Geared Up Issue 1 2018 | Page 33

PEERS HELPING PEERS: PF Certified Training Clubs Provide Tailored Possibilities W making our brand better. They are really doing it for the right reason.” After hearing Impact Fitness speak about the program during the May Huddles, Sunshine Fitness Management knew it had to be part of the program. “When the leadership team from the Klebba group spoke about the CTC in-depth, their excitement was obvious and pushed our franchise to express interest in becoming a CTC,” said Sunshine Fitness Vice President of Operations Joe Landau. “As the first franchisees, we feel a level of responsibility to share our knowledge and experiences to help other franchisees and the Planet Fitness brand to continue to ‘Lead the Planet.’” Sunshine Fitness chose its veteran Orange City, Florida, club, which had undergone recent renovations, to take part in the program. The location is led by longtime team members Keith Moore and Daniel Oliver. “Keith has been with us for eight years and has held numerous positions, from front desk representative to general manager,” Landau said. “He has a passion for mentoring and teaching staff members, and his integrity and communi- cation skills we feel will have a great impact on other franchisees.” A positive experience is exactly what the certified training club program is about: people learning from people, not in theory but in practice. “This program gives franchisees an official resource where they can ask questions and gather advice from another group that has a lot of experience in a multitude of situations,” Landau said. “The CTC develops a community outside of your respective franchise, allowing franchisees to share best practices, improve brand consistency and gain confidence.” Perhaps one of the greatest attributes of the program is the ability to tailor the training to the needs of the trainee. “We will actually have the trainee go through a pre-training survey to indicate what areas of operations they would like to train in,” said Keirstead. “It helps us to understand what their base level of knowledge is. Are they pretty proficient in daily operations and they just want to learn more about the leadership aspect, or are they completely brand new and don’t even know how to by Jessica Loeding ring in a bottle of water?” As the franchise base grows, PF sees the increasing importance of offering a certified training program. “What we realized is we have gatherings and conferences where people meet and they talk, but the CTC program is a formal way of bringing people together to share ideas and best practices,” said Keirstead. “We are just providing a platform from which they can share.” Currently, there are seven certified training clubs in the system, and 198 people have taken the certified training manager exam. “Every single group has gone above and beyond expectations and are eager to share their passion and experi- ence, so whether you are a new franchisee to the system or you’ve been around a long time and are just looking to innovate, I would encourage any franchisee to consider sending one of their team members to a certified training club,” said Keirstead. For those interested in becoming a certified training location, there’s a reward also. “This program has led us to utilize this club as a place where our staff can go for additional training and skillset improve- ment. Our franchise has been pushed to create better practices to use in the future. It has also given the CTMs a real sense of pride and comradery in working with their team to accomplish the goals we set together,” said Landau. “Lastly, there is a companywide excitement as we embrace the responsibility that will have a positive effect in helping other groups.” G Jessica Loeding is the PFIFA director of communications and editor-in-chief of Geared Up. You can reach Loeding at 678-797-5169 or [email protected]. hile certified training locations are not a new concept in franchising, the program is beginning to take off in the Planet Fitness® system. Introduced just two years ago, the PF® certified training club (CTC) program brings franchisees together in a pro ductive and structured environ- ment to share ideas and best practices. “A CTC is a location that serves as a training environment for either new or existing franchisees and their teams,” explained PF Operations Systems Director Katin Keirstead. “A prospective CTC goes through an approval process with the operations team before they earn the designation of CTC.” The process begins with a recom- mendation from a franchise business coach. Once the recommendation is received, the club will be sent an evaluation form to ensure they meet the basic requirements. “We ask them to tell us a little bit more about their training process,” Keirstead said. “Oftentimes, they will use the PFU online courses, but most groups have additional training they will put people through where they will talk about the history of their franchise group, what their core values are and more about their individual organization.” The club manager and regional manager overseeing the location must pass the certified training manager (CTM) exam and have taken all of the online courses in Planet Fitness University, in addition to having attended a PFHQ-sponsored work- shop and holding a brand excellence review (BER) with a passing score. Preference is given to candidates who have been through a presale, grand opening or other projects such as a re-equip. Once the basic qualifica- tions are met, PFHQ will visit the club. “We will interview the regional manager and the club manager to get a sense of why they want to participate,” Keirstead said. “This program is very much about peers helping peers. There is not a lot of reward or glory involved. A benefit to the CTC is they get to collaborate with people who are invested and involved in 31