Instructors - The Lifeblood of the Industry

We all know that without instructors the whole program grinds to a halt. The job gets done when the instructors and students get together on the range and in the classroom. The students are the end users of our service - the external customers. The instructors are our internal customers and we need to serve those customers. Chief Instructor Ray Pierce refers to the instructor corps as "paid volunteers." And so they are. We need them more than they need us (just don't tell THEM that...). When we say, "paid volunteers," the thing to take from that is most instructors teach for non­monetary reasons. They have a passion for riding and take satisfaction from introducing others into motorcycling.

To keep our programs running strong, we need to keep our instructors happy. If they aren't in it for the money, what can we do? Here are some ideas to help you keep your instructors happy and teaching.

• Serve them; make their lives easier in the field. Do as much as you can so they can just show up and teach. Have bikes, parts, fuel, forms and files, materials and supplies well stocked and ready for use. You might even have a staff person/coordinator/contractor "on-call" for any circumstance that may come up during training.
• Cultivate discounts with local dealers for instructors (if the dealers want to offer discounts to students as well, that is fine, but the instructors should be your first priority). The dealers need rider trainers, too!
• Publicly recognize excellence, dedication, and service. Use an email distribution list, or some kind of awards to honor those who make it all work. Consider some kind of annual or semi-annual event designed to honor those who are the front line troops in motorcycle rider training.
• Remember that from a business standpoint, we have all the external customers we need (or can handle!). Rather than focus resources on soliciting students, consider redirecting those resources to recruiting and retaining your instructors.