Edinburgh Napier University

  While researchers and practitioners have recognised the essential role of employee organisational citizenship behaviours (OCBs), there is an absence of their consideration within franchise systems as a unique context. We aim to address this gap by exploring the nature of franchisee OCBs and their antecedents. Through a set of semi-structured qualitative interviews, we find critical new evidence, not only of the existence of franchisee OCBs but also of franchisor OCBs, reflecting the reciprocal character of franchise relationships. Further, we reveal frequent shifts of franchisee OCBs from one referent to another, often from the franchisor to franchisee peers, or even industry groups outside the franchisor-franchisee dyad, in the wake of disappointed interactions with the franchisor. Ultimately, we point at the critical role of the franchisor’s field consultant as the liaison person who appears frequently mismanaged by franchisors in the eyes of franchisees.