Characteristics of the organizational and managerial activity of the fitness club director

Purpose: describe the organizational and managerial activities of the fitness club director. Material & Methods: analysis of literary sources; analysis of documents; system analysis; survey (questionnaire) methods of mathematical statistics. The study was conducted on the basis of 12 fitness clubs in Kharkiv. Respondents were 12 directors, managers of fitness clubs. Results: the obtained results of the study made it possible to reveal the levels of management of the fitness club activities, structural divisions and links, their functions, management ties. From the perspective of an integrated approach, the activity of the director of the fitness club on the complexity of the tasks to be solved. Conclusion: optimal organizational structure of management of fitness clubs is defined includes the following functional blocks: fitness staff service personnel technical staff and administration. It is determined that the financial and economic activities of the fitness club and the continuous improvement of their professional activities are the most difficult tasks in the activity of the director and manager of the fitness club. Kharkiv State Academy of Physical Culture, Kharkiv, Ukraine


Introduction
Fitness industry in Ukraine is in constant movement and development. Its characteristic features are providing consumers with a variety of additional and related services; active marketing policy, prompt response to changing market demand, introduction of new services; differentiation of prices for services; active economic stimulation of consumers of services; application of intensive technologies of production of services, which makes it possible to profit [8]. Fitness clubs also play an important role in strengthening the physical, spiritual and social health of the nation, forming a healthy image and sporting lifestyle for every citizen of the country. As a result, the need for qualified personnel is constantly growing, especially in managers and managers capable of ensuring the effective functioning of fitness clubs.
An analysis of recent research and publications shows only an occasional study of the organizational and managerial activities of the director, manager of the fitness club. Researchers focus on the consideration of certain issues of the prerequisites and trends in the development of the fitness industry in Ukraine [3; 8]; use of modern information technologies in the field of health-improving fitness [4]; marketing activities of fitness clubs [9], professional activities of a fitness trainer [3; 6].
Scientific interest in the literature is also the organization of managerial activities of the manager of a sports and sports organization [7; 11]. The authors of the works have provided reasoned features of managerial activity in the field of physical culture and sports, modern requirements to the personal and professional qualities of the sports manager.
However, the problems of the organizational and managerial activity of the fitness club remain, with the exception of certain works by V. Vavilov [1] and S. Demekhy, V. Gayevoy [5]. But the main attention of these authors is concentrated only on separate management functions.
So, the perspective of a comprehensive study of the managerial and managerial activities of the manager (director) to ensure the effective functioning of the fitness club determined the relevance of this work.
Relationship of research with scientific programs, plans, themes. This research was carried out within the framework of the implementation of the fundamental scientific project for 2015-2017. "Theoretical and methodological foundations of the non-Olympic sport" (state registration number 0115U002372), the number of the sub-topic "Organizational and managerial, economic and humanitarian fundamentals of the non-Olympic sport in Ukraine" (0115U006861C).
The purpose of the research: describe the organizational and managerial activities of the fitness club director.
Objectives of the study: 1) determine the optimal organizational structure of fitness club management; 2) to analyze the activities of the director of the fitness club on the complexity of the tasks to be solved.

Material and Methods of the research
Study used the following research methods: analysis of literature sources; analysis of documents; system analysis; survey (questionnaire) methods of mathematical statistics. Analysis of literature sources was used to determine the degree of scientific elaboration of the questions studied, to obtain initial data for solving research problems, to interpret the obtained data when comparing different points of view on the problem under study. In the course of the study, 52 literary sources were analyzed. The administrative-administrative documents of Kharkiv fitness clubs were analyzed as well: charters, rules, contracts, marketing plans and business plans, which allowed defining the directions, content of activities, legal status of fit-ness clubs. Method of system analysis was used to obtain the characteristics of a fitness club as a complex social system, as a result of which the organizational structure of management of fitness clubs was analyzed, its level, divisions and management links were identified, their functions and managerial ties between them determined. Survey (questionnaire) of directors, managers of 12 fitness clubs in Kharkiv city allowed to analyze their activity in terms of the complexity of the tasks being solved. Study used Excel program.

Results of the research and their discussion
According to the general theory of management, the functioning and development of the organization as a whole is ensured by the organizational structure of management, which is a combination of levels and links in management, interrelated and interacts with each other. In this study, fitness clubs were viewed by us as a complex social system, and management of the fitness club as a process of ensuring smooth and coordinated work between its structural divisions to fulfill assigned tasks and functions. So, under the notion of "optimal organizational structure of fitness club management", we propose to understand the aggregate of management levels, divisions and management links interconnected for the implementation of an effective.
The results of the systemic analysis show that the internal environment of the fitness club is characterized by a linear-functional type of management structure. It is determined that the management of the fitness club is carried out at 3 levels of management: I -on the part of the founder (owner, general director) of the fitness club; II -from the director (manager) of the club; III -on the part of managers and department heads. Be sure to take into account that the organizational structure of the management of the fitness club is different in every single club, the presence or absence of certain structural units and management units. It depends on the diversity of sports and sports services, the availability of additional and related services, the policy of the club, etc.
In determining the optimal organizational structure of management, all the structural units of the fitness club are conventionally combined into 4 functional blocks: 1) fitness personnel 2) service personnel 3) technical staff and 4) administration.
The fitness staff includes: a fitness manager, trainers and instructors of the gym, group programs, martial arts, children's programs, a gaming hall, a swimming pool, etc. The main task of the fitness staff is the implementation of fitness programs for the club's clients. Fitness staff is headed by a fitness manager. Fitness manager sets the club's sporting mood. The directions in fitness change every season, like fashion. Therefore, a good fitness manager should always know what is popular and sells well today, and what will be sold well tomorrow. Based on this, he compiles, introduces and develops fitness programs that the club offers. It is responsible for all fitness activities.
Service personnel provide the club's bandwidth, provides and coordinates information to customers, ensures high-quality customer service for the club. We refer service personnel, service managers, administrators, and all structural units that provide additional and related services: barman, masseur, nutritionist, rehabilitator, sales managers and marketing man-agers. The main task of the service manager is the reception management, customer service and information support. As a result of the study, it was found that in many fitness clubs the function of the service manager is executed by the senior administrator or administrators. The main task of the administrator is to administer the work of the fitness club and interact with the staff and clients. This involves controlling the scheduling of employee schedules; customer service, presentation of a fitness club for potential and new clients at the highest level and selling club fitness services; support of communication with clients of the club; keeping records in an approved form, etc.
Results of the survey show that in the face of growing competition, sales managers and marketing managers play an extremely important role in the field of fitness services. But the practice of functioning fitness clubs shows that often their functions are performed by administrators and club directors. This indicates that the management of clubs underestimates the role of these structural units. We believe that the department or sales manager is one of the main structural units of the club, because it practically provides the work of other divisions, attracting clients to the club. In turn, marketing managers conduct market appraisals, determine the demand and, in accordance with it, form promotional offers for clients, that is, keep customers in the club. So, the effectiveness of the sales manager and marketing manager depends on the effectiveness of the club as a whole.
The technical staff includes a technical service manager and maintenance personnel. The manager of the technical service is responsible for the engineering and technical service and ensures the uninterrupted operation of all systems and equipment of the club, ongoing repairs, supplies of supplies, relationships with the fire inspection and sanitary epidemiological station, city water and energy supply organizations and the like. The attendants provide high-quality operation of both the building and the fitness club as a whole (equipment, simulators).
Administrative block fulfills the functions of development, planning and management of the club's activities, exercising managerial influence on other units. The administrative block includes: owner (general director), director (manager of the club) and accountant (financial director).
Main role in the development and coordination of the fitness club's activities belongs to the proprietor (general director), on the initiative of which the club is created. Critical to the success of the fitness club and business as a whole has a director or manager, whose activities as a manager, manager, has its own characteristics. This is due to the specifics and complexity of the tasks performed to ensure the financial result and smooth running of the club, as well as its promotion in the market of fitness services. That is, the effective functioning of the director depends on the effectiveness of the club's functioning, expressed in the implementation of the business plan, the number of clients, the resource provision etc.
It is determined that in the main duties of the director of the fitness club are: -Be sure to take into account that the duties of the director in each fitness club may differ from those set forth above through the presence or absence of certain structural divisions and management units.
The results of the survey of directors and managers of fitness clubs in Kharkov indicate that the main tasks in their activity are: general management of the fitness club; providing financial and economic activities of the fitness club; communication with institutions and organizations; management of the fitness club staff; creation of favorable conditions for clients of the fitness club; constant improvement of their professional activity (Figure).
As can be seen from the figure, only 16,7% of respondents consider the general management of the fitness club to be a very simple task, the same number (16,7%) -have the opposite opinion and are considered difficult. The majority of respondents (66,6%) realize the general management of the club is sometimes difficult, because there are unforeseen circumstances and some problems.
Of course, such answers can be explained by the fact that in the process of fulfilling this task, the director (manager) carries out a number of functions: planning of the activity of the fitness club; provision of a financial result; coordination and control of the activities of all units of the fitness club; introduction of innovative methods and fitness programs, advanced fitness technologies; making management decisions, summarizing the results of the club's activities. This requires knowledge of the principles and technologies of planning, as well as the ability to determine the goals and objectives of the club's activities for the long, medium and short term, skills to navigate in the modern market conditions of the fitness industry. Another important task of the director (manager) is to ensure the financial and economic activities of the fitness club. As you can see, half of the surveyed directors (50%) consider it a difficult task and another 25% are sometimes difficult. After all, its implementation implies such functions as the preservation and strengthening of the material and technical base, the disposal of financial resources of the fitness club, is aimed at ensuring the continuous operation of all the club's systems, the budget of the club. This requires knowledge of economics, marketing and the fundamentals of accounting, features of construction of sports facilities, equipment for the operation and designation of sports equipment, adaptations and other sports equipment. Essential when performing this task is also to establish relationships with community agencies, the ability to efficiently plan and allocate available funds to determine the profitability of services, predict risks, etc. However, the remaining respondents (25%) consider the financial and economic activities of the fitness club to be a very simple task, which is explained by experience in the fitness industry (5 years and more) and the proper level of education of this part of the respondents.
The proper place, as shown by the survey, the directors of the fitness clubs of the city of Kharkov devote to establishing contacts with other organizations. The results of the survey showed that such a task as communication with institutions and organizations for the majority (75%) is quite simple, and for the rest (25%) it is sometimes difficult. This indicates their ability to negotiate, to find common ground, to represent the fitness club in institutions and organizations.
It is known that one of the main tasks in the activity of any head of the organization is the management of the staff of the fitness club. In the process of performing this task, the director (manager) of the fitness club performs a number of functions: search and selection of personnel; definition of functional duties of employees; staff motivation; provision of advanced training. This requires knowledge of the fundamentals of legislation on labor and psychology, the ability to select qualified specialists, organize and monitor their work, ensure the interaction of all structural units of the fitness club, create a favorable moral and psychological climate in the club.
According to the results of the survey, the management of the fitness club staff for half of the directors (58,3%) is sometimes a difficult task and for 16,7% it is quite simple. This shows that the leaders of fitness clubs are able to find incentives for work for their employees, pay attention to control, but according to 25% of respondents this is a very difficult task.
The great influence on the effectiveness of the fitness club's activity is to create favorable conditions for the clients of the fitness club. This task for most of the respondents (66,6%) is sometimes difficult, because sometimes there are unforeseen circumstances with different people in character and social status; it requires from the director and staff of the club the ability to find a compromise, to place and understand the interlocutor, the client of the club, etc. The fourth part of the respondents (25%) believe that creating favorable conditions for clients of the fitness club is a very simple task, and only 8,4% say that it is very difficult. In our opinion, in order to successfully carry out this task, the club's director must organize repair works on time, supervise the work of the staff, comply with sanitary and hygienic standards etc.
Another important task of the director (manager) is the continuous improvement of his professional activity, which requires an increase in the professional level of the manager (manager), self-improvement and self-realization. The survey results show that this is very (41,7%) and sometimes difficult (58,3%) tasks, referring to the constant employment of their professional duties. We believe that the directors, managers of fitness clubs need to constantly work on their own development, mastery of modern technology management and organizational activities, innovations in the fitness industry, taking part in conferences, fitness conventions, training courses held both in Ukraine and beyond its borders.

Conclusions
1. In the course of the study, the optimal organizational structure of fitness club management was determined, including 4 functional units: fitness staff service personnel technical staff and administration. Each unit independently performs the assigned tasks and functions, interacting with each other, forming an integral system.
2. Analysis shows that for directors and managers of Kharkov fitness clubs it is not difficult to communicate with institutions and organizations (75%). Sometimes it is difficult to implement general management of fitness club activities and create favorable conditions for clients of the fitness club (66,6%), personnel management (58,3%). Particularly noteworthy are such very difficult tasks, according to the respondents, how to ensure the financial and economic activities of the fitness club (50%) and the continuous improvement of their professional activities (41,7%).
Prospects for further research it is advisable to associate with the development of the functional-context model of the training of the manager of the fitness club.