Selecting a Discount Fitness Club Network
If your needs assessment indicates that a discount fitness club Network
(DFCN) would be a useful service for your employees, the next step is to
identify a fitness club network that suits your needs. Also, if you have
few or only one employee location, you may consider an arrangement with
one or more specific fitness clubs or chains instead of a large network.
Selecting a DFCN includes the following activities and considerations:
Determining Selection Criteria
Decide what DFCN qualities are important to your organization. For example, if you want the DFCN to help you with the evaluation, be sure to include that in the selection criteria and agreement. Below are some sample questions to ask that will help determine your selection criteria:
- What discount level is of interest to our employees?
- Will the employer or employees pay for the service or memberships?
- What geographic locations must be included in the network service area to meet the needs of our employees?
- Should the service be made available to only regular (e.g., non-contractor, full-time) employees or should we include other types of employees (e.g., contractors or fellows, retirees or adult family members)?
- What scope of services is required to meet the needs of our employees?
- Is it important to require a special Web page and/or telephone number for our employees?
- What scope of services is required to meet the needs of our program (e.g., administrative duties, customer service, usage data, promotional programs and materials)?
- Will the DFCN provider collect utilization data and provide periodic reports?
- Will the fitness club network provider require a minimum number of participating employees?
- What quality standards must the network meet?
Conducting a DFCN Search
After you’ve identified key criteria for a DFCN, it is important to seek the assistance of your human resources, contract, or legal department to conduct a proper search for the right DFCN. If you determine that there are no internal procurement or ethical requirements, the following resources might help you identify appropriate DFCNs for consideration:
- Internet search
- Work site health promotion organizations or coalitions
- Your employee benefits manager
Selecting a DFCN
Once you have identified all available DFCNs, apply your criteria identified above to select the appropriate DFCN for your agency/company within the procurement and ethic rules and regulations for your organization.
Next Steps
During the planning phase, you can begin developing a communication plan for promoting the launch of your DFCN and maintaining employee interest in it.
DFCN Example Tools
Other Helpful Information
Please note: Some of these publications are available for download only as *.pdf files. These files require Adobe Acrobat Reader in order to be viewed. Please review the information on downloading and using Acrobat Reader software.
* Links to non-Federal organizations found at this site are provided solely as a service to our users. These links do not constitute an endorsement of these organizations or their programs by CDC or the Federal Government, and none should be inferred. CDC is not responsible for the content of the individual organization Web pages found at these links.
Page last updated: May 22, 2007
Content Source: Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion
