Skype Interview with Julius the Swimming Instructor:
Julius is a swimming instructor at KK Health Club in Ntinda Kampala Uganda. He has been working at the same swimming pool as an instructor for more than 16years. Very often, Julius goes out to primary and secondary schools in Uganda to promote and market his services and he usually meets with school head teachers and sports teachers. He tries to convince them to enroll kids/students for swimming lessons at KK Health Club where he works. The idea is based on the fact that, majority schools and private homes in Uganda do not own swimming pools and majority Ugandans will not know how to swim because of that gap. What Julius sees from that, are business opportunities.
Separating people from the problem
Julius, how do you deal with difficult head teachers and sports teachers?
In his words, he says; "When I meet with head teachers and sports teachers at primary and secondary schools, my goal is to get at least 50 pupils to train twice a week. That is approximately 100 trainees. Sometimes, it is not easy to convince the head teacher even when a sports master has accepted. So, I try to find out why and who of the two is a swimmer. In most cases, the one that does not swim is more afraid of allowing kids to go out. But also, most of the teachers in Uganda do not know how to swim. I, therefore, understand why they often express lots of fear and worry about possible drowning and safety issues.
The leaders often worry about being arrested by the parents if they did not seek permission and something happened to a kid. Very often, I will encourage them to talk to the parents first before giving me an answer, which they do by sending letters with the kids back home. Usually, I carry my resume/cv with me when I go for these meeting. However, I only share the cv when we disagree. Every time they see that I have an experience of over 16years as a swimming instructor at the same swimming pool, they relax and start to trust me. Sometimes, I have to give them more references such as, people I have trained, schools I have run the similar programs and surprisingly, they will call those school to confirm while I am seated there, but that often helps me win because of my good reputation and great recommendations I receive from the past and present clients."
Julius says he has learned to understand that the fear from the school leaders/teachers is simply an expression of care, love and responsibility. It is parenthood that makes them worry about the safety of kids. But when he shares his experience through sharing his resume, confidence and trust are built. He allows himself to view and address the seemingly uncooperative teachers and head teachers as just caring and loving. This has given him a good hand at dealing with most of them over the years because he doesn’t judge them and he controls his negative emotions. He chooses not to get angry but understanding because he puts himself in their shoes each time he is faced with a complex situation.
Mutual Benefit
How do you ensure that you, the club, the school, and the parents benefit from your program? How do you make sure that everyone is happy?
Julius’s prolonged great experience has given him an advantage over majority swimming instructors around the city. He knows how to negotiate great deals for his employer and himself.
A regular swimming fee at KK Health club per kid is 3,000 Uganda Shilling ($1USD). Julius thinks in large numbers or quantity. With that mentality, he is able to accumulate more money by charging just 1/3 of that regular fee. He offers deals of 1,000 Uganda shillings per kid. He is, therefore, able to get at least 50 kids from majority schools he visits and sells his package. Usually, his target is to have at least 2 days each the week where schools bring kids to KK Health club for swimming lessons.
According to Julius's club records, KK Health club makes the most weekday money on those two weekdays when he trains school kids. "On top of my salary, I am paid a commission of 50% of all the money made on those two days and then the club receives the remaining 50%. This way, each parent saves two thousand shillings. The schools build their reputation and popularity in the community" says Julius. Without his discounted package, the club would make 10 times less money on each of those two days. A great turn up at the swimming pool often generates greater income in just a few hours. Also, his employer benefits because the more money he makes as a club, the better the business. The more people that come, the better the health club get's known. Basically, everyone is happy.
BATNA:
So Julius, do you usually set a backup plan?
"Yes, I do. To be successful in Uganda, you must always have plan A & B. I have a lot of private rich people whose swimming pools I take care of every once in a while. They pay me cash per each completed job. Sometimes, I get paid to teach some of their kids too from their own private pools. So, when the school program slows down, I just increase my visits to those individual private homes by making calls and setting up appointments." Based on our conversation, Julius makes more money from the schools than the private homes. He, however, acknowledges that the private homes are a great plan B.
In conclusion, I think Julius is a great business man, who knows what he wants and has built a great network of trusted businesses and business partners, that will last him decades. His great negotiations skills play a great role in setting him at an advantage over many swimming instructors in the country.