Fit for Business

This programme was designed for the managers of the Leisure Centres owned and run by a Welsh county council.

The council has made a significant investment in refurbishing existing and building new Leisure Centres. There has also been a successful drive to increase membership and usage of the Centres.

The department responsible for the Centres was challenged with the next phase of its evolution to ensure that it continued making progress in its responsibility to support the health and well being of the service users across the county.

This development programme was delivered to the managers responsible for the smooth running of the Centres. It was designed to be stimulating, challenging and innovative to allow the manager to explore, refine and improve how they manage and lead their respective areas of the business.

The objectives of the programme were to allow the participants to:

• Gain input on a small number of subjects that underpin the different facets of Leadership and Management
• Receive input on their own leadership qualities through a 360 feedback process that identifies specific areas of strength and opportunity for improvement
• Discuss and share their challenges as business managers
• Step away from their day-to-day operational challenges and temporarily engage with a different business area as a means to refine their skills as business managers/leaders
• Transfer their learning and realisations from the development programme to their own business area

The programme consisted of five stages

Stage 1 - Invitation to Participants

An invitation was sent to the Center managers to attend and participate in the varied aspects of the programme. During this stage of the programme the 360 feedback process was started with each manager identifying up to 10 people to give them feedback on their performance and ability as a manager/leader.

Stage 2 - Development Training

This aspect of the programme gave participants a deeper insight into what excellence in management and leadership looks like. The programme was challenging, interactive and relevant to their roles as managers within their business area. In addition, the participants received the results of the 360 feedback. The findings of the 360 feedback and the learning from the development programme formed a powerful initiative for participants to identify how they can improve their respective abilities as leaders. The development programme was two days in duration.

Specific topics for discussion and trainer input included delegation, communication, leadership and coaching.

Stage 3 - Preparation

To prepare for the next stage, the Centre Swap, the participant gave two briefings:

1. A Staff Brief: informing their respective teams about the temporary management changes that they will be experiencing during the coming weeks. The briefing outlined the responsibilities that staff have to the incoming manager in terms of co-operation and support.
2. Manager Brief: this took the form of a video interview where the manager outlined his/her perspective on their business area including areas of concern and aspects that they feel could be improved. The briefing was given to the incoming manager as part of their preparation for their temporary secondment.

Stage 4 - Centre Swap

Each participant was assigned to a different business area to manage for a period of 10 days. During this time they were challenged to add value to the business by identifying and implementing opportunities for improvement. This approach allowed participants to implement learning from Stage Two of the programme and gave them an opportunity to work with a different facility and team of people away from an environment with which they were very familiar. The participants were given several key areas to focus on during this stage.

Stage 5 - Review & Feedback

A week later the participants came together to discuss their respective experiences and present their insight to the incumbent manager and how they believe improvements could be achieved. During this stage the participants worked together to establish best practice and innovative ways to improve the business.