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IHRSA update: Management education
The IHRSA Institute 2016 takes place in the US in August, offering executive education for club professionals. Kristen Walsh looks forward to the event
By Kristen Walsh, IHRSA | Published in Health Club Management 2016 issue 6
Hiring and keeping the right people is key to business success / shutterstock
The IHRSA Institute is nearly as old as IHRSA itself. The first event was held in 1984, just three years after the association itself was established, and over the years some 1,500 individuals have travelled from nine different countries around the globe to attend.
Early on, IHRSA’s leadership recognised the need for a high-level, industry-specific educational opportunity for club owners and managers. IHRSA wanted to professionalise the sector to better serve members, to protect the industry from unnecessary government regulation, and to encourage industry colleagues to take justifiable pride in the important work they were doing to improve the health, fitness and wellbeing of their clients.
The result: the creation of the IHRSA Institute, where a faculty of industry experts and renowned academics provide a balanced curriculum covering virtually every aspect of club management.
So who should attend? The ideal candidate is a manager who’s on their way up, or a top-tier manager who’s keen to polish their leadership skills.
During three full days of graduate-level instruction, attendees learn the skills required to run a club successfully, including in-depth discussions of real-life business situations, as well as interactive events designed to foster long-term relationships. IHRSA keeps the sessions small in size to maximise personal interaction.
“The IHRSA Institute is without doubt the best fitness business educational programme in the world,” says Alan Leach, regional manager of West Wood Clubs in Ireland. “Without the knowledge and expertise our managers have gained from attending the institute, I doubt we would have survived the catastrophic recession in Ireland. The powerful sales, marketing, programming and retention strategies presented at the institute have allowed us to build a strong, sustainable competitive advantage in our market.”
Highlights for 2016
Social media & digital strategies
Frank Furness
Author & consultant,
Frank Furness & Associates, UK
People spend more and more time online, whether to get their news and updates or to connect. Learn how search engine optimisation, social networks and mobile apps can be used to tell your story, build relationships with prospects and members, and increase brand loyalty.
Highlights for 2016
Financial management
Rick Caro
President Management,
Vision, US
Creating meaningful budgets, managing expenses and understanding variances are core skills that lie at the heart of any business leader’s success. Collecting relevant data as well as understanding and leveraging key performance indicators (KPIs) will further strengthen your ability to create better solutions for your business.
Highlights for 2016
The innovator’s method: Create & sustain a competitive advantage
Christopher Bingham PhD
Professor & chair of strategy and entrepreneurship,
Kenan-Flagler Business School, US
Discuss how leaders can continually help their organisation capture attractive opportunities for growth and profitability. This session will outline the innovator’s dilemma, unpack the distinct and subtle steps in the process of innovation, and detail fresh tools to help leaders effectively drive innovation over time. The ultimate goal of the session is to help leaders know how to better create and sustain competitive advantage in their workplace.
Highlights for 2016
Day-to-day legal issues
Helen Durkin
Executive VP of global public policy,
IHRSA
Gaining an understanding of the legal issues club operators regularly face can be instrumental to ensure they never turn into a legal crisis. Learn how to avert headache-causing problems that can consume your time, drain your money and harm your reputation in the community if they ‘go viral’. Armed with basic knowledge, delegates will learn how to identify the legal issues lurking in everyday situations, the steps to avoid them, and where to turn to when they can’t be avoided.
Highlights for 2016
Member retention, experience & engagement
Brent Darden
CEO,
Brent Darden Consulting, US
Learn how your organisation can become more customer-centric and succeed at building member loyalty. Discover the importance of Net Promoter Score and member feedback to deliver great customer experiences and gain competitive advantage. Develop strategies to help your staff engage and retain members and explore practical approaches to creating a service culture.
Highlights for 2016
Strategic planning for club operations professionals
Mark Miller
Vice president,
Merritt Athletic Clubs, US
Your department’s results affect your company’s success. Learn to manage more effectively through the development of goals and objectives, timelines and implementation plans, and understand the importance of resource allocation and positioning your team for growth.
Highlights for 2016
Staff hiring, training & retention
Allison Flatley
COO,
Corporate Fitness Works, US
Hiring and keeping the right people has a huge impact on the overall success of your business. Understand first how to find people with the right knowledge, talent and skills. Then learn how to train and empower your staff to create a motivated, productive and engaged team.
Highlights 2016
Sales management
Alan Leach
Regional Manager,
West Wood Clubs, Ireland
Effective sales teams work with a plan. In this seminar, delegates will learn the importance of goal setting, projections, tracking, the sales cycle, generating leads and referrals, and how to motivate a sales team through compensation, incentives and contests. ?
"Without the knowledge and expertise we’ve gained from the institute, I doubt we’d have survived the catastrophic recession in Ireland" – Alan Leach, West Wood Clubs
INTERESTED IN ATTENDING?
This year’s IHRSA Institute will be held on 2–5 August at the Kenan-Flagler Business School, at the University of North Carolina in the US.
Visit www.ihrsa.org/institute
About IHRSA
Founded in 1981, IHRSA – the International Health, Racquet & Sportsclub Association – is the only global trade association, representing more than 10,000 health and fitness facilities and suppliers worldwide.
To learn how IHRSA can help your business thrive, visit www.ihrsa.org
Locate an IHRSA club at www.healthclubs.com
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The IHRSA Institute 2016 takes place in the US in August, offering executive education for health club professionals
Frank Furness & Associates, UK
Rick Caro, president Management Vision, US
Christopher Bingham PhD, professor & chair of strategy and entrepreneurship, Kenan-Flagler Business School, US
Helen Durkin, executive VP of global public policy, IHRSA
Brent Darden, CEO, Brent Darden Consulting, US
Mark Miller, vice president, Merritt Athletic Clubs, US
Allison Flatley, COO, Corporate Fitness Works, US
Alan Leach, regional manager, West Wood Clubs, Ireland,IHRSA, IHRSA Institute, Frank Furness, Rick Caro, Christopher Bingham, Helen Durkin, Brent Darden, Mark Miller, Allison Flatley, Alan Leach
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