Recreational facilities manager

Recreational facilities managers direct the operations of facilities that provide recreational services such as gardens, spas, zoos, gambling and lottery facilities. They plan and organise the daily operations of the related staff and facilities and ensure the organisation follows the latest developments in its field. They coordinate the different departments of the facility and manage the correct use of rescources and budgets.

The following job titles also refer to recreational facilities manager:

leisure facility manager
recreational facilities director
fitness manager
recreational facilities coordinator
vacation facilities manager
cinema manager
recreational camp manager
cultural facility manager
amusement park manager
sports facility manager
recreational facilities executive
theatre manager
recreation establishment manager

Bachelor’s degree is generally required to work as recreational facilities manager. However, this requirement may differ in some countries.

ISCO skill level is defined as a function of the complexity and range of tasks and duties to be performed in an occupation. It is measured on a scale from 1 to 4, with 1 the lowest level and 4 the highest, by considering:

• the nature of the work performed in an occupation in relation to the characteristic tasks and duties
• the level of formal education required for competent performance of the tasks and duties involved and
• the amount of informal on-the-job training and/or previous experience in a related occupation required for competent performance of these tasks and duties.

Recreational facilities manager is a Skill level 3 occupation.

These occupations, although different, require a lot of knowledge and skills similar to recreational facilities manager.

beauty salon manager
spa manager
gambling manager
laundry and dry cleaning manager
zoo curator

These occupations require some skills and knowledge of recreational facilities manager. They also require other skills and knowledge, but at a higher ISCO skill level, meaning these occupations are accessible from a position of recreational facilities manager with a significant experience and/or extensive training.

botanist
sports programme coordinator
civil service administrative officer
project manager
auction house manager

This knowledge should be acquired through learning to fulfill the role of recreational facilities manager.

Recreation activities: The field and characteristics of recreational activities for customers.

These skills are necessary for the role of recreational facilities manager.

Manage supplies: Monitor and control the flow of supplies that includes the purchase, storage and movement of the required quality of raw materials, and also work-in-progress inventory. Manage supply chain activities and synchronise supply with demand of production and customer.
Represent the organisation: Act as representative of the institution, company or organisation to the outside world.
Liaise with local authorities: Maintain the liaison and exchange of information with regional or local authorities.
Schedule recreation facilities: Schedule the use of recreational facilities.
Manage operational budgets: Prepare, monitor and adjust operational budgets together with the economical/administrative manager/professionals in the arts institute/unit/project.
Establish daily priorities: Establish daily priorities for staff personnel. Effectively deal with multi-task workload.

Set organisational policies: Participate in setting organisational policies that cover issues such as participant eligibility, program requirements, and program benefits for the service users.
Supervise daily information operations: Direct daily operations of different units. Coordinate program/project activities to assure the respect of costs and time.
Manage logistics: Create logistic framework for transporting goods to customers and for receiving returns, execute and follow up the logistics processes and guidelines.
Develop recreation programmes: Develop plans and policies which aim to provide the desired recreation activities to a target group or in a community.
Manage recreational facility: Manage the daily operations of a cultural facility. Organise all activities and coordinate the different departments functioning within a cultural facility. Develop a plan of action and arrange the necessary funds.
Promote recreation activities: Promote the implementation of recreation programs in a community, as well as recreation services provided by an organisation or institution.

This knowledge is sometimes, but not always, required for the role of recreational facilities manager. However, mastering this knowledge allows you to have more opportunities for career development.

Counselling methods: Counselling techniques used in different settings and with various groups and individuals, especially concerning methods of supervision and mediation in the counselling process.
Bookkeeping regulations: The methods and regulations involved in the process of accurate bookkeeping.
Corporate social responsibility: The handling or managing of business processes in a responsible and ethical manner considering the economic responsibility towards shareholders as equally important as the responsibility towards environmental and social stakeholders.
Budgetary principles: Principles of estimating and planning of forecasts for business activity, compile regular budget and reports.
Quality standards: The national and international requirements, specifications and guidelines to ensure that products, services and processes are of good quality and fit for purpose.
Accounting: The documentation and processing of data regarding financial activities.
Company policies: The set of rules that govern the activity of a company.
Communication principles: The set of commonly shared principles in regards with communication such as active listening, establish rapport, adjusting the register, and respecting the intervention of others.

These skills and competences are sometimes, but not always, required for the role of recreational facilities manager. However, mastering these skills and competences allows you to have more opportunities for career development.

Create solutions to problems: Solve problems which arise in planning, prioritising, organising, directing/facilitating action and evaluating performance. Use systematic processes of collecting, analysing, and synthesising information to evaluate current practice and generate new understandings about practice.
Manage schedule of tasks: Maintain an overview of all the incoming tasks in order to prioritise the tasks, plan their execution, and integrate new tasks as they present themselves.
Implement marketing strategies: Implement strategies which aim to promote a specific product or service, using the developed marketing strategies.
Lead a team: Lead, supervise and motivate a group of people, in order to meet the expected results within a given timeline and with the foreseen resources in mind.
Order supplies: Command products from relevant suppliers to get convenient and profitable products to purchase.
Coordinate events: Lead events by managing budget, logistics, event support, security, emergency plans and follow up.
Manage budgets: Plan, monitor and report on the budget.
Maintain relationship with customers: Build a lasting and meaningful relationship with customers in order to ensure satisfaction and fidelity by providing accurate and friendly advice and support, by delivering quality products and services and by supplying after-sales information and service.
Speak different languages: Master foreign languages to be able to communicate in one or more foreign languages.
Report on overall management of a business: Prepare and present periodic reports on the operations, achievements, and results obtained during certain period to higher level managers and directors.
Manage a small-to-medium business: Manage the organisational, financial and day-to-day operation of a small-to-medium enterprise.
Develop organisational policies: Develop and supervise the implementation of policies aimed at documenting and detailing the procedures for the operations of the organisation in the lights of its strategic planning.
Manage staff: Manage employees and subordinates, working in a team or individually, to maximise their performance and contribution. Schedule their work and activities, give instructions, motivate and direct the workers to meet the company objectives. Monitor and measure how an employee undertakes their responsibilities and how well these activities are executed. Identify areas for improvement and make suggestions to achieve this. Lead a group of people to help them achieve goals and maintain an effective working relationship among staff.
Maintain relationship with suppliers: Build a lasting and meaningful relationship with suppliers and service providers in order to establish a positive, profitable and enduring collaboration, co-operation and contract negotiation.
Supervise the work of staff on different shifts: Oversee the activities of the employees working in shifts in order to ensure continuous operations.
Assess employees’ capability levels: Evaluate the capabilities of employees by creating criteria and systematic testing methods for measuring expertise of individuals within an organisation.
Supervise the management of an establishment: Run the management of an establishment and ensure that every need for a smooth running of the operations is looked after.

Keep task records: Organise and classify records of prepared reports and correspondence related to the performed work and progress records of tasks.
Manage health and safety standards: Oversee all personnel and processes to comply with health, safety and hygiene standards. Communicate and support alignment of these requirements with the company’s health and safety programmes.
Provide cost benefit analysis reports: Prepare, compile and communicate reports with broken down cost analysis on the proposal and budget plans of the company. Analyse the financial or social costs and benefits of a project or investment in advance over a given period of time.
Recruit employees: Hire new employees by scoping the job role, advertising, performing interviews and selecting staff in line with company policy and legislation.
Ensure compliance with company regulations: Guarantee that employees’ activities follow company regulations, as implemented through client and corporate guidelines, directives, policies and programmes.
Create a financial plan: Develop a financial plan according to financial and client regulations, including an investor profile, financial advice, and negotiation and transaction plans.
Chair a meeting: Chairing a meeting for a group of people, in order to formulate plans and decisions that are carried out by the company.
Assist customers: Provide support and advice to customers in making purchasing decisions by finding out their needs, selecting suitable service and products for them and politely answering questions about products and services.
Analyse transportation costs: Identify and analyse transportation costs, service levels and availability of equipment; make recommendations and take preventive/corrective measures.
Inform customers of activity changes: Brief customers about changes, delays or cancellations of planned activities.
Identify customer’s needs: Use appropriate questions and active listening in order to identify customer expectations, desires and requirements according to product and services.
Maintain professional records: Produce and maintain records of work performed.
Manage workflow processes: Develop, document and implement traffic and workflow processes across the company for different functions. Liaise with several departments and services such as account management and the creative director to plan and resource work.
Evaluate employees: Analyse employees’ individual performance over a certain time span and communicate own conclusions to the employee in question or higher management.
Maintain professional administration: File and organise professional administration documents comprehensively, keep customer records, fill in forms or log books and prepare documents about company-related matter.
Fix meetings: Fix and schedule professional appointments or meetings for clients or superiors.
Organise training: Make the necessary preparations to conduct a training session. Provide equipment, supplies and exercise materials. Ensure the training runs smoothly.
Manage payroll: Manage and be responsible for employees receiving their wages, review salaries and benefit plans and advise management on payroll and other employment conditions.
Maximise sales revenues: Increase possible sales volumes and avoid losses through cross-selling, upselling or promotion of additional services.
Schedule shifts: Plan staff time and shifts to reflect the demands of the business.
Develop revenue generation strategies: Elaborate methodologies through which a company markets and sells a product or service to generate income.
Check in guests: Inscribe visitors and guests at the spa by entering the appropriate information and running necessary reports from a computer system.
Coordinate advertising campaigns: Organise course of action to promote a product or service; oversee the production of TV advertisements, newspaper and magazine ads, suggest mail packs, email campaigns, websites, stands and other advertising channels
Delegate activities: Delegate activities and tasks to others according to the ability, level of preparation, competence and legal scope of practice. Make sure that people understand what they should do and when they should do it.
Produce sales reports: Maintain records of calls made and products sold over a given time frame, including data regarding sales volumes, number of new accounts contacted and the costs involved.
Supervise work: Direct and supervise the day-to-day activities of subordinate personnel.
Plan health and safety procedures: Set up procedures for maintaining and improving health and safety in the workplace.
Plan medium to long term objectives: Schedule long term objectives and immediate to short term objectives through effective medium-term planning and reconciliation processes.
Perform project management: Manage and plan various resources, such as human resources, budget, deadline, results, and quality necessary for a specific project, and monitor the project’s progress in order to achieve a specific goal within a set time and budget.
Analyse goal progress: Analyse the steps which have been taken in order to reach the organisation’s goals in order to assess the progress which has been made, the feasibility of the goals, and to ensure the goals can be met according to deadlines.
Create safe working protocols: Create clear, accountable, safe working protocols according to recognised zoo guidelines.
Train employees: Lead and guide employees through a process in which they are taught the necessary skills for the perspective job. Organise activities aimed at introducing the work and systems or improving the performance of individuals and groups in organisational settings.
Liaise with managers: Liaise with managers of other departments ensuring effective service and communication, i.e. sales, planning, purchasing, trading, distribution and technical.
Follow company standards: Lead and manage according to the organisation’s code of conduct.
Keep stock records: Keep written records of the amount of stock in storage, incoming and outgoing products required for the proper operation of services, repairs and maintenance tasks.

1431 – Sports, recreation and cultural centre managers

 

 

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References

1. Recreational facilities manager – ESCO