It’s the time of year that many of you will be conducting employee reviews. The amount of time and effort you put forth will depend on the number of your employees on your payroll. Reviews should be looked at by both employees and owners/managers as a blessing, regardless of any circumstances. If an employee is on your payroll, you owe it to yourself, your organization and the employees to take the time and effort to conduct your reviews with a coach’s mentality. It’s also a joyful time of year with the holidays coming right around the corner and January will be here quicker than ever. You want your reviews to be positive and meaningful. So, what’s the end-game with a review? It’s a great opportunity to talk about an employee’s performance and how it is impacting the business. Whoever is conducting reviews should also be up-to-speed on the company’s objectives.
Reviews on front-line employees are just as important as management level personnel as they typically have the most face time with members. Continuity with the staff has a direct correlation to member retention. I worked for a well-known organization in Chicago several years back and remembered some of their front desk associates were making more than their supervisors because they were getting raises every year for 15 years! The owner of the company placed tremendous value on their tenure, not looking at it as a curse because their pay was so high. What are you looking for from front-line employees? Professional attitude, enthusiasm, dependability, team-player, competent, and someone who embraces all the club’s policies including sales and marketing initiatives. Most front-line employees are also hoping and expecting a pay increase if they have a favorable review.
Supervisors and management reviews should include more business-related items. In addition to the qualities listed above, most everyone should be responsible for some or all of a budget. Part of the review would include reviewing the budget and discussing any variances. Another great ingredient for reviews would be adding Personal Performance Objectives for management level staff.
A Personal Performance Objective could be 3-4 items that may include staff development classes or adding new programs to the club. It may be an expansion of retail or introducing new services. Annual or semi-annual bonuses are often tied to reviews for management level staff. I like semi-annual reviews as it is a great way to have meaningful conversations with all employees twice a year instead of once.
Regardless of how you handle reviews, invest the time and energy into reviews and it will come back to you and your organization tenfold.
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Smart Fitness is a powerful tool that makes everything from certifying fitness staff to onboarding new team members easy and efficient. Our courses are designed by former club managers and trainers so they provide effective solutions to the “real life” challenges faced by managers and team members. With Smart Fitness you can hire people with the right qualities then provide the education they need to excel in their positions. And with our custom packages, you can select the option that is right for your club and your budget. For more information or to schedule a no-obligation demonstration contact Anastasia Alexander at anastasiaa@smartfitness.com
Alan Cohen is the Founder/President of FitnessJobs.com and a career expert in the health and fitness industry. He can be reached by email: alan@fitnessjobs.com or by calling 602-334-7898.