Entry manager
Also known as; Duty manager, swim coordinator, team leader, sports development officer, community sport officer, active schools coordinator, active campus coordinator
Entry managers are employed in the sport and physical activity sector as individuals operating in a first-line management position who are able to work independently under some supervision and direction. They may be, for example, coordinators, team leaders or duty managers. They could be working as a first-line manager in leisure or fitness, or as a sports development officer or community sport and health officer.
The data presented below was gathered using the following job roles to represent an entry-level manager position: duty managers, swim coordinators, team leaders, sports development officers, and activities coordinators.
What could I earn as a Entry manager?
Your earnings will depend on the hours you work, your location, level of experience and whether you are employed or self-employed. To give you an idea, the data presented reflects the earnings listed in job advertisements across the UK from January to December 2024, as gathered via Lightcast (March 2025). Average annual earnings reflect full-time roles (>32hours/week), however average hourly earnings are a reflection of data collected from full-time, part-time and flexible hours vacancies.
Average UK earnings
Avg. annual earnings
Avg. hourly earnings
total job postings
- Weekdays
- Evenings
- Weekends
- Bank Holidays
72% of entry manager job adverts are hiring for full time positions.
What does a Entry manager do?
Once entry managers are qualified in their chosen role, within this role, they will have:
- demonstrated both knowledge and skills in a range of management-related topics under the themes of service improvement, people management and development, business functions and operations and risk management at the entry management level
- developed personal effectiveness in their management role and contributed to organisational performance.
Entry managers can:
- resolve customer complaints
- manage and improve customer service delivery
- understand recruitment, selection and induction practices
- understand how to performance manage
- understand the principles of leadership and management
- understand the teamwork principles
- manage a budget
- understand the principles of sales
- manage communications in the workplace
- manage health and safety in their own areas of responsibility
- manage a project.
Entry managers can also specialise in four industry areas:
- Exercise and fitness
- Leisure operations
- Sport development
- Coaching systems
Skills and behaviours
The following common or transferable skills are most frequently asked for by employers in entry manager job adverts across the UK. The following job roles were included in our entry manager job advert search results: Duty managers, swim coordinators, team leaders, sports development officers and activities coordinators.
| Skills and behaviours | % Prevalence in job ads |
|---|---|
| Communication | 23% |
| Management | 23% |
| Customer Service | 20% |
| Planning | 15% |
| Coaching | 10% |
| Operations | 10% |
| Sales | 10% |
| Leadership | 9% |
| Organisational Skills | 8% |
| Coordinating | 8% |
To find out more about the minimum knowledge, skills and behaviours an individual must understand and demonstrate to become an entry manager, you can visit our professional standards library.
How to become a Entry manager
There are several ways that you can become an entry manager. Look at the options below to explore what works best for you.
Complete continued professional development (CPD) courses with a training provider
If you already have qualifications in the sport and physical activity sector, then you can work towards becoming an entry manager by completing management and leadership-focused CPD courses such as:
- Level 3 Swim Coordinator
- Transformational Leadership
- Level 3 Award in Risk Assessment
You can browse all of our CIMSPA-endorsed CPD courses aligned with the Entry Manager professional standard in our Training Directory.
Work experience
If you are already working in a relevant role within the sport and physical activity sector (example roles include coordinators, team leaders or duty managers) and you have over three years of experience alongside learning within this role, then you may also be considered as an entry manager. Your employer should support you to gain CIMSPA Entry Manager professional status with training, mentoring and supervised experience to gain knowledge and skills as a key part of your career progression. This will enable you to undertake a higher-level management role and prepare you for future progression in general management.
College or university
Some colleges and universities have embedded content aligned with the Entry Manager occupational professional standard into their learning programmes.
In the CIMSPA Endorsed Training Directory, you can check what courses our partner colleges and universities offer as well as course entry requirements, a summary of course content/material and more information on how to apply.
Apprenticeship
You can become an entry manager by completing a Leisure Duty Manager apprenticeship.
You can find out more about completing a Leisure Duty Manager apprenticeship via The Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (IfATE) website.
Professional Standards
CIMSPA is the guardian of a single professional and apprenticeship standards framework for the sport and physical activity sector – outlining the minimum knowledge, skills and behaviours an individual must understand and demonstrate for every occupation and job role in the sector.
This standards framework is driving the development of quality education products for our workforce and supporting employers in assessing which job roles an individual is qualified for.
Entry manager Courses and qualifications
BSc (Hons) Sports Coaching
BSc (Hons) Sport Management
What's the best role for you?
Career paths and progression
Career pathways
Career progression
As well as exploring new career pathways, as an entry manager, you can also choose to progress your career by completing further training or continued professional development (CPD) in your role. This training can be added to enable entry managers to show their expertise in additional populations, in different environments and with technical specialisms.
You can explore CIMSPA-endorsed personal trainer CPD courses via our Endorsed Training Directory.
Continuing Professional Development
BSc (Hons) Sports Coaching
BSc (Hons) Sport Management
Find a job as a Entry manager
The content of the job posts displayed on the CIMSPA jobs board are pulled in through feeds from websites which are not under the control of CIMSPA.
CIMSPA will not be liable for any false, inaccurate, inappropriate or incomplete information presented on the jobs board.