General manager
Also known as; Leisure centre manager, operations manager, business manager, contract manager, governing body manager or head of department, sport development manager
General managers are individuals employed in the sport and physical activity sector who are experienced managers. They may be, for example, a centre manager, operation manager, business manager, contract manager, governing body manager or head of department. They could also be a sport development manager or other manager in a community sports setting.
What does a General manager do?
Once general managers are qualified in their chosen role, within this role, they will have:
- the ability to manage the processes through which organisations plan and organise quality sport and physical activity services
- effective leadership of people
- efficient deployment of financial and physical resources
- effective leadership skills at the operational level
- an ability to contribute to strategic planning and manage change.
General managers can:
- develop manage, review and improve sales support and customer service programmes
- develop customer service procedures for an organisation
- initiate and implement operational change
- manage human resources
- discipline and grievance management
- understand the principles of business finance
- manage strategic marketing activities
- contribute to strategic planning
- engage and manage stakeholders
- manage health and safety across an organisation
- manage operations
- develop and implement an operational plan.
General 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 general manager job adverts across the UK:
| Skills and behaviours | % Prevalence in job ads |
|---|---|
| Customer Service | 54% |
| Management | 50% |
| Sales | 44% |
| Leadership | 44% |
| Communication | 41% |
| Operations | 37% |
| Coaching | 15% |
| Budgeting | 13% |
| Strategic Planning | 13% |
| Innovation | 13% |
To find out more about the minimum knowledge, skills and behaviours an individual must understand and demonstrate to become a general manager, you can visit our occupational professional standards library.
How to become a General manager
There are several ways that you can become a general manager. Look at the options below to explore what option 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 a general manager by completing management and leadership-focused CPD courses such as:
- Level 3 Award in Health and Safety
- Level 3 Award in Risk Assessment
- Transformational Leadership
You can browse all of the CIMSPA-endorsed general manager CPD courses in our Endorsed Training Directory.
Work experience
If you are already working in a relevant general manager role within the sport and physical activity sector (example roles include leisure centre manager, business manager or sports development manager) and you have three years of experience within this role, then you can apply to become a CIMSPA General Manager Member. Your employer should support you to gain General 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 general management role and prepare you for future progression in senior management.
College or university
Some colleges and universities have embedded content aligned with the General Manager occupational professional standard into their learning programmes.
In the Endorsed Training Directory, you can check what courses our CIMSPA endorsed colleges and universities offer as well as course entry requirements, a summary of course content/material, as well as more information on how to apply.
Apprenticeship
You can become a General Manager by completing an Operations Manager or Chartered Manager apprenticeship.
You can find out more about completing an Operations Manager or a Chartered 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.
General manager Courses and qualifications
BSc (Hons) Sport Management
BSc (Hons) Sport Management
What's the best role for you?
Career paths and progression
Career pathways
Side Steps
Next Steps
Aspirational Steps
Career progression
As well as exploring new career pathways, as a general 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 general managers to show their expertise in additional areas such as health and safety, risk assessment and leadership.
You can explore CIMSPA-endorsed general manager CPD courses via our Endorsed Training Directory.
Continuing Professional Development
BSc (Hons) Sport Management
BSc (Hons) Sport Management
Find a job as a General 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.