Honoring A Great Friend of Franchising
I just recently learned of a dear friend’s passing. The wonderful Roger Murphy, CEO of Murphy Business & Financial Corporation LLC, passed on 11/30/16 and my heart broke in a million pieces when I received the sad, sad, news.
My relationship with Roger started out with a cold call and very quickly bloomed into a deep and meaningful friendship laced liberally with fun, mutual respect, and creativity. Roger became not only a long-time, valued client who pushed us to improve our offerings and service year after year (in a great way! 🙂 ), he became a deeply respected business mentor for me personally and helped our small fledgling firm grow exponentially and prosper over the last 9 years.
As was so well said in his tribute…
“Best known for his tireless work ethic and entrepreneurial ambitions, Roger grew his business into the largest business brokerage franchise in North America, and was respected around the world for his savvy, wit, integrity and the collaborative spirit he brought to everything he did because it was always done with a strong team around him.”
This next part chokes me up every time I read it as this was my exact experience of Roger…
“Roger made those around him better, and enjoyed helping others achieve their dreams.”
Not only would our business not be what it is today without Roger’s insights and thoughtful guidance, Roger modeled for me how to create a culture of mutual respect, integrity, and fun where everyone thrives. And as I think back on the many conversations we had about business, culture, golf, media, publishing, franchising and our devotion to our beloved dogs, I smile at the family’s request for donations to Golden Retriever Rescue of Mid-Florida in lieu of flowers.
January is ‘Roger Murphy’ month here at SPEAK! and we will be donating this month’s charitable contribution to Roger’s beloved retrievers.
Thank you, dear Roger, for your friendship, insights, wisdom and for all the fun and laughs over the years. I will miss you dearly.
Your fan forever,
Katrina
P.S. To give you an idea of Roger’s ability to always create the best experience for everyone around him, check out this case study we did in 2014 on the elements of a fantastic franchise convention:
One of the best parts for me this year was when the gracious Roger Murphy suggested I invite my Mom, also a Floridian to join us. In our debrief, Roger commented that one of the highlights of the event was meeting “Mother SPEAK!”. I was really touched by that – thank you, Roger!
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