Michael Seid

Michael H. Seid, Managing Director, MSA Worldwide

94 Mohegan Drive, West Hartford, CT  06117

www.msaworldwide.com, mseid@msaworldwide.com

I am the founder and Managing Director of Michael H. Seid & Associates, LLC, (“MSA”) a provider of domestic and international franchise advisory services. During my professional career I have been a senior operations officer, financial executive, consultant or accountant for companies within the franchise, retail, restaurant, hospitality, healthcare, education and service industries.

I have consulted both domestically and internationally, for companies on the appropriateness of franchising, licensing and other methods of downstream distribution of products and services, the design and development of franchise and licensing systems and for established franchisors and other multi-unit operators. The firm provides services in developing programs, systems, manuals and training programs, franchisor marketing and expansion strategies, real estate selection and site development, franchisee advisory councils, franchisee relations, crisis management, litigation support and the strategic restructuring of established companies. I have provided litigation support for both franchisors and franchisees.

Since 1987 through the present, I have primarily been a consultant to the franchise industry. I graduated from Long Island University with a BS in Accounting in 1975 and obtained my CPA in New York State in 1978. During the period 1970 through 1976, I was a member of the US Army Reserves and was honorably discharged in 1976 with the rank of Staff Sergeant.

I am a frequent speaker at programs for the International Franchise Association, universities, law schools, retail and professional organizations and have lectured and written for the ABA Franchise Forum and the IFA’s Legal Forums. I have lectured at several universities and law schools including St. Thomas University, Georgetown Law School, New York University School of Law, Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, Nova University, the University of Arizona, Johnson & Wales University, MIT Sloan School of Management, Harvard Business School, University of California San Francisco (Berkeley) and Emery University School of Law. I have spoken at the Doha Economic Conference in Qatar on the use of franchising to create a middle class in the Middle East focused on dealing with the underlying economic causes of the Arab Spring.

I have published numerous articles on franchising, and I am the author of Franchising for Dummies, 2nd Edition published by Wiley Publishing, Inc. My co-author for Franchising for Dummies, 1st Edition, was the late Dave Thomas, Founder of Wendy’s International.

MSA Worldwide is a member of the International Franchise Association’s (IFA) Supplier Forum (SF) and I serve on the SF’s Board of Directors as a Past Chairman. As SF Chairman I was a member of the Board of Directors of the IFA and a participant on its Executive Committee. I served as a member of the Board of Directors of the IFA for two terms (2002 through 2008) and was the first professional services provider ever directly elected to the board in the association’s history. I was reelected to the IFA board in September 2011 and assumed my board responsibilities in February 2012.

I was a trustee of the IFA’s Educational Foundation, am Past Chairman of the IFA’s VetFran committee, am Chairman of the IFA’s Social Sector Franchising Committee, a past member of the IFA’s Finance Audit and Budget Committee, a member of the IFA’s Research Committee, a member of the IFA’s President’s Council, VetFran and the IFA’s FranPAC Committee. I have served as a member of several other IFA committees.

I have been qualified as an expert in Federal and State courts and have testified in several cases involving franchising, restaurants, retailing, manufacturers and service companies in State Court, Federal Court and in Arbitration proceedings. I have testified on behalf of both franchisors and franchisees.

I am Chief Concept Officer and a member of the Board of Directors and Executive Committee of CFWshops, a Social Sector Franchisor established to provide clinical services and essential medicines in the peri-urban areas of Sub Saharan Africa. I also serve on the board and executive committee of the HealthStore Foundation and One Family Health as part of my commitment to the use of business format franchising as a method to improving the human condition and have a world changing impact on poverty, diseases and economic development. CFWShops is a franchisor member of the IFA, and I am the representative of CFWShops at the International Franchise Association.

I am a member of the Goldman Sachs Special Situations Group’s Chambers Street Executive Network. The Special Situation Group (SSG) is a global investing platform that invests across the corporate capital structure. The Chambers Street Executive Network is comprised of senior industry experts appointed from diverse industries to advise SSG and its portfolio companies.

I am on the Board of Directors of the William Rosenberg International Center of Franchising at the University of New Hampshire. I am on the Board of Directors of Kidville, Inc. a public corporation.

I have completed the requirements and have been awarded the designation of CFE (Certified Franchise Executive) by the International Franchise Association’s Education Foundation (“IFAEF”). I have developed and presented several courses for the IFAEF.

I am a Certified Public Accountant, licensed in the State of New York. I am a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (“AICPA”), New York State Society of CPAs (“NYSSCPA”) and am an associated member of the American Bar Association (“ABA”).

We are the leading and most trusted strategic and tactical advisory firm in franchising. Our vision, creativity and extensive experience is our most important deliverable to our clients.

Our services are not limited to franchising. We recognize that franchising is simply one method of potential expansion for our clients.

We focus on the uniqueness of each of our client’s offerings and their brand promise. Each engagement is actively managed by a Managing Director and we do not employ salespeople.

Our senior engagement team members have all been franchisors or franchisees. Our advice is built on a foundation of practical real world experience.

We have frequently been honored in franchising for our knowledge and performance. More than 90% of our clients originate from referrals from other clients and professionals we have worked with. We are proud of the testimonials from our clients regarding the quality of our work and our direct and personal approach to each engagement. We are socially responsible:

All author proceeds from Franchising for Dummies go to the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption.

MSA established the first VetFran College Scholarship for returning military personnel.

We are Social Franchisors with over 120 medical clinics in East Africa. We established the Social Sector Franchising Task Force for the International Franchise Association chaired by Michael Seid and vice-chaired by Marla Rosner.

We have received extensive recognition: Michael Seid addresses world health conferences on the use of franchising as a vehicle to solve global health issues. Michael Seid addressed the the Doha Economic Forum on the use of franchising to create a middle class to deal with the Arab Spring.

We were selected to act as franchise experts for Canada Post in their recent action with the Canadian Postal Union.

Kay Ainsley has provided training classes for the U.S. Foreign Service Staff on franchising and alternative distribution strategies. We have lectured extensively in international emerging markets for the U.S. Department of Commerce and other government agencies on the use of franchising as a tool to build local economics.

Marla Rosner, MSA’s Senior Training Consultant, lectures extensively within franchising on operations and training.

Kay Ainsley has been elected to the board for PAFI, the Professional Athlete Franchise Initiative.

Kay Ainsley and Michael Seid have served as chairpersons of the industry’s professional organization, the Suppliers Forum, and have served on the IFA’s Board of Directors and Executive Committee.

In 2002 Michael Seid was the first professional ever directly elected to the IFA’s Board of Directors in the association’s history. He was re-elected to the board in 2012.

We are one of seventeen members of the Goldman Sachs Chambers Street Executive Network. Chambers Street acts as advisors to Goldman’s SSG group to advise their investment professionals and portfolio company executives.

Together with the late Dave Thomas, founder of Wendy’s International Michael Seid authored Franchising for Dummies, now in its third edition.

We are have been selected as the back up servicer in complex securitizations for companies including Arby’s, Dunkin Brands and Quiznos.

We are frequently asked to testify on Capitol Hill and in U.S. Statehouses on franchising and franchise relations.