Staffing/Recruitment/Retention
Team Development: Re-Inspire Your Staff
When employees feel uninspired, they don’t think about how to improve the systems at their facility. They aren’t interested in sharing their great ideas, and they don’t care about really engaging their clients.
Empowered Employees Perform Better
Want to improve productivity among your employees? Empower them, says research published in the Journal of Applied Psychology (2011; 96 [3], 485–500). The study’s purpose was to study “antecedents and behavioral outcomes of employees’ perceptions of organizational support for development.” Analyzing data gathered from 264 exempt-level employees and their supervisors, the study authors found that participation in training courses, interaction between supervisors and employees, and mentoring were associated with improved perception of employee support.
Developing Exceptional Teams
It struck me in the coffee shop. I was having my weekly mastermind meeting with a fellow business owner. I was sharing a book that I highly recommended, and I told him that I had given a copy to each of my managers. After my friend skimmed it, he asked why I would gift it to my staff. He explained that he didn’t want to encourage his staff to dream bigger. They might get inflated egos. They might demand more. They might leave.
The Pay Rate Debate
If you’ve managed a group fitness department long enough, you’ve probably felt like the “red-headed stepchild” more than once. If your facility is like a host of others, your department isn’t considered a separate profit center, but rather a part of membership. Since group exercise doesn’t usually have a “home” on the profit and loss statement, payroll is often the only line item attributed to it. Consequently, when cuts are made, guess which department is most often flagged!
Staffing for Success
The high turnover rate among fitness industry staff is not news. In many cases, staff seem to be coming and going through a revolving door! Having a high-end fitness center with fancy amenities, décor and equipment is ideal, but if your staff is unable to meet client expectations, you will struggle to maintain memberships and meet your revenue goals. The good news is that your facility doesn’t need to operate like this.
Host Successful Group Exercise Department Meetings
For a variety of reasons, as a group fitness director you need to meet with your instructors regularly. However, actually getting instructors to attend department meetings can be a daunting task. Ali Helms, fitness director at the Jewish Community Alliance in Jacksonville, Florida, offers tips for hosting a successful—and well-attended—department meeting:
Entry-Level Employees Unprofessional, Says Study
Recently graduated or certified individuals looking to get ahead may want to take a course in professionalism. In a 2010 survey of hiring managers and business leaders, 38.2% of respondents stated that professionalism had decreased among entry-level workers. How would you rate your professionalism? If you’re in the market for a new job, consider these suggestions from Linda McHugh, director of group fitness programming for 24 Hour Fitness®.
Communication Conundrums: Instructor Issues
As we discovered in the previous installment of this column, group fitness managers (GFMs) are the communication hub connecting instructors, upper management, owners, members and others. This can leave you, as a GFM, overworked and misunderstood. It can also lead to major issues with instructors—issues that, if not addressed, can have a significant, negative effect on your program.
The Language of Job Postings
If the world as we know it were coming to an end and it was your job to find skilled individuals to rebuild society, how would you pick the “right” people? If you chose wisely, they all would flourish; if you chose unwisely, everyone would flounder. When you’re hiring for your organization, use the same careful consideration.
Digitally Enhancing the Value of Evaluations
Performance reviews are part of any job, and most fitness professionals have either had one or given one at some point. Effective staff evaluations provide personal trainers and group fitness instructors the valuable feedback they need to become confident communicators and refined professionals. Among managers, the best of the best have streamlined performance review systems that have been in place for years and contribute to the success of many instructors and trainers.
Conflict Resolution in the Workplace
Managers often have to deal with conflict among staff members. Clashes can become disruptive if not dealt with properly. But how do you quell arguments and create a team-oriented environment? “My overall philosophy is ‘Seek to understand,’” says Helen Vanderburg, president of Heavens Fitness in Calgary, Alberta. “My best advice is to confront the problem without judgment.
Planning Successful Staff Retreats
How cohesive and harmonious is your workplace culture? Does your staff share a unified vision? Are employees on board with the systems you have in place? Do they know they have a voice in your organization? Would you say your company has soul?
Manage Multigenerational Staff Successfully
Fitness facilities worldwide are filled with employees and contractors whose ages span multiple generations. With each generation comes a different work ethic and sense of how responsibilities are handled. For a fitness facility owner or manager, an understanding of generational differences can help foster a sense of community and success among staff. Here are tips for managing a multigenerational staff, courtesy of Chicago-based Lakeshore Staffing:
Empower Your Evaluations
Welcome to part three of our five-part “Crash Course in Excellence” series with takeaway strategies. This article explores performance reviews in the fitness environment, especially the often overlooked piece of the puzzle called “bilateral evaluations.”
How to Implement a QEP
Have you ever wondered how to offer your personal training staff effective, ongoing quality education that will meet your departmental goals and their professional growth desires without crippling your budget? A Quarterly Education Program (QEP) is an educational syllabus offered in-house on an annual basis that addresses those needs and more!
Keep Quality Employees
Many business owners and managers might agree with the statement “Good help is hard to find.” The interview, hiring and training processes can also be expensive and time-consuming. But once you’ve found and groomed a star employee, how do you make sure he or she remains on board? Behavior strategist and performance management coach Joe Takash offers the following tips for retaining top talent:
Creating a Successful Internship Program
Internship programs provide supervised practical experience for people wanting to gain hands-on knowledge in a specific area of the health and fitness industry. Designing and running your own internship program can be a rewarding experience for both you and your students. It can also become an additional revenue stream for your business and increase awareness of your name as a leader in the personal training industry.
How do you compensate or reward trainers for a job well done?
At our studio we do not have a set bonus structure. I don’t believe in one because I want my employees to work hard to be proud of themselves and feel fulfilled, not simply to earn additional money. We sometimes provide bonuses, but they are not solely based on gross receipts. They are also based on trainers taking initiative, being innovative and going beyond the job description.
Spanning The Generations
Have you ever wondered why younger trainers are labeled as
having little loyalty to, or ownership of, the fitness business the way you did when you were their age? Or perhaps you are one of those younger trainers and you cannot figure out why your older colleagues frown when you tell them to “cheer up” and not take their jobs too seriously. Why does a group exercise instructor who has been teaching since the 1980s clash with the new director who feels strongly about moving away from the “old-school” styles of teaching?
Build Your Team
It is said that if you want to be successful, you must surround yourself with great people. One of the most challenging aspects of running your own business is finding great people and then keeping them.
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