Keep Your Staff, Keep Your Members! Strategies for both...

How Staff Retention Helps Member Retention

When we talk about retention in the fitness industry, most of the focus is on members. But the same principles that keep members coming back also apply to staff. And when staff are retained, engaged, and motivated, members benefit directly through stronger relationships, better service, and a sense of continuity that builds trust.

Staff Retention = Member Retention

Members join clubs for facilities, but they stay because of people. Staff are the heartbeat of the member experience. High staff turnover disrupts relationships, creates inconsistency, and makes it harder to build the kind of trust that keeps members long-term. Retaining staff is a key driver to retain members. We see it clearly when supporting operators, good staff morale, positive communication (banter even) between teams, means that staff stick around, and members benefit too.

Onboarding: Staff and Members Alike

Just as a great induction is critical for new members, a structured onboarding journey is essential for new staff. A buddy system, clear milestones at 30/60/90 days and onwards, and a strong cultural welcome help staff feel part of the team from day one. When staff feel supported and confident early on, they are far more likely to create positive onboarding experiences for members too.

We’ve mirrored the new member onboarding with new staff onboarding at many sites, and it’s great to see staff experiencing the member induction, giving them both an empathy with members, but also seeing what all other staff have been through too.

Recruitment with Purpose

Hiring for skills alone leads to short-term wins but long-term churn. Recruiting people who connect with the organisation's mission and values helps build a team that sticks. Use value-based interview questions, share your retention philosophy at recruitment stage, and show candidates the member journey will all help to ensure new hires are aligned with your purpose.

Guy’s tip on the Love Your Career podcast was that if you’re asking for video applications when recruiting, you should record your own clip first for the candidate to see; practice what you preach, but also sell your values and purpose to the applicant.

Embedding Purpose and Culture

Staff who understand and believe in the organisation’s purpose, e.g. helping people live healthier lives, are more engaged and more loyal. Culture is not just talked about, it’s practiced and demonstrated: celebrating member success stories, highlighting the role staff play in those stories, and making purpose part of daily conversations reinforces that staff are making a difference.

For example, everyone should be involved in selling the induction to new members, and when we show clients how much their inductions increase first month visits, length of stay, or lifetime value, everyone gets behind the mission. It improves health, income, and job security.

Progression Pathways

A lack of visible career progression is a major reason people leave any organisation. Clear pathways help staff stay motivated, feel invested, and develop professionally. Whether through internal promotions, mentoring opportunities, or specialist roles (such as retention leads), progression pathways build longevity. Creating “Retention Champions”, Challenge team leaders, or Gym floor class leaders gives fitness staff the opportunity to specialise, or take a stepping stone to management, if that’s what they aspire to.

Recognition and Evidence of Efficacy

Recognition matters. When staff see that their actions; like delivering great inductions, or recovering absentees, lead to measurable improvements in member retention, this validates their work. Sharing retention data in team meetings and recognising contributions both formally and informally strengthens engagement.

Cross-Department Collaboration

Retention is not the job of one department, it’s everyone’s responsibility. Staff are more likely to stay when they feel part of a collaborative team working towards shared goals. Joint projects between fitness, sales, and customer service (for example, designing the content of an induction (member or staff), developing member communications, or discussing targets) not only improve the member experience but also foster stronger connections among staff.

Your Retention Strategy

Staff retention is not an HR issue alone, it should be part of your retention strategy, and wider corporate strategy too. Treat staff like members: onboard them well, give them purpose, offer progression, recognise achievements, and encourage collaboration. When you retain your staff, you retain your members.

If you want to discuss staff or member engagement, retention measurement or strategies, please comment below, or get in touch.