by Melinda Minton

Spas are like sponges, holding each experience, emotion and event that happens within its walls. Clients come to spas seeking renewal, wanting reprise and demanding comfort. These requirements would easily be met if spa technicians were robots and clients were sedated at the door. Unfortunately, that is not the case; a prerequisite for a spa’s success is orchestrating client visits flawlessly so that each experience tops the last.

Since spas became popular in the late ’80s there has been the complaint that licensed help is hard, if not impossible, to find. The fact of the matter is great technicians are found and then created. Like horses groomed into racing greats, the selection process of a spa technician is one part science, one part instinct, one part training and one part persistence. Hiring a technician who will grow to flourish in a spa environment can be as easy as selecting an individual who is personable, honest, friendly and hardworking. Most spa-specific skills can be taught—but behavioral qualities and personality traits either come with the candidate as a whole package or they don’t.

Finding talent should be an everyday task on the spa’s must-do list. Tapping into the beauty- and massage-school environment is one way to continually feed the spa with fresh, eager individuals ready to launch their careers.

An apprenticeship program that finds the best students early in their career paths is one approach to create a pipeline of future technicians. Becoming familiar with students and top faculty educating at the schools on the latest techniques, ingredients, products and treatments is an effective method. Many spas even create brochures, videos and promotional materials to attract students to the facility.

Employing students as front-desk staff, dispensary assistants or retail sales professionals allows them the invaluable experience of working in the spa before becoming licensed. Likewise, it allows the spa director the opportunity to train and polish spa technicians so that when they do become licensed they are ready to work on the floor and begin a rigorous hands-on training program or work unsupervised, seeing clients immediately.

Creating a corporate culture of comfort is the best way to take care of spa employees while ensuring that they will take care of the business. Because the spa is an environment of touch and unspoken feelings, it is crucial that the staff is happy. While most spas run on a small budget with regard to available benefits and perks, there are a variety of ways to keep staff content and fueled to extend their best work to spa clients.

Develop a cafeteria-style benefits package for employees. There are several companies out there that offer managed benefit packages, which allow each employee to stay within a set annual budget. This way, employees who already have health benefits can take advantage of paid vacation, educational opportunities or a 401(k) program.

A spa owner needs to consider the spa’s vision and what makes the team unique. Why does the formation of the staff create a powerful and healing experience for every person who visits the facility? Not only does a spa staff collectively bring with it a variety of personalities and talent, it also brings a common energy. Define that energy or it will define the spa.

Create a future for the spa staff. For instance, if a massage therapist is hired in March, where will that individual be next year? How will being a part of the spa team transform his or her life? Will that person gain valuable continuing education? Will the relationships that he or she forms at the spa create new opportunities for that individual’s personal path? Will that person’s career flourish as a result of what the spa brings to the table? Creating opportunity for future growth will instill a sense of pride and loyalty in the staff. As each spa team member grows, so will the business.

No matter how great individual spa technicians are, they surely will fail individually and collectively if they cannot function as a team. If the spa’s culture is one of mutual respect, support, group effort and genuine caring in times of stress, chaos and trouble, the team will shine. Employee retention is the result of individuals who feel respected, needed and cared for in any environment.

Does the spa employ workers or owners? Workers punch the clock, do their work and collect a paycheck. Workers don’t feel like they are a part of the larger vision. Workers don’t actively problem-solve. Workers see no reason to excel. Workers don’t retain clients, don’t find satisfaction in their jobs and don’t make good employees in the long run because they don’t have any kind of long-term vision for their career with the spa. Even the best of workers are sprinting on a treadmill. They are concerned with quantity and not quality. They surely will grow bored, become burned out and move on before they have the opportunity to grow and flourish in even the best of spa environments.

By offering a little bit of ownership, empowerment and opportunity for growth within the spa, one can turn even the most mediocre of employees into achievers. Owners have a different mind set quite naturally. Owners are more concerned with the big picture and are willing to invest time, money, effort and resources in order to gain even more equity in their future. Owners have a vision for the future and accordingly build a clientele, create beneficial relationships with other staff members and think toward the next year’s return instead of the next paycheck. Employees who have a sense of ownership select their clients and then take care of the top 20 percent that keeps the spa financially flourishing.

Ownership begins with the hiring process and continues through coaching, mentoring and delegating. Employees in every position should be given the opportunity to enjoy profit sharing, team-based bonuses and long-term benefits that will allow them to flourish throughout their careers at the spa. Moreover, employees should be treated like shareholders and given voting shares accordingly. Employees must be given the ability to think like owners including critiquing the system, offering ideas for change and trying out options for improving the status quo.

No matter how progressive the management techniques, employees inevitably are affected by pay. While the tradition in the professional beauty industry has been booth renting or a flat commission, spas are starting to empower employees and the bottom line by monitoring, manipulating and managing pay structures more closely. Like doling out snacks to toddlers or awarding car keys to teenagers, employees need to be carefully managed as well as richly rewarded for behaviors—both good and bad. One of the most powerful tools for reinforcing positive behavior and punishing wrongdoing is pay.

While some spas pay in a regimented way, it can be a powerful management tool to individually coach spa employees and create pay systems that fit their unique working habits, pay preferences and working styles. Some employees simply may require a base salary in order to feel like they will make it from paycheck to paycheck, especially in the beginning of their careers. Conversely, superstars who are industry veterans might prefer bonus options for achieving goals that are off the charts. In fact, some top performers may need this to remain fresh and challenged on a day-to-day basis.

Finding and retaining a superior staff is one of the foremost challenges faced by spa owners today. Recruiting is an ongoing process of constantly hunting for a fresh crop of talent. Management systems must be in place from the beginning to ensure that each staff member will find their spa legs, feel appreciated and grow as team members and individuals within the spa.

Melinda Minton is a spa consultant and health and beauty expert living in Fort Collins, Colo. A licensed massage therapist, esthetician and cosmetologist with an MBA in marketing, she founded The Spa Association, a world-class organization dedicated to enriching the professional beauty industry through self-regulation, education and sound business practices. Minton serves as a resource for such magazines as Better Homes and Gardens, Shape, First for Women and Alternative Medicine.

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