SOHO ACADEMY
Weissbort explains: “We saw a gap in the market to train new fitness professionals alongside qualified fitness professionals in a gym environment. We were unhappy with some of the skill sets we observed when recruiting PTs and instructors – courses were too basic and didn’t prepare people for the real world. We felt we could do better in preparing people for the real fitness environment. “Training and mentoring students
T
on the gym fl oor itself, alongside real PTs and with work experience integrated into the training, means they are able to fully understand and apply their learning to real situations/ clients. We aim to produce quality PTs, not just qualifi ed PTs.” All students also receive a free
membership to Soho Gyms, to enable them to fully immerse themselves in the environment.
he Soho Academy was set up by Soho Gyms in autumn 2009. Academy manager Rebecca
The academy – which is accredited
by CYQ – caters for everyone, including external candidates, with top performers often recruited by Soho Gyms; the academy therefore provides a steady stream of potential employees who Soho Gyms knows will be able to meet its own high standards, and in whom the Soho Gyms brand ethos is already instilled. Nevertheless, it is also open to
training other operators’ staff, as Weissbort explains: “Our courses run over the weekends and only on the occasional weekday – perfect for operators who want to send staff, or for those people who wish to study on a fl exible schedule.” Weissbort concludes: “Operators
are the biggest employer of fi tness professionals, and it’s in their interest to have better qualifi ed staff. I believe it therefore makes sense for them to be part of the training solution. The government should support employers in achieving this.”
The Soho Academy enables new recruits to train alongside qualified fitness professionals
up the mantle. SPELG’s requirement for every employee to have a training plan, and for employers to have a planned approach to delivering the training required by their entire workforce, could contribute to this. “If an operator can be part of the
delivery solution, rather that relying solely on indirectly funded or bought- in provision, meeting these obligations will be easier,” says Lee. But as Sesnan explains, there will be
space within an open marketplace for any organisation that is able to deliver
“the right training, at the right level, and at the right cost”; operators may increasingly venture into the training arena, but specialist training providers will still have a role to play. Martin Mckenzie of Fight Fit
observes: “If operators have the time, resources and focus to provide standards of training that match leading specialist training providers, I don’t
november/december 2011 © cybertrek 2011
see an issue in them entering this area. However, in the current climate, sticking to core business and looking at fresh ways to improve the existing offer may well prove to be the best way forward for many operators. “It has been demonstrated time
and time again that organisations which stick to their core business and constantly look at ways to refresh and improve their offering will, in general, fi nd themselves in a much stronger position than those organisations that diversify too much and then fi nd themselves unable to give the new ventures the attention they need.
“Working with a training provider
that understands the clubs’ outcomes and objectives, and that is able to personalise the elements of the training to incorporate the operators’ philosophies, in my opinion, gives a stronger product to members.” Denise Page, director of YMCAfi t,
concludes: “The right balance is important: if operators existed without independent training providers, this could result in a lack of variety in training provision.”
healthclub@leisuremedia.com kate cracknell
Read Health Club Management online at
healthclubmanagement.co.uk/digital 43
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