industry standards
up to scratch I
n an economic climate where every customer through the door matters even more than usual, where efficiency drives are the order of
the day, and where facilities face ever more demanding financial challenges, can investing valuable funding in management models and standards really help take the pressure off? “Effective and therefore profi table
centre management depends on effi cient and constructive use of management time. Achieving that requires all the staff to work together and follow standard procedures, as well as implementing tried and tested systems to ensure the basics are in place. A quality management award such as Quest will assess these important criteria and provide recommendations to ensure the centre is working to its full potential,” explains David Monkhouse, regional manager of Quest, the UK quality scheme for sport and leisure. “Only
in place. All this, in turn, leads to improved customer satisfaction.” Monkhouse agrees, adding: “Good
standards will reduce complaints and increase compliments, so less staff time needs to be dedicated to dealing with customer dissatisfaction.”
THE GOLD STANDARD Management models also allow sites to benchmark themselves, both internally to recognise good practice and externally to learn from organisations that are doing things better. “In any sector, it’s important to gain an external view of how robust your internal management processes are, and it’s increasingly important to be able to demonstrate this to your customers, partners and other stakeholders,” says Pierre Cachet, chief executive officer at EFQM. “Assessments and awards generate confidence and prove that the services offered have been recognised by an independent third party as exceptional, helping businesses differentiate themselves.”
At the end of day, a centre is only ever as good as its worst lifeguard or duty manager
then can the management team truly concentrate on generating income.” External validation and adhering to
approved management models can also have a dramatic impact on customer approval, says Clare MacLeod, national manager for Clubmark, Sport England’s accreditation scheme for junior sports clubs. “Management models mean sites can be confi dent that they’ve reached minimum standards across a range of criteria and that they have, for example, appropriate insurance, coaching qualifi cations and risk assessments
Ultimately, investing in a management
standard will improve the quality of service a health club or leisure centre delivers. “At the end of day, a centre is only ever as good as its worst lifeguard or duty manager,” says Monkhouse. “That’s the point of quality awards – even if a centre gains nothing else from the process, they will at least get their staff to the basic standard, which can only lead to increased customer satisfaction, more referrals, improved processes, more people participating and a better bottom line.”
QUEST
Quest has defined good practice and ongoing development within a customer-focused management framework for more than 12 years. A tool for continuous improvement, it’s delivered by leisure professionals and involves mystery visits and an assessment every two years, after which centres get an overall banded score. The award was taken over by Right
Directions – in partnership with Leisure- net Solutions – at the end of 2010 and a new, enhanced Quest has already been launched. Quest 2011 differs from the old model in that it offers two levels – an entry level (one-day assessment) which takes in the core fundamentals of running a leisure facility, and a more advanced level for centres wishing to push themselves beyond the basic badge (a two-day assessment). At the advanced level, facilities now also have the freedom to choose specifi c modules for assessment, alongside the core areas. Unlike other quality marks, Quest is
the only award that solely assesses leisure facilities and sports development teams. “That’s the thing that makes Quest 2011 stand out – it has been written by the sector, for the sector, and assessments are carried out by informed peers who are sourced from within the sector,” says Monkhouse. “The self-selection element of the advanced two-day award also means it can be made specifi cally relevant to each and every centre.” For more information, visit
www.questnbs.org
58 Read Health Club Management online at
healthclubmanagement.co.uk/digital march 2011 © cybertrek 2011
Wendy Golledge investigates how management models and standards can help sports and leisure centres drive effi ciency savings, earn improved perception in the eyes of customers and ultimately improve their business
THE MAJOR MODELS
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