How clubs are keeping employees on the team during a labor shortage.
To successfully keep the people you want on your team, operators are turning to new strategies to create engagement and motivation. Meeting employee needs creates a place they want to work and increases loyalty to your organization.
In the latest Thought Leaders digital roundtable, Brent Frueh, the general manager of Rochester Athletic Club; Mark Harrington Jr., the president of Healthworks and Republic Fitness; and Michele Wong, the COO of Active Wellness shared their concerns and top tips for keeping employees.
To start on a high note, Harrington Jr. shared Healthworks and Republic Fitness have seen improvement of staff retention in the past year. Part of the reason why is the leadership team has been working to receive feedback and determine areas in need of examination.
To help, Harrington Jr. and his team look at successful strategies in other industries and adapts them to their organization. Some of these include hybrid or remote work policies and increasing compensation to keep up with inflation and the drastically changed housing market.
“We found that our pay hadn’t necessarily increased to the level it needed to be to let people live where they want to live and work with us,” said Harrington Jr. “We spent a significant amount of time trying to benchmark that and saying based on standards, how much do they need to make to live where we know they want to live?”
The Rochester Athletic Club also looked to increase wages and appeal of especially part-time positions. Frueh explained how it can be difficult to find employees when other businesses like grocery stores and fast-food restaurants are offering higher pay.
To increase the number of applicants and staff retention, they’ve revaluated their salary structure and emphasized the benefits of working at the gym versus under a big corporation.
“Our environment is an environment people want to work in and want to be a part of,” said Frueh. “And they want that gym membership that may coincide with that. It comes down to a lot of little things.”
Another big strategy was fostering connection with the staff. Taking the time to create space for employees to address their concerns or share about their personal life creates connections that turn into loyalty.
Wong explained how she takes the time to get to know frontline staff when Active Wellness was building their newest locations despite not working with them directly day-to-day. When she goes to visit the gyms, she reconnects with the team members who are always eager to update her on their personal lives.
“I think those connection points and that relationship beyond knowing who they directly report to on a day-to-day basis is retention,” said Wong. “Pay is one thing, but if you don’t enjoy the people you’re around and have the opportunities to learn from different individuals, you’re probably going to move on quickly.”
Frueh emphasized the power of listening to employees concerns or frustrations which encourages open and honest communication.
“I think by having those conversations you’ll be more likely to know when staff may be frustrated or something’s bothering them,” said Frueh. “Being open and vulnerable yourself and talking about things opens up that dialogue. It might be something that’s going on outside of the environment we’re in, and it might be something that’s something we can control and should pay attention to.”
Encouraging and listening to feedback on the workplace helps invest staff in operations and make them feel they’re playing an important part. Wong and Harrington Jr. said they use surveys and meetings to gain feedback from employees.
Healthworks and Republic Fitness also implemented open town hall meetings three to four times a year. At these meetings, Harrington Jr. updates the staff on operational details, and there’s an open Q&A where any staff member can ask questions. Employees can also submit anonymous feedback if they’re not comfortable talking in front of the company. Allowing different avenues of feedback ensures the leadership team knows of all potential concerns.
Ultimately, improving staff retention boils down to communicating the needs from both sides. Knowing what employees need to fulfill their responsibilities with excellence and helping them achieve it is the best way to keep staff happy and on your team.
“Understand the human you’re hiring, what’s going on in their life outside of work, what they need to find that balance and take those things into consideration,” said Wong. “It’s not that the business always has to bend to that. It’s where are we meeting each other to make it work.”
Watch the full conversation, below.
