franchise System - https://jbfsalefranchise.com/Email: [email protected] with ShannonPersonal LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/shannonwilburn/       JBF LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/jbfsaleWebsite - https://shineexecutivecoaching.com/Email - [email protected]