Barriers to Digitalization of Business Processes in the Russian Fitness Industry

Abstract

In the era of digital transformation, the Russian fitness industry is displaying duality. Actively implementing digital trends for clients, gyms face systemic barriers to digitalization of their internal business processes. This article aims to identify the key obstacles for digital transformation. The research is based on a summary of potential barriers to digitalization of business processes in the Russian fitness industry as well as on and the results of a survey of gyms’ managers and owners. Barriers to the digitalization of business processes in fitness industry organizations are divided into four groups: financial, technological, organizational and personnel, and client-related. The survey of gyms’ managers and owners reveals that financial risks are the main constraint to the digitalization of this business, and the key challenge lies not in the lack of technology, but in the difficulty of economically integration it into a low-margin business. Furthermore, the authors offer a number of practical recommendations for gradually overcoming barriers to the digitalization of business processes in the Russian fitness industry. These include - implementation of a subscription-based payment system (recurring payments), focus on the integration of solutions, and change management. The strategic goal of digital transformation of fitness industry is to build a holistic, customer-centric digital ecosystem, whereby technology enhances, rather than replaces, personal interactions between gyms and clients. These findings may be of interest to gyms’ owners in Russia and in the Russian Far East, particularly to those having any interest in expanding of business digitalization practices.