Director of Affiliates

Leads the global affiliate business and the teams responsible for supporting, expanding, and strengthening the affiliate network. Reporting directly to the CEO, it sets strategic vision, drives key performance metrics, and collaborates across HQ departments to deliver practical, high-impact solutions for affiliate owners. The position draws on firsthand affiliate ownership and operational experience to help thousands of owners scale sustainable, successful businesses.

• Lead overall strategy and execution for the affiliate business unit, maintaining accountability for quarterly performance targets.
• Drive affiliate network expansion and enhance retention strategies, tracking core performance metrics.
• Provide robust operational support, foster direct feedback channels, and serve as the primary advocate for affiliate owners within HQ.
• Engage directly with affiliate owners through site visits, community events, and roundtables to gather field intelligence and align HQ priorities.
• Analyse affiliate unit economics to identify drivers of sustainability, growth, and operational risk across the network.
• Enhance unit economics for affiliates and ensure all HQ initiatives deliver tangible value to local gym owners.
• Streamline business operations, establish clear performance benchmarks, monitor key performance indicators, remove operational friction, and leverage data-driven insights.
• Manage the departmental operating budget in collaboration with Finance, overseeing budget allocation and optimising resource allocation to yield high impact for owners.
• Partner cross-functionally with Education, Sport, Marketing, Product & Technology, Finance, and Legal to ensure cross-departmental alignment.
• Recruit, mentor, coach, and develop a high-performing affiliate operations team focused on execution, accountability, continuous improvement, and leadership development.

• Current ownership and operational experience with a CrossFit affiliate.
• Active CrossFit Level 4 (CF-L4) certification and ongoing active participation in the CrossFit Open.
• Strong analytical and strategic planning skills with a focus on measurable outcomes.
• Agile, affiliate-first leadership style with a dedication to eliminating low-value processes.
• Proven capability to build trust, inspire teams, and develop talent effectively.
• 10+ years of progressive executive leadership in business operations, account management, franchise/network operations, or professional services.
• Demonstrated expertise managing senior leaders and leading geographically dispersed or remote organisations.
• Proven track record of driving operational scale, financial growth, and customer retention metrics.
• Experience designing and implementing scalable operational frameworks and organisational structures.

• Deep domain expertise and understanding of the CrossFit affiliate model and ecosystem is strongly preferred.