Done-For-You Hiring Plan and Detailed Job Descriptions for Gym Owners

Below is a short, non-exhaustive list of low-level tasks that often prevent entrepreneurs from growing their businesses. We’re not saying the tasks are unimportant. Some of them—like billing clients—are absolutely essential. But they’re not high-level tasks, and owners can teach others to do them with ease so they can get back to growth activities. Here are just a few important but low-level tasks a business owner doesn’t need to do:

• Mopping floors and scrubbing toilets.
• Shoveling and mowing.
• Maintaining equipment.
• Billing clients and grinding through administrative work.
• Opening the doors in the morning.
• Closing the doors at night.
• Living on social media.
• Coaching every class.
• Making workout posts.

COACH

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Many owners start gyms because they love to coach. Passionate about fitness, they open a facility, and they plan to coach every class.

Here’s the reality: You won’t be able to sustain that plan for long. You’ll either hit burnout or run out of money.

That’s not to say you can’t coach classes if you want to. Two-Brain Business works with many successful owners who still coach classes—but they do it because they want to, not because they have to. And their businesses still grow while they teach squats because they have the right people in the right roles.

Many new gym owners see coaching as a high-value role, but it’s not. It’s important—critically important—but it’s worth about $20-25 an hour. And it isn’t that hard to groom a coach to lead a class.

The hesitation here is always related to something like this: “My clients love me. I’ll never find someone who can replace me.” If you’re irreplaceable, your business won’t grow, and you’ll reach a hard income ceiling because you run out of hours in the day. It happened to our founder, Chris Cooper, who once coached 13 sessions back to back and realized he hadn’t made enough money to feed his family.

So hire some coaches and shape them into the great leaders you need. Replace yourself. Better yet, hire a GM and get him or her train the coaches. All you have to do is identify roles and responsibilities and select people with the right skills. Then you train them, supply constructive criticism and provide regular opportunities for skill development.

The best coaches aren’t the ones with the most credentials or university degrees. Education helps, sure. But it’s not the most important aspect of a great coach. The best coaches always get people to move better and smile—and you don’t need a degree for that. In reality, coaches/ need one credential to qualify for insurance and a set of soft skills that allows them to connect with clients.

You’re looking for passionate, friendly leaders who are invested in health and fitness. Sometimes you’ll find them via a job posting, and sometimes you’ll find them in your classes. Some will know the origin and insertion of the quadriceps muscles. Others will not, but they’ll know the exact points of performance for a squat, and, more importantly, they’ll be able to make a client smile while he or she learns to squat.

Coaches are leaders. They need to inspire and connect with people. And they need to be able to follow instructions that ensure they’re doing exactly what you want them to do. That’s where roles and tasks come in, as well as regular performance reviews.

Compensation

Coaches can be paid in several ways. In the industry, the group coach role averages about $20 or $25 per hour. That results in an annual salary of about $40,000-$50,000 if the person coaches eight hours a day—which is usually far too much for a person to handle.

We recommend coaches find ways to move beyond that ceiling through personal training, small-group coaching and specialty programs that result in hourly wages well above $25. That’s outside the scope of this guide, but you can read all about the plan in the free ebook “How to Add 10K of Personal Training Revenue to Your Gym in 30 Days or Less.”

Whatever you pay a coach, we’d recommend you pay all staff a maximum of four-ninths (44 percent) of gross revenue. That might be a flat rate per group class or a rate per head in each class. It’s up to you. But remember to set aside 33 percent of revenue for profit first, as well as 22 percent for fixed costs.

In a successful, well-run gym whose owner has moved into growth roles and created lucrative opportunities for staff, coaches can make a great deal more than $20-$25 an hour/$50,000 a year.

Roles and Tasks

Adhere to all standards of behavior in coaches manual/staff playbook.

• Show leadership and professionalism at all times.

Prepare and implement group training strategies for clients, as detailed below.

• With skills/gymnastics, be sure to focus on technique, control and quality of movement with each athlete.
• In strength work, focus on form first and PRs/load second.
• Don’t let athletes skip assistance work.
• Encourage athletes to do the mobility work before leaving.

Manage general administrative tasks and set the tone for each session.

• Arrive fully prepared 15 minutes before every session and follow the facility’s opening checklist. If a class is in session, the coach should greet and interact with arriving/exiting members.
• Start all classes precisely on time.
• Smile and be inviting, courteous and fun. Introduce yourself to everyone in the room
• Take attendance and ensure everyone has signed in through our system.
• Cover any announcements on the whiteboard or as described to you by General Manager.
• Use an ice breaker: Make up a question or use one that’s already on the board.
• Briefly describe the workout for the class, spending a moment explaining the why of the workout.

Prepare athletes for training.

• Lead clients through the general and specific warm-ups but be sure to move about the room and talk to each person.
• If someone is late: have him or her run through the warm-up on the side alone, then jump in. Absolutely no burpee penalties.

Run the group workout.

• Set up the room in a way that nobody will be in danger when transitioning between movements.
• Assign modifications as needed, considering injury status, mobility, goals, previous training history, and skill and fitness levels.
• Supervise weight selection for workout and have clients perform 3 practice reps of each movement. If form is lacking, scale the athlete to a more appropriate movement/load.
• Remind athletes to hold off putting away equipment until all members are done.
• Set timer, count off 3, 2, 1 … go!
• Move around the room and monitor form, giving precise, actionable cues to each athlete. If form is slipping as fatigue grows and cues do not improve it, scale on the spot.
• Look for those who are frustrated and those who achieve PRs. After class, pull frustrated clients aside and offer to help through a PT session. Talk to athletes who hit PRs about new goals and ways to achieve them, including personal sessions.
• Maintain high energy and enthusiasm but prioritize coaching, not cheerleading.
• As athletes finish, encourage them to cheer others on rather than put equipment away. Gear will be put away as a group when everyone is done.

Supervise the post-workout period.

• Upon completion of the workout, high-five everyone.
• Remind clients to log their scores.
• Get the class started on assistance work and cool-down/mobility movements. Focus on tissues worked that day (especially the high-volume areas).
• Perform “campfiring”: Talk to clients about things other than CrossFit. Get to know them and find other ways to help them reach their goals
• Usher everyone to the side/lobby if another class is coming in.
• Start the next class on time.
• Follow the facility’s post-class or closing checklist.

Assist in promotional endeavors through group participation, public speaking, and delivery of promotional materials. o Get at least one or two pictures/videos every class and share with Client Success Manager (CSM).

• Provide one to three instructional videos or photos per week to establish expertise. Share with CSM.
• Write one blog post every two weeks on an area of interest or specialty.
• Create content as directed to promote specialty programs or upcoming events.

Pursue additional development. 

• Maintain all credentials and actively engage in learning, either through self-directed study or in consultation with the GM during quarterly reviews.
• Meet quarterly with GM for performance evaluation and goal setting.
• Attend monthly coaches meetings, and, as directed by GM, present on areas of interest/specialty to educate other staff members.
• Participate in all educational components of staff meetings.
• Be prepared to offer ideas and suggestions for improvement.

Operate and oversee the facility. o Provide general assistance in maintaining and tidying the facility.

• Notify cleaner of areas requiring attention.
• Remove all broken/malfunctioning equipment from the floor and notify GM through maintenance log.
• Review Emergency Action Plan monthly and know all emergency/accident procedures, including Accident Reports.

Characteristics and Hiring Tips

Above all, coaches are caring leaders. They have empathy and amazing communications skills. They are passionate about fitness and live an active, healthy lifestyle. Ideal coaches understand the mission of your business and are fully invested in supporting it. Technical skills are a definite asset, but they can easily be added to a friendly, passionate motivator. It’s much more difficult to add soft skills to a boring, cold tactician.

Great coaches:

• Are invested in the success of the business.
• Care about each client and find creative ways to motivate.
• Celebrate successes and make clients feel like superstars.
• Develop effective communication styles.
• Fill the space with their presence such that a visitor immediately knows who is running the class.
• Consider themselves “fitness professionals” whether they are full-time staff members or coach a few classes a week.
• Never let clients see they’re having a bad day.
• Live an active lifestyle and pursue professional development, not because they have to but because they want to.
• Have the technical skills needed to help clients move better and accomplish goals.
• Absorb and act on constructive criticism, seeing it as an opportunity to improve.

GENERAL MANAGER

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If the CEO is the captain, the general manager is the “first mate.”

He or she takes executive orders from the CEO and implements them. The CEO sets the vision, and the general manager implements it.

General managers should be free to make decisions, but they should know when they need the CEO’s input. For example, if a GM asks “should I order more toilet paper?” you don’t actually have a manager. If, on the other hand, your GM suggests constantly increasing class sizes might warrant building another bathroom, you’ve got the right person in place.

GMs provide a buffer and a filter. They are the CEO’s link to the staff, and great GMs protect the CEOs time fiercely. They’re independent and self-motivated yet able to take detailed instructions and follow through with implementation.

Great GMs do not need to be coaches, though many are. But the GM’s role is not to coach every class but rather to manage the day-to-day operations.

In some cases, the role develops over time as finances allow. For example, a GM might first cut coaching in half to handle increased other responsibilities, including staff development. As new coaches develop and revenue increases, the GM can reduce coaching hours and increase management time. Eventually, the GM might coach one class a day—or none at all.

Compensation

In the 4/9ths Model, we like to tie wages to revenue. For example, if a gym charges $70 for personal training, the trainer should get $31.11.

Some important roles can’t easily be tied to revenues. They include the roles of GM, administrator and cleaner (see below). These roles should be paid hourly and tracked on a timesheet. Wages paid to these roles must still come out of the 44 percent of total revenue set aside for staff pay.

In the early stages of a gym, GM duties are often tacked on to other duties to create a full-time position. For example, a GM might to 15 hours of personal training, 10 hours of group coaching and 15 hours of management tasks each week. As the business grows and the GM duties increase, he or she can coach less and manage more.

In this example, the GM hours are not tied to revenue.

What’s a good starting point? About $20 per hour or around $250-$300 per week.

Roles and Tasks

Manage staff schedules.

• Confirm coverage.
• Handle call offs and vacations.
• Cover or find coverage as needed.

Fill in and manage annual calendar via Brand Action Sheet.

• Ensure all holidays and closings are announced well in advance.
• Fill in the big events for the year.
• Find opportunities for specialty courses, clinics and seminars.
• Ensure the Brand Action Sheet is filled in for at least three months to allow proper time to announce and fill programs.

Manage retail department.

• Set up kiosk and make sure payment app is working.
• Spot-check transactions to ensure clients are paying for products.
• Make announcements for product orders and launches.
• Advertise products weekly.
• Order and stock as needed.

Oversee cleaning and maintenance departments.

• Provide cleaners with an up-to-date checklist.
• Manage cleaning and maintenance schedules.
• Cover shifts as needed to ensure a clean facility.
• Check cleaning supply levels and order as needed.

Oversee client success manager (CSM).

• Follow up with CSM to ensure communication with prospects is professional and effective.
• Ensure Intake processes are followed, new intros are booked and sales team is ready.
• Ensure integration is effective and new members know where to go, what to do, what to use and who to talk to.
• Ensure retention processes are implemented and effective, including updated automations, goal-setting sessions, discretionary spending on gifts.

Oversee social media manager (SMM).

• Check all platform and website insights and analytics to get objective data on performance.
• Provide feedback to SMM to ensure constant improvement and elevation of the role.
• Provide SMM with calendar for posting schedule.
• Connect SMM with Brand Action Sheet to ensure events are created well in advance and all programs are advertised often.

Maintain the atmosphere, spirit and goals of the brand, including oversight of other contractors, employees and tenants thereof. Review current SOPs and update staff playbook appropriately.

• Every month, choose one system to improve through focused work.

Mentor staff through monthly one-on-ones as they build their careers. o Identify current successes.

• Help staff set areas of focus.
• Update likes and dislikes, as well as long-term goals of staff members.
• Provide recommendations for continued/increased success.

Manage outreach and co-branding activities.

• With budget set by CEO, create a quarterly plan tied to Brand Action Sheet, including expos, local business events, competitions, runs, OCRs, health and fitness related events, etc.
• Visit one to two businesses weekly through appointments and cold-call coffee visits to find out how we can help their clients and employees.
• Pursue cross-promotional opportunities according to budget set by CEO.

Characteristics and Hiring Tips

General managers are intelligent, self-motivated people with great organization and communications skills. GMs are an important face in the business, and they manage your staff, Copyright © 2019 – Two-Brain Business 13

so they need to be kind but clear leaders who are deeply invested in the business, its clients and its staff.

Great GMs:

• Understand the vision of the CEO and are committed to implementing it.
• Must be well spoken and comfortable with in-person, over-the-phone and online communication.
• Must be well organized and task oriented.
• Are able to manage others and help others improve performance.
• Often have strong skills in social media, spreadsheets, website management and general computing.
• Earn the respect other staff members and lead by example.
• Are knowledgeable about all aspects of the business.
• Perform consistently well on evaluations (90 percent or better).
• Are timely and respectful of the standards of care and behavior.

CLEANER

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A cleaner might be considered a low-value role, but it’s still an essential position. Filthy gyms turn off clients and are often indicative of deeper problems. CrossFit founder Greg Glassman famously said he could tell the quality of a gym by the cleanliness of its bathrooms. How you do anything is how you do everything.

So cleaning is essential. But the owner shouldn’t do it.

Too often, we see owners in the early stages wearing a host of hats, as well as a set of rubber gloves. The hard-grinding owner thinks nothing of scrubbing a toilet or mopping the floors. He or she is only too happy to roll up the sleeves and get to work. But it’s a bad investment.

Anyone can clean the floors. Only the owner can grow the business. We encourage owners to offload cleaning as soon as possible. Doing so is an easy win. Cleaners are not paid a great deal, but cleaning takes time. That means an owner can buy back valuable time for a low price.

This role can be tacked on to others to create a larger position, but be careful of burdening a talented coach with vacuuming. Could he or she generate more personal-training revenue if someone else cleaned the floors? Often, cleaning is farmed out—to a member, to a cleaning company, etc.

Cleaners simply need to be reliable people who don’t mind manual labor. Is the business always above minimum cleanliness standards, and is the cleaner doing the job in the allocated time each week? If so, you’ve found a great cleaner—and free time to build the business.

Compensation

Cleaners can usually be paid about $12-$15 and hour. Remember, this money comes from the 44 percent of gross revenue set aside to pay all staff costs.

Try to look at this money as a very profitable investment. Could you, as owner, use a free hour to make more than $15? Yes, you could.

So hire a cleaner.

Roles and Tasks

• Arrive on time as scheduled.
• Meet all service standards (see staff playbook) and perform all duties in time allowed.
• Follow the cleaning checklist for the correct order of tasks.
• Check all supplies and follow resupply procedures to ensure the facility never runs out of anything.
• Communicate with GM if extra hours are needed to meet service standards, or note any areas of concern that might require extra attention by other staff members outside cleaner’s hours.
• Ensure supplies and equipment are always put away in an orderly manner.

Characteristics and Hiring Tips

Your cleaner must be reliable and diligent. Those are the two main characteristics you are looking for. We’ve seen many situations in which owners trade services with members or pay unreliable people to clean, and that usually results in missed or subpar duties and awkward situations.

Your cleaner must know that the role is essential, and he or she must perform it as scheduled. If you can’t find the right person, contact any cleaning company in your area.

The best cleaners:

• Are professionals or enjoy manual labor.
• Arrive on time every time.
• Finish the work on time every time.
• Make it shine.
• Don’t require large amounts of oversight.
• Can follow checklists.

CLIMB THE LADDER

Creating these five roles will dramatically improve any facility in the early stages. While it might feel odd for a generalist owner to give tasks to specialists, this is how businesses grow. Steve Jobs didn’t build many iPads, and Elon Musk isn’t turning screws on Teslas.

When we first talk to new entrepreneurs, we quickly identify the lowest-value tasks he or she is performing. That usually means we get the mop out of the owner’s hands immediately. But before long, we’re getting rid of other tasks, including excessive amounts of coaching and basic administrative duties. After that, we install a thin management layer with a GM.

All this allows the owner to use his or her time on the most important role: generating revenue.

Owners who are very good at generating revenue soon need to add more roles. These often include specialty group coaches, nutrition coaches, therapists, and so on. At this stage, administrator might become a full-time role, and CSM and SMM might become their own part-time positions. A receptionist might be needed, as well as a head coach and a sales manager. A chief operations officer (COO) might need to be installed above the GM to allow the owner to offload high-value roles. Maybe the owner hires a CEO to replace himself or herself.

This process takes the owner from a sole proprietor who does everything to a successful entrepreneur who has created a cash-flow asset and now has the free time to create another or retire.

In the Two-Brain Business model, this is the path from Founder to Farmer to Tinker to Thief.

To read more about the four phases of the entrepreneur’s journey, read “Founder, Farmer, Tinker, Thief” by Chris Cooper.

And if you need help figuring out how to hire staff who can free up your time, book a free call with a Two-Brain Business mentor here.