All round training is an essential part of sailing
school success
For any sailing school the concept of training is core to the
business. However the training is not just about providing courses
for the students; instructors also need to maintain high levels of
competence. The quality of teaching is fundamental to the success
of the student and ultimately the success of the business. One
company which has ensured staff training has been a top priority is
the Bisham Abbey Sailing and Navigation School. In recognition of
this they have been highly commended in the BMF Small Company
Training and Development Awards.
The company was established sixteen years ago and provides an
extensive portfolio of courses. To be able to offer these the
instructors have completed a wide range of RYA, MCA and business
training courses. Managing Director Roy May says their training
philosophy has benefited the company immensely. "It has improved
customer service and therefore customer satisfaction. This in turn
has increased turnover capacity and profit potential." Employees
have also reaped the benefits. "Training gives staff the
opportunity to progress within the company and improve their
earning capability," adds Roy.
To maintain quality control Roy favours a hands-on approach to
ensure instructors are fully up to date with everything they need
to know. "I've gone on all the training courses we offer
myself, even though I don't necessarily teach the courses," he
says. "I want to know what our guys should be teaching. Another way
we manage quality control is that we watch each other teach and
exchange ideas from that." He adds that instructors also work
together on courses to add a bit of variety. "That way it's not the
same face in front of students all the time."
In addition to employing full time staff they also sub contract
work which is common practice with sailing schools. The quality of
training has to be of an equally high standard with part time staff
and here they target instructors with specialist knowledge. "We
like to train instructors to teach courses in which they have the
best expertise," says Roy. "For example we have one part time
instructor who uses radar a great deal on his boat so we've trained
him up to be our radar instructor." .
As well as investing in people with skills they also prioritise
investing in equipment. "We think we are probably one of the best
equipped shore based schools in the country," continues Roy. "For
example on the RYA radio course instead of having the minimum of
one radio for every six students we have one radio for every two.
Also we use actual marine equipment and not computer generated
teaching aids because we don't think they're real enough."
They like to keep class numbers small, supervision levels high
and tailor courses to fit in with clients' needs. The training
atmosphere is more like that of a club like than a classroom and
this approach clearly works. "We like people who come on our
courses to relax and our rebookings are always high," says Roy,
concluding: "If we get them here as novices we can go a long way
with them. That has got a lot to do with the way we teach and the
environment we teach them in."