COMMUNITY SERVICES AND ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE
	TO:	Mayor and Members of Council
	FROM:	Barbara M. Roth, Director, Recreation and Culture Services
	PREPARED BY:	Lori Wells, Manager, Programs
	DATE OF MEETING:	2004-Sep-13
	SUBJECT:	Fitness Centres – 2003 Customer Service Survey Results

RECOMMENDATION:

THAT the report entitled “Fitness Centres – 2003 Customer Service Survey Results” be received as information.

PURPOSE:

The purpose of this report is to present to Council the findings of the Customer Satisfaction Survey that was conducted at the Thornhill and Centennial Fitness Centres in 2003.

BACKGROUND:

In 1999, Fitness staff set the objective to measure customer satisfaction. In order to accomplish their objective, it was necessary to develop a customer satisfaction survey.

With the assistance of the Quality Office, the customer survey process was initiated. Focus groups comprised of members from both Fitness Centres helped staff develop survey questions. The first survey was completed in December 1999. Gaps in service were identified and a plan was put in place to improve the service in those areas.

In 2003 the combined survey return rate was 20%.

Over the past three fitness surveys, from 1999 to 2003, the fitness centres have seen the overall satisfaction rating climb from 78% in 1999, 80% in 2001, to an 83% overall satisfaction rating in 2003.

Survey Format

The survey is a two-step process developed from focus group input. The first step is to ask fitness members and fitness class participants to rate the level of importance of various service attributes. For example, fitness centre members were asked to rank the importance of items such as staff knowledge, staff service, facility operating hours, facility space and various equipment.

The next step is to ask members to rate their current satisfaction level with these attributes. Collecting the data in this format creates the opportunity to measure if there is a “gap” between important features and current satisfaction.

Overview of Results

TABLE 1 below provides an overview of the top items that fitness members listed as the most important attributes, their current satisfaction in these areas and the satisfaction “gap”. The complete results are attached in Appendix A.

TABLE 1: Fitness Survey Overview

Attribute and Location
Centennial Fitness Centre	Level of Importance	Satisfaction	Gap between Importance & Satisfaction (%)
Has sufficient gym space to exercise comfortably	88%	58%	30%
Stretching Area	86%	58%	28%
Tied for 3^rd Aesthetically pleasing environment Staff who regularly provide input re: performing exercises properly Cardio Machines	80% 86% 90%	70% 76% 80%	10%
Tied for 4^th Has staff who are knowledgeable with current techniques Has staff who are focused on the needs of members Provides safe & secure environment Minimal downtime for repairs	90% 86% 90% 84%	84% 80% 84% 78%	6%
Thornhill Fitness Centre
Has sufficient gym space to exercise comfortably	88%	58%	30%
Stretching Area	86%	58%	28%
Provides good value for fees paid	53%	65%	12%
Staff who regularly provide input re: performing exercises properly	86%	76%	10%
Cardio Machines	89%	79%	10%

The fitness members at the two locations agreed on 4 of the top 5 most important facility attributes. The largest satisfaction “gaps” at both sites is the lack of facility space, both for exercising and stretching (two separate issues). Fitness members also expressed a desire for our staff to be more proactive with customer service/ checking on their needs related to their fitness programs.

Establishing the Continuous Improvement Cycle

Our goal is to continuously improve service to our participants. The survey and focus group cycle established at our fitness locations will ensure that customer input drives our improvement objectives. When new processes are established there is often a time lag between implementing an improvement and gaining the benefits of the improvement. This is the current situation. The building addition at Thornhill Community Centre began July 2004 and the building addition to Centennial Community Centre is well under way. Because facility space is the number one issue (largest gap between level of importance and level of satisfaction), we feel the expansions will fully address the member’s needs at both facilities.

As the expansions of our facilities become a reality, the fitness member’s perception for improvements will shift into other service attributes. Meaning that when the expansions of our facilities are complete the members concerns regarding items such as more mat space for stretching, aesthetically pleasing environment, will be met and other areas of concern will be addressed. Because we have this data collected, staff is in a good position to anticipate the next generation of improvement demands from the customer.

Action Steps - update

Centennial Fitness Centre– the staff has agreed to address the following gaps

• Stretching Area
• Staff who regularly provide input re: performing exercises properly

We have begun the problem solving process to determine the root cause of each of these issues. Potential solutions to the problem will be determined and those solutions that are doable will be implemented and monitored.

Thornhill Fitness Centre- the staff are currently asking members more specific questions about the following areas so that there is clarity around the issues

• Stretching Area
• Cardio machines
• Provides a safe and secure environment
• Staff who are focused on the needs of the member

Once we have gathered this information we will go through the problem solving process to determine the root cause of each of these issues. Potential solutions to the problem will be determined and those solutions that are doable will be implemented and monitored.

Conclusion

Staff will continue to use the results of the bi annual survey to guide the operations of the fitness centres, group fitness classes and in setting annual objectives to continuously improve service to our customers.

____________________________________

Barbara M. Roth, R.D.M.R. Jim Sales

Director, Recreation and Culture Services Commissioner of Community and Fire Services

Q:\Recreation\DISCIPLN\DIS004\Survey Results\2003 Fitness Survey Report3.doc