Posted on 30 Apr 18
“The leisure industry is already familiar with the concept of the ‘gig economy’ with freelance instructors and self-employed PTs an accepted and workable model,” says Jenny Patrickson, managing director of Active IQ.
“It is an ongoing issue of employed versus self-employed status for PTs with pros and cons for operators and PTs with both models. What we need to do as an industry is ensure that training for PTs fully equips them with business, marketing and strategic skills,” she continues. “This way, self-employed PTs are empowered to be successful while employed PTs have a valuable understanding of business, marketing and budget considerations thus fully appreciating their contribution to the business that employs them. It simply makes sense to ensure the next generation of PTs have business acumen alongside physical and communication skills to maximise their potential to fulfil their chosen career with professionalism.”
To help PTs prepare fully for the world of work, Active IQ has included a Professionalism and Business Acumen module within its new Level 3 Personal Training Diploma qualification to include:
- The legal and professional requirements for personal training, managing personal information and records.
- Health and safety in the workplace
- The requirements of a self-employed individual including: registration, business records, self-assessment tax returns, business expenses, insurance requirements.
- Marketing techniques and tactics, how to close a sale, how to set budgets and manage finances
- Interpreting business data from a range of current information technology (IT) applications and how these can effectively support business planning and delivery
- Planning and strategy techniques to develop a successful personal training business.
Find out more here >