Recruiting Independent SCUBA Instructors

Do you run a SCUBA diving center, resort or large instructional program? Are you actively recruiting independent instructors? If not, you’re missing the boat.

The SCUBA industry frequently appears to have a closed door policy. Many dive centers I have visited appear to only work with SCUBA instructors that have “grown up” through their program. Other dive centers actually discourage their people from ever becoming SCUBA instructors so not to challenge their existing staff or SCUBA dive center.

Independent SCUBA Instructors Are Marketers

Sure, they may or may not have formal marketing training, but they are passionate about what they do. Passion builds excitement, which brings you customers. A student for an independent SCUBA instructor may make them a couple hundred dollars, but it makes you as a SCUBA store owner the potential for thousands more. Gear sales, continuing education and trips are all your benefits attached to every student your SCUBA instructors bring through the door.

Realistic Expectations

You can’t just let any independent SCUBA instructor off the street into your store, your home, to teach your potential customers without some pre-screening and no self-respecting independent SCUBA instructor would go to work with a SCUBA store without knowing some basics. The rest of the business world has job applications, requirements and interviews, you should utilize these tools in your SCUBA diving business.

A Multi-Tool for Your Toolbox

I am currently developing an independent SCUBA instructor recruiting workbook (as an ebook) that should be available within the next couple of weeks. It will include items like:

• Independent SCUBA instructor application form
  • Get some basic, yet necessary information from anyone wanting to teach for you.
• Independent SCUBA Instructor/SCUBA Diving Center Agreement of Understanding (benefits, pay, etc)
  • If you have your agreement in writing, it sets realistic expectations for your new independent contractor.
• Contract SCUBA Instructor/Sub-contractor Agreement of Understanding
  • Having a unified policy regarding pay, certification and any additional benefits down to Assistant Instructors and Divemasters builds unity amongst your entire staff.
• Promotion possibilities and procedures
  • Do you encourage people to get to higher rankings? How does an instructor qualify for any advancement?
• Assessment forms
  • Unfortunately, you can’t just take people at their word, you should assess their abilities. Let them know what your procedure entails.

This will be distributed as a PDF e-book and will have a variety of easy to use fields so you can customize your information for your specific situation.

Do you have a policy for bringing on instructors that you didn’t personally train?