15 questions for an operational overhaul before EOFY
As the End of Financial Year (EOFY) approaches in Australia, we’re reflecting on the true meaning of this beautiful time of year: sales.
Specifically, for fitness franchises, getting all your operational ducks in a neatly organized row is key. At Hapana, we’ve been rubbing shoulders with some of the best operations managers in the game - and we’ve compiled a checklist of the most important questions to ask yourself as EOFY approaches.
Best questions to optimize operations before EOFY
- Of all our operational workflows, are there any areas where we could improve efficiency?
- Are there any manual tasks from the below that we have yet to automate?
- Member management software
- Automated billing
- Online booking
- Customer comms
- Retention rates/techniques
- Customer feedback
- Are all processes standardized across all locations? For example, do you have a consistent in-app experience for members to engage them meaningfully anytime, anywhere? You can also check:
- Billing and payment processing
- Online booking
- Customer communications
- Staff training and development
- Staffing and scheduling
- Onboarding process
- Do we have a running list of member feedback and data, and are there plans in place to address the common or pressing pain points?
- Do we have any staff training programs in place to upskill employees, or improve our service quality?
- Are any facilities in need of refurbishments? If yes, what can be done before EOFY, and what can be left until afterward?
- During the last year, have there been any gaps in coverage during peak hours - in terms of staffing and schedules? If yes, how do operations need to be moved around to ensure good coverage in the future?
- Are you (and your team) happy with the equipment maintenance schedules and inventory?
- Are you (and your team) happy with your supplier contracts? Is there room to save costs and improve quality?
- Looking to the future, what’s the feasibility of expanding - either through opening new sites or through acquisitions?
- What plans need to be in place before EOFY for expansion?
- Out of 10, how would you rate the robustness of your onboarding process for new locations? How would you rate brand consistency?
- Looking at your main technological infrastructure, could it handle double the growth you have now? Could it handle four times the growth?
- Can your member management system handle a big increase in the number of members?
- Could your CRM manage a seriously higher volume of customer interactions or their data without any hit to performance?
- Can your current billing and payment system support more transactions without friction, delays, or errors?
- Could your email marketing and your SMS communication channels handle a campaign twice the size?
- Can your data storage handle a significant increase in stored information? Can your security measures?
- Can your current tools for analytics process larger datasets? Can they generate customized reports for meaningful fitness business intelligence?
- Could your mobile app, if you have one, still offer a seamless experience under a higher load?
- How regular is your communication with franchisees? How regular would you like it to be? How regular would they like it to be?
- Are there any ways to streamline this process?
- Out of ten, how would you rate your responsiveness in addressing franchisee concerns?
- How often do you seek the feedback of your franchisees?
- Do you have a clear document, spreadsheet, or other solution for capturing this feedback?
- Have you recently met with the marketing team to make sure promotional campaigns are fully aligned with actual operational capabilities?
- For example, are any upcoming marketing campaigns scheduled for AFTER the new service or feature has been effectively tested?
- Does the marketing team have access to databases with all the details on operational capabilities?
- Have you recently met with the finance team to make sure financial targets are achievable and aligned with operational plans?
Acing EOFY for the long run with Hapana
The End of the Financial Year isn’t just a time for sales; it's also a time to nail down operations and streamline for the year ahead. Done right, EOFY is an excellent time to prepare to scale the business.
At Hapana, we’ve helped many organizations scale from local to global. For example, when Hapana partnered with BFT, they had just nine locations under their belt—fast-forward to today, and BFT has come to dominate the global stage with over 300 locations. Our software is designed to streamline operations and keep everyone happy while scaling.