Top studios don't guess. They track.
John-Paul Rahme, Co-Founder of XODA · 3 min read
Ask what separates a thriving studio from a struggling one and you'll hear a lot about vibe and community. The real answer: the good ones measure. Here's what John-Paul Rahme sees the top operators doing differently.
“Definitely they're increasing the level of management and how much they're tracking from a staff point of view. They're using tools to allocate tasks or specific members and outcomes to staff, and good reporting to measure, track and manage their team — so staff have very, very clear, measurable objectives of what they need to deliver to their people.”
Guessing feels faster, but it hides the problems until they're expensive — a coach who's quietly losing members, a location drifting on retention, a follow-up process nobody actually owns. Tracking turns “I think we're doing okay” into “here's exactly what's working.”
Make it practical
- Give every staff member clear, measurable objectives — not vibes. What does a good week look like, in numbers?
- Allocate specific members and outcomes to specific people, so accountability isn't a group blur.
- Use reporting to review performance on a regular cadence, not just when something breaks.
How XODA helps
Assign tasks and members to staff, and measure it all in one place.
Keep reading
Why discounts won't fix your gym's churn
Where to actually spend your retention budget — and why free months don't work.
LeadershipThe mindset shift that grows a great gym team
Why high standards can quietly stall your team — and what to do instead.
FounderWhat running gyms taught me about building XODA
The operator problems that shaped the platform — straight from the founder.