Author: bennett

Inspiring Member Introductions

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New members can be difficult to come by, especially during times of economic turbulence. But your existing core membership can hold the key to unlocking a wave of new members. GGA’s Michael Gregory explains how.

Why are your current members a valuable avenue for new members?

Members who have developed an emotional connection with your club will be proud to show it off to friends and peers. Friends and peers who will typically be of a similar income bracket, age and family profile.

Since the club’s membership proposition already appeals to those existing members, its relevance to their friends and peers is naturally much higher than it would be for a typical prospect.

Add in our findings; surveys of over 50,000 private club members each year reveal that ‘friends and family who are members’ is consistently one of the top three factors in the decision to join. For millennials, it’s even more important. All of a sudden, the importance of existing members comes into focus.

But what is it that gets these prospects over the line?

Ordinarily, a club employee will be the one selling the benefits of membership to prospects. In this case, however, its existing members. They’ll be your best advocates, your best sales men and women. They can express what it means to be a member, told through the eyes of the members themselves. A compelling and convincing message, and an effective mechanism to generate new members.

Should there be an official referral scheme in place to incentivize current members?

Before developing a formal or informal scheme you should scrutinize the current numbers. How many member referral leads do you generate? In our experience, over half of member leads usually come from referrals. If your number is far lower, you first need to ask why.

A member satisfaction survey can provide the answers. If satisfaction is low in areas central to your club’s value proposition, then existing members will not be as forthcoming in promoting the club to their friends and peers.

After your survey, isolate the areas in need of improvement and build these into your strategic plan. With the root causes of dissatisfaction being addressed, the club will organically become somewhere that members have a stronger connection with, and in turn a place they are more likely to recommend to potential new members.

It’s true that a catalyst may still be required to supplement this process and to help overturn a culture of non-referral. But a word of caution on this: a referral scheme should not be rolled out as a short-term solution to get more members. It could come across as desperate, distorting the value perception of membership at your club, and you could give too much away if not carefully developed.

We have found that recognition can be just as motivating as monetary incentives. So, before opting for the financial route, give some recognition to those who have referred members in a given month or year (which could be as simple as acknowledging the individuals in the club newsletter), then see if this spurs on more to act.

Is there something else club managers should be doing to ‘activate’ their members?

A lack of satisfaction can be one cause of low member referral numbers, but it might be as simple as not having created the opportunities for referrals to happen.

The good news is there are some simple and effective tactics you can roll out to create a fertile referral environment:

Golf days – the most obvious but often overlooked. Open days, invitation days and corporate days are a great way for prospects to experience what the club has to offer and provide the opportunity to spend some quality time on the course with other members.

Social events – allow members to invite guests along to select social events. It will introduce them to the club environment, they’ll get to meet other members and begin to feel what it’s like to be part of the membership community.

Crucially, welcome families along to these events too. We know how important spouses can be in the decision to join a club, so they need to get a first-hand look at how membership could enrich their life.

Discovery days – host a discovery day for existing members to bring along selected guests. Put together a dedicated itinerary where prospects can experience what it’s like to be a member, and give them the opportunity to join at the end of it.

Membership toolkit – arm your members with a “membership tool kit”. This can provide them with clear guidance on what to do should any of their friends or relatives want to visit or even join the club.

Is it all a numbers game?

The thing to remember is, a typical club’s attrition rate stands at around 20-35 members. With conversion rates between 8-12%, that means a club will need at least 200 prospects on any given year just to replace what they lose.

So the numbers are important. Your current members should be your most important pipeline for new members, and if less than half of your prospects come from your existing members, it’s time to pay attention and act. Your future depends on it.

Become an Employer of Choice

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The order of the day went straight to the point: “England expects that every man will do his duty.” In the 1805 Battle of Trafalgar, one of England’s more decisive naval battles, Admiral Lord Nelson called upon the sailors of his island nation to ward off an attack by the combined French and Spanish navies. It was a battle to the finish and one in which Nelson was mortally wounded. When told of eminent victory, among his final words were, “Now I have done my duty.”

Golf course managers today are charged with myriad duties, maybe not with life and death consequences, but critical nonetheless. Foremost among them is the recruitment, training and retention of a qualified and motivated staff. There is no more important role to the financial and operational well-being of courses simply because so many moving parts require near constant attention.

What’s more, the job is getting tougher. The U.S. has more job openings than unemployed people, a situation known as “full employment.” The U.S. economy added 216,000 jobs in April, notching a record 103 straight months of job gains and signaling that the current economic expansion shows little sign of stalling. The Labor Department reported in July that the unemployment rate fell to 3.6 percent, the lowest since 1969.

What we should glean from those statistics is that the war for talent continues unabated across U.S. businesses, making it even more challenging for leaders to build a staff with the highest quality workers. Becoming an employer of choice in your market is now a business imperative. Here are five ways to distinguish your facility:

1. Prioritize. With labor costs representing slightly more than half of operational costs at most facilities, making your course and club attractive to job seekers is a smart use of resources. Start by deciding the selection criteria for each position. Thinking through on-the-job performance standards helps to establish the search criteria for each position. This careful job description serves to focus the employer’s intentions and expectations. Detailed job description and criteria also clarify the opportunity for prospective employees, so they know going in what is expected of a successful candidate.

The process seems simple, but many employers fail to prioritize the time and thought process to describe what is needed from a specific position.

2. Organize. Employees want to know what will be expected of them in the job. An organized approach to describing the position makes sure employer and employee are on the same page, reducing surprises and establishing an understanding on key aspects of employment. Carefully organizing the position description signals that you know what you want and will keep searching until you find the best candidate.

3. Standardize. Your search process is a miniature branding effort. Using consistent and professional formatting, job and benefits descriptions and comprehensive summaries of expected annual income guide prospective employees to you. Remember, you’re not simply searching for someone to fill a position – you’re searching for the best possible fit.

Describe the culture of your team with words that demonstrate commitment and dedication. For most people, work is an emotional relationship before it is an economic consideration. In a December 2018 study of employees’ attitudes, Clutch, a B2B search firm, noted that “workplace values are essential to recruiting, retaining, and motivating quality employees.” In the same study, employees emphasized the importance of fair treatment and compensation alongside ethical treatment. While compensation is obviously important, how people feel about themselves in their jobs is even more valuable.

4. Recognize. To keep top performers, celebrate their successes. To many workers, the respect of their co-workers is highly important. Create a culture that recognizes the efforts and successful performance results of teammates. There are many examples of employee recognition successes, but most important is keeping the recognition fair, transparent and generous. Recognition will prove to be one of your best investments in time and money.

5. Evolution-ize. Create a recruitment and retention process that evolves with the workforce, your club and employees. Most staff members want to work where there is a fresh and invigorating environment. Traditions are extremely important and should be balanced with the need of employees to see change and growth in their jobs and lives.

This article was authored by GGA Partner Henry DeLozier for Golf Course Industry Magazine. 

Community… and How To Build It

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A member’s relationship with your club will feel infinitely more connected, more substantial and more emotional if they are part of a community. But how do you create a community at your club? Can you create a community? GGA’s Henry DeLozier has the answers.

It is a genuine sense of community – and the opportunity to be a part of it – that attracts members to a private club.

Members need their club to be a safe place, populated by people with shared lifestyle expectations, and built on experiences that create a feeling of fellowship.

But how does a club create an authentic community?

The foundation of any community is shared values, and for a private club these may be values such as safe haven and healthy lifestyle.

In private clubs today, this culture of common attitudes, interests, and goals cannot be left to chance – it must be facilitated and fostered by the club leadership.

Successful club leaders and managers understand that this requires an intentional plan of action; one which establishes and sustains several key elements within the club’s culture:

Setting the Standard

Clearly stated standards of conduct are essential to establish a shared understanding of the community’s behavioral norms. Members rely upon a common understanding of acceptable – and unacceptable – behavior.

In clubs today, such standards of decorum include dress, usage of technological devices such as mobile phones, and personal conduct. In the main, club members are highly supportive of rules and rule enforcement… for others at least.

How can club leaders effectively implement respected community standards?

  • Engage input from many members when formulating and updating the club’s rules. The more members who participate in establishing the community’s standards, the more widely the standards are supported.
  • Communicate the commonly accepted standards for all to see, question, refine, and accept.
  • Make such standards the backbone of new-member orientation and communicate to existing members that new members are being so informed.

At The Ford Plantation near Savannah, Georgia, the sense of community is a point of pride among club members.

CEO Marc Ray observes, “Everything we do, including our Mission Statement, refers to Ford as a community of “friends and neighbors”. The members, and the staff, genuinely care about each other, and it is a culture that permeates the community.

“We travel together, dine together…and sometimes cry together. There is nothing fake or contrived. It is an ingrained culture that people want to, and get to, belong to. Something bigger than themselves.”

Firm but Fair

Establishing a sense of unity and togetherness is a powerful asset for any club, and this is something that needs to be protected.

From time to time, there will of course be people who do not honor the standards set, and knowing how to address those individuals and the situations that arise is critical to uphold the standards of the community.

How should clubs approach these situations? The best are consistent and firm in the enforcement of community standards with very few exceptions. So too, top clubs enforce their rules evenly regardless of status, tenure or importance.

“If you don’t stand for something, you will fall for anything” is a commonly referenced quote with mixed attribution and, yet, its aptness is clear. Members like to know that their community and its traditions stand for something worthy of their respect and support.

Behind the Curtain

Employees are a vital component of club communities. In many clubs, it is the staff that hold the club together and keep it the safe haven on which members rely.

This is particularly prevalent at Desert Mountain in Carefree, Arizona, as Damon DiOrio, the Club’s CEO, describes, “Establishing a safe, positive, healthy and energized work culture, built on trust and respect for your employees, is the first step in developing a strong and inclusive brand.

“Having a united and caring culture for your team is critical to forging an environment that emanates membership loyalty and a sense of community. As leaders, we can only fulfil the dream of having pride and harmony in our membership by being open, honest, engaging, transparent and authentic.”

The Power of Tradition

A sense of community also relies upon treasured traditions which celebrate friendship, family, and fun. These are key ingredients to a feeling of “belonging”.

Traditional special events and celebrations at many clubs help to crystalize the community’s values.

Take the ‘Big Little Show’ at Westchester Country Club, for instance, where family is the tradition placed front and center every summer with the club’s vibrant talent show.

Events which celebrate patriotism and love of country are other popular examples that serve to bring club members closer together through shared, cherished moments.

Your club could have all of the facilities and amenities in the world, but it is the sense of community – of being a part of something dear to them – that makes members proud and dedicated to their club for generations.

Facilitate and foster the emergence of this community, and it could fast become your club’s strongest asset.

Make Time for Strategic Thinking

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Do executives at your club know what a strategic plan really is?

Club executives often confuse a strategic plan with a master plan, a capital expense budget or standard operating procedures when in fact it is none of those things.

“A strategic plan is an all-encompassing game plan. It is a plan of action designed to achieve a particular goal. It is a tight, clear-cut statement of what it is your club is trying to do,” explained Henry DeLozier of Global Golf Advisors during a seminar for club managers earlier this spring. “It’s a crucial document because every club needs to know where it is going.”

Strategic planning is receiving more focus in private clubs now than in the past. DeLozier believes this is due to the fact that more is expected of club leaders now (and more of leaders in general). He also says that clubs are expected to function in a more businesslike setting. Oversupplied, competitive markets require more focus and different types of clubs use different models of strategic planning. That’s why strategic planning is more important now than ever before.

The strategic plan should answer the questions what and why. It should not answer when, who or how because the answers to those questions are tactical. To keep strategy and tactics separate, DeLozier urges executives to remember the following:

Strategy = What. A primary duty of the board is to develop the strategy for the future of the club in a three to five-year life cycle. “Strategy is doing the right things for the club and its members. It is conceptually planning what the club will do and why,” he explained.

Tactics = How. This is a primary duty of management. Tactics are about executing the strategy and doing things right for the current period of time.

DeLozier urges all club executives to block off time regularly to think strategically. “Find the time to collect, study and share information. Strategy is part of a leader’s job today. Encourage strategic thinking in such a way that it becomes cultural at your club,” he concluded.

This article was authored by GGA Partner Henry DeLozier for the Private Club Advisor.

Grasshoppers, Water, and the Golf Business

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Beginning in June 1874, a swarm of grasshoppers dense enough to block the sun’s rays – so copious that you could scoop them up with shovels – descended on the drought-ravaged Great Plains. They mowed down crops and brought economic devastation to entire communities. In a scene eerily familiar, the chewing herbivorous insects, a close cousin of the locust, did it again in 1931 in regions suffering from prolonged periods of below normal rainfall.

No one is predicting a return of the grasshopper, although that seems a haunting title for an apocalyptic movie. But history does warn us of the dangers of extreme drought, when grasshoppers can flourish and when turfgrasses are most vulnerable. As we move into the summer months, when rainfall is scarce in many parts of the United States, golf courses and sports facilities are reminded that they must manage water usage and consumption diligently.

Audubon International, which promotes sustainability for businesses, recreational properties and communities, is committed to bringing solutions to golf and sports facilities. “Putting your golf course, community or resort on the path to sustainability may seem overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be,” Audubon International CEO Christine Kane says. “We suggest starting by establishing an environmental policy that will guide your operations. This will bring your employees and members onboard and pave the way for incorporating topics such as water conservation, IPM or wildlife management into your budget, marketing and maintenance processes.”

Golf facilities and clubs also benefit from sustainability’s halo effect. Many members today expect greater levels of environmental stewardship from businesses and other organizations with which they are associated. In addition to its environmental impacts, sound water management has taken on a good-for-business shine as well.

Research points out that sound environmental stewardship matters to women and millennials especially.

Eighty-three percent of U.S. women believe that climate change is a serious problem, according to a 2015 Pew Research Center study. Nearly 70 percent of the women polled worry that such changes will affect them personally. The bottom line is that women are concerned about sound environmental practices and are receptive to learning how golf course managers are caring for Mother Earth.

Pew further reports that drought is among the top four climate-related concerns. “Fully half of Americans name drought as their chief climate change concern, and this is especially true in drought-plagued Western states compared with other regions of the country,” according to the research.

Clubs and courses seeking to attract younger members would do well to take a responsible approach to environmentalism. “Brands that establish a reputation for environmental stewardship among today’s youngest consumers have an opportunity to not only grow market share, but build loyalty among the power-spending millennials of tomorrow,” says Grace Farraj, an executive with Nielsen Environmentalism.

Audubon International launched its Water & Sustainability Innovation Award this year to recognize landscape companies, organizations and municipalities for sustainable, water-efficient projects. Corica Park South Course of Alameda, California, and its management firm, Greenway Golf, was the first recipient.

The Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program for Golf provides a tangible form of recognition for clubs and courses committed to protecting the environment and preserving the natural heritage of the game. By helping people enhance the valuable natural areas and wildlife habitats that golf courses provide, improve efficiency and minimize potentially harmful impacts of golf course operations, the program serves an important environmental role worldwide.

Audubon International also has developed Standard Environmental Management Practices that are generally applicable to all golf courses. These standards form the basis for the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program for golf certification guidelines. Points of focus from the ACSP for golf facilities include habitat planning and management guidance, which educates club members and other golfers while increasing the understanding of best management practices for pesticide use.

This article was authored by GGA Partner Henry DeLozier for Golf Course Industry Magazine. 

3 Attributes of an Outstanding Club Manager

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What does it take to be an outstanding club manager? And for clubs seeking to fill this role, what attributes should they be looking for?

GGA’s new Executive Search Director, Patrick DeLozier, explains what it takes to be among the best private club managers.

It takes a particular type of individual to be a club manager.

Seldom is it a job with set hours and set responsibilities; it is more often a vocation which requires an unprecedented level of commitment and drive.

Rewarding? Yes. Challenging? Most certainly.

Throughout my time both at the sharp end of club management, as well as participating in national associations and state boards, one thing was abundantly clear – the role of the club manager is inextricably linked with the success or failure of a club.

It is, therefore, an appointment clubs cannot afford to get wrong.

But what makes an outstanding club manager?

1) Strong work ethic

High performing club managers are leaders with a relentlessly strong work ethic.

They are dedicated, committed and visible to the whole club – including both their membership and their team.

Beyond the general day-to-day requirements, the best club managers have a sense of when and where to be at all times. Not simply to be seen, but to demonstrate leadership and accessibility, consciously engaging with everyone they encounter in a meaningful and constructive way.

For team members this means being willing to mentor, offer guidance and invest time in their well-being and progression, whatever the role. For members, it is going the extra mile, ensuring exceptional service levels and a commitment to continuous high levels of satisfaction.

The club manager should be the face and voice of the club, not tucked away in a back office.

2) Forward-thinking

Effective managers do not stand still. They are always growing, always looking forward.

For them, success is just fuel to improve, and failure is an opportunity to learn and avoid repeat mistakes.

They are relentless when it comes to innovation: they recognize trends, the importance of future generations, and consider how to best position their club to take the opportunity they present.

As golf and particularly private clubs move ever more towards service and experience, the most forward-thinking club managers are tuned into three important things:

  • Continuous investment in the property (and the areas in which to invest)
  • Attracting, training and motivating the right people for their team
  • Perfecting operational execution to create the ultimate experience for members and guests

3) Welcomes accountability

A high performing club manager never waivers when it comes to being accountable and holding oneself to exceptional standards of integrity and honesty.

While moral and ethical accountability is of paramount importance, so too is business accountability.

Successful managers engage in business intelligence and the ability to root decisions in evidence and fact. They embrace performance targets, and motivate their team to meet them.

More broadly, outstanding club managers welcome the existence of a strategic plan to determine the direction of travel, underpin all that they do, and provide a vision for the future they can unite the entire club behind.

To perform such a complex and varied role, a club manager will need an armory of attributes – not just three. But these traits should serve as a good foundation for what it takes to be an outstanding private club manager and help to safeguard your club from choosing the wrong candidate.

Recovering from the missteps of inadequate leadership can be an enormous burden, so if your club needs guidance in the recruitment of a new club manager or leader, please connect with me for an informal discussion.

Connect with Patrick DeLozier

Looking Outside the Boardroom

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Board members are an important source of experience and knowledge. But when making strategic decisions on the future direction of the club, that expertise can easily be hampered by a lack of access to valuable data and actionable information.

GGA’s Bennett DeLozier explains how to connect your board with the critical insights they need from outside the boardroom.

Scenario: you’re a manager, it’s sunny, you’re in a board meeting, fluorescent lights buzz overhead.  The group is brainstorming capital improvement projects ahead of next season.  The topics of budget, capital reserves, assessments, competitor offerings, and attracting new members swirl around the room.

Someone claims that what members “really want” are new amenities, another counters that new amenity supporters are mostly younger members in restricted categories, a third comments on the price of dues for this group.  Opinions begin to diverge on membership pricing, someone mentions member satisfaction, people start using the word ‘should’, and a healthy, productive conversation turns to conjecture.

In this situation, a common reference point can bring everyone back on task. You’re confident you probably have data points on all of these topics somewhere in your office or in your inbox.  You’re scrolling, scrolling.  Before long, the meeting adjourns with decisions on hold, and you leave with a list of research tasks and staff projects to tackle in advance of the next one.

Board Members Need Information

While this scenario may be an overdramatization, it’s not terribly uncommon.  This is what happens when intelligent, capable people face important decisions without actionable information.  It deters strategic thinking and is taxing for the manager and staff.

Board members are usually smart, business-oriented people and they expect to have empirical discussions just as they have done in their own line of work.  Their job is to strategize, and a strategy is only as good as the information which informs it.

The most effective club managers gather, consolidate and deliver a war chest of information to the boardroom in order to facilitate better, easier, and quicker decisions.

The Right Kind of Data

A word of caution: not all data is good data and managers are wise to beware the data ‘dump’.  So, what does the right kind of data look like?

  • Data that is current. In a perfect world, the provision is real-time data and predictive analytics.  Data should be updated as frequently as possible and be on-hand for timely, relevant insight before annual planning exercises and performance monitoring activities take place.  In some markets, data that is 12 months old is out of date.
  • Data that comes from multiple sources. A combination of internal club data and external market data are required to be informed at both a micro and macro level.  Data from the club’s management and point-of-sale systems or reports from department heads alone doesn’t cut it.
  • Data that is useable. In presentations and speaking engagements we’ll often joke about the graveyard for strategic plans: in a three-ring binder on your credenza collecting dust.  Cheeky, but true.  Data should be readily available and accessible in a digestible manner.  Having to look for it, go get it, wait for it, or set-aside-15-minutes-for-everyone-to-skim it usually means your data isn’t seaworthy.
  • Data that works for you. Transferring the right kind of data to your board requires you to have a framework for gathering, analyzing, and succinctly documenting all the research and information that is Your data framework should not create more work for you. In other words, you need technology to gather, centralize, and process that information into synthesized insights.

What kind of information do boards want?

They want consolidated internal data to inform them about the club’s financial and operational performance, as well as member satisfaction, habits, preferences, and attitudes.  They want external data which informs them about competitive offerings, prevailing market trends, industry standards, and helps them contextualize the club’s performance relative to others.

Most importantly, they want to know about progress – where the club is now relative to where it needs to be or where members want it to be.

Why don’t boards have this type of information?

Simple. Because their manager hasn’t given it to them.  Usually the manager hasn’t given it to them for really good reasons: they don’t have the time, resources, money, or – in some cases – the culture to support data-driven decision-making.

To be clear, managers should not be expected to have the ability to answer every question which comes their way.  However, they should be expected to successfully guide the process of strategic decision-making at their club.  Here are six tips to make you more efficient and effective at connecting your board with critical insights:

  1. Survey members on satisfaction every year, if not more regularly. Be deliberate and selective with attitudinal surveys, capital improvement surveys, and club votes, but be adamant about doing a satisfaction survey every year.
  2. Know your market inside and out, literally. Knowing your internal market means helping your board know the club’s performance and members.  Knowing your external market means keeping your board apprised of competitors, industry standards, trends, and best practices.
  3. Maintain a constant grasp on the state of your club’s operational and financial data. Being able to reference, provide, or recite details about the club’s finances and operating performance is one of the most effective ways to enhance your command presence in the boardroom.
  4. Keep your data organized and ready to go on short notice. Get yourself in a position where you’re prepared to deliver an informed response to any questions which come your way or threaten to derail a productive discussion.
  5. Report on performance metrics before you’re asked. Be proactive about regularly updating your board on current status, changes, and evolutions within the club.  As the saying goes, they don’t know what they don’t know.
  6. Build upon your data and monitor how it changes over time. This will provide your board with a sense of progress and will serve as a powerful cache of information when it comes time for your annual performance evaluation.

The Dreaded C-Word

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Let’s face it: soliciting independent, expert advice can sometimes be felt as an admission of inadequacy. However, the power of a third-party evaluation is something that can benefit almost any business – when selected carefully.

GGA’s EMEA Partner Rob Hill looks at the challenges and the benefits of employing an external consultant, how to select the right one, and what value a club should expect to gain from the relationship.

For many of us there’s an inherent discomfort in asking for help or support. It can often feel like an admission of being incapable of fulfilling particular aspects of your role.

But the truth is, an external vantage point can deliver an alternative assessment and different solutions to a club’s challenges – something that can be very difficult to accomplish from within.

If it’s a choice between sitting in silence (while your business plateaus) or seeking help, the latter is the only option.

A fresh perspective

Enter the consultant. The individual who is touted to have the answers to your questions, the vision you need to realize your club’s long-term sustainable future, the source of support and guidance you have been craving.

While this should be the function of the consultant, the delivery often falls short. And this is why distrust of consultants is not uncommon.

For some club leaders or board members this distrust is only a perception, for others it stems from direct experience of having achieved disappointing results with the support of consultants in the past.

Whatever the reason, skepticism looms large.

Demystifying the truth

So how do you go about finding the right consultant? How do you peel back the image to reveal their genuine credentials and potential fit to work with you?

Their previous work is a good place to start.

Ask for a broad assortment of references, testimonials and examples of work previously executed at other clubs, preferably those of a similar profile and standing. This will help you to establish a clear picture of whether they could be a valuable source of guidance.

Supplement this with online research. Websites, LinkedIn, social media and web searches are all effective channels to help you learn more about your prospective partner and ensure you have carried out your due diligence before entering into an agreement.

Reminding yourself why

Now that you have assessed a number of candidates, it can be useful to take a step back and remind yourself of the reasons behind seeking help and what additional value you are hoping a consultant can bring to your club.

While each club has its own unique set of challenges, the following is a broad set of attributes a prospective consultant should bring to the table:

  • Knowledge of a wealth of best practices and tactical advantages that can benefit club leaders (who typically have limited exposure to current trends in club strategy, leadership and operations).
  • An impartial perspective and the ability to generate new ideas you may not have already considered for your club.
  • The ability to translate often complex problems and proposed solutions in clear-cut, actionable detail.

Making the first move

Once all parties agree and the decision to employ a consultant is made, club leaders should begin by producing a clearly stated brief for what is needed and what the club is looking to achieve.

Typically, it will be up to the club manager to connect with and fully inform the candidates of the circumstances as well as the needs and expectations of the club. This will allow the consultants to develop an appropriate, tailored and effective proposal from which you can select the best candidate.

Extracting value

The key role of a consultant is to help you achieve those results that you are less likely to accomplish without the outside help, and these should be clearly laid out as the foundation and benchmark of the relationship from the outset.

What other ways should club leaders generally benefit from the relationship?

  • Provision of simple, practical guidance often derived from complex information and detail. Theory is inadequate to a club leader’s needs.
  • A clear roadmap indicating how long the consultant will need to be involved, a definition of the right goals and milestones for progress, and an outline of the specific results that will equate to a successful project outcome.
  • The ability to lean on an independent and objective source of guidance to protect the best business interests of the club.

So, while turning to an outsider can present an internal challenge, and must always be undertaken with a careful and strategic approach. Working with the right strategy consultant can pave a path for growth and success for your club that you might otherwise not achieve without that clear, focused outside perspective.

Substance Over Style

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In the old west, big talkers who didn’t deliver on what they promised were described as “All hat and no cattle.” Simply put: more image than substance.

None of us wants to be thought of in those terms. We all want to deliver the goods as promised. Doing so, while often challenging, is more achievable when you take these important steps:

1. Develop your strategic plan carefully because that’s where you lay out your promises in the form of goals and objectives. Stephen Johnston, the founder of Global Golf Advisors, often explains the importance of strategic planning by saying, “The lack of a strategic plan is not as dangerous as not having fire insurance, but it’s certainly playing with fire.”

The key components of a sound strategic plan are: (a) market analysis; (b) operational review and comparison against performance benchmarks; (c) financial measurement — especially of the sources and uses of funds; and (d) clear-eyed evaluation of governance practices. These four components assure that you have a plan that states clearly your goals and objectives and establishes a broad understanding of expectations.

Remember that an effective strategic plan answers the question: What? The business plan provides the details behind How? When? Who? and Where? The tactical plan outlines the steps that will implement the strategy.

2. Put your strategy to work. Strategy is only as good as the execution that backs it up. Putting strategic goals and objectives into action also requires a plan — one that describes in detail how you and your team will achieve the goals and objectives of the strategic plan.

3. Make sure club leaders and managers understand the plan and how their functional areas are expected to contribute to its success. In 1962, President Kennedy declared, “We will put a man on the Moon in this decade and return him safely to Earth.” Shortly thereafter, while on a tour of the NASA Space Center, the president came upon a janitor mopping the floor. When asked by the President about his job, the janitor responded, “Mr. Kennedy, I am part of the team that is going to put a man on the Moon.” That is plan buy-in and real-life awareness. The lesson: Make believers of your staff.

4. Review your plan’s success. No matter how well-intended a plan might be, careful evaluation and follow-up ensure that the plan remains relevant and purposeful. Another benefit of ongoing evaluation is evolutionary improvement and maximized understanding. Here are three steps to ensure that your plan is working at full capacity:

  • Provide quarterly strategic plan updates. Report your accomplishments and missteps with equal openness. Quarterly updates keep strategy alive in the boardroom and assure members that their board and club management are keeping their promises. Members support trustworthy leadership and trust is built on accountability in your actions.
  • Post a strategic scorecard. After the quarterly update, post the results truthfully and without acclaim. No different that posting your golf score, this is a matter of open accountability for performance. Embrace accountability for your strategic plan’s effectiveness.
  • Produce an annual report. Tell your members what has been accomplished. Align the annual report, as any major corporation would, with the strategic goals and objectives for your business and report on progress toward those goals. Provide members and stakeholders with a succinct summary of the strategic effectiveness of your plan, your board and yourself.

Strategic plans are based on the notion of having a focused plan of action on which all can rely. This step helps to make you and your work more trusted while bringing focus to what makes your facility successful.

One of the more common concerns in many golf courses and clubs is the question of vision or what it really wants to be. A carefully developed strategic plan clearly states who and what you are and establishes a trustworthy foundation for achievements. It shows people that you’re more than just a hat – it’s evidence that you’re bringing the beef.

This article was authored by GGA Partner Henry DeLozier for Golf Course Industry Magazine.

How to Embrace Emerging Club Technology

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In a market brimming with new technology solutions that could revolutionize the way you run a club, GGA Partner, Derek Johnston, reveals how your club can embrace these opportunities, while mitigating any business risks they could create.

Technology continues to change the world; new devices, platforms, and applications continue to enter the market at pace. Yet the criticism leveled at clubs remains the same. The industry is ‘slow to change’, ‘reluctant to adapt’, or can be ‘averse to new technology’.

Is this truly the case? And, if so, what are the reasons for the reluctance?

A technology dilemma

The promise of what enhanced technology can bring to a club is a compelling proposition: better information, increased productivity, improved accuracy, cost efficiencies, delivering an enhanced experience to members and guests. But it’s true that club leaders face a paradox, in that while new technology can often be the source of these tangible advantages, it can be the gateway to unforeseen issues and risks – ones which can easily go unnoticed if not supported appropriately or utilized correctly.

How have these risks come about? In part, through the existence of historical governing frameworks and adherence to traditional operating practices which have not kept pace with the digital transformation. Add in a human element, where individuals may not be properly equipped to implement or operate new technology with due skill and attention, and what were risks can easily become real-life business issues.

A common business issue clubs encounter is not just identifying a new technology solution, but adopting and integrating it effectively.  Clubs can decide upon and acquire a technology and not use it – sometimes they don’t know how best to use it, other times their chosen technology is incongruent to their current business processes or improvement objectives, and, more often, folks simply don’t have the time.

Technology is a tool like any other, it fulfills its purpose when it’s being used. To embrace emerging technology, clubs must identify and select the right tool for the job, map out their implementation approach, restructure their existing processes, if necessary, and define targets against which progress will be measured.

Five Tips to Drive Technology Success:

What can clubs do to mitigate risk when assessing and implementing new technology?

1. Use evidence to inform your decisions

Based on business intelligence and current performance indicators, what are the areas of improvement you have identified? Technology solutions should address those areas directly to realize productivity, accuracy, cost efficiency, or other specifically identified improvement objectives.

2. Be selective

Scrutinize the technology proposition as it relates to its ability to address business needs and make significant improvements when compared to current processes. Then…

3. Take a phased approach

The majority of clubs are not blessed to employ extensive teams with broad and rich skillsets dedicated to technology implementation, training, and maintenance. This typically reduces your capability to take on multiple new forms of technology all at once and be effective in doing so. Prioritize and take a phased approach to how you introduce new technology.

4. Invest in staff training

While learning can and does take place ‘on the job’, ensure the relevant staff members are appropriately trained on an ongoing basis either by yourself or your technology partner. This will ensure you maximize the benefits of the new technology to your club, avoid improper use and protect against too few individuals owning the knowledge connected to the technology.

5. Set goals and targets

You may be investing on the promise of increased efficiencies, but unless you set targets and put in place the necessary measures to track performance, it’s impossible to assess the effectiveness of the new technology. Clear expectations and targets will help your staff buy in to its introduction and encourage your technology partners to best assist you in achieving them.

Although these steps may appear to be extensive, they should in no way be viewed as a deterrent to change. Why? Because there is also risk attached to inaction, standing still while the wider world continues to evolve.

Take one aspect of consumer behavior, for example. As the trend towards mobile and digital continues to grow and evolve, if your club becomes disconnected from this trend it could be seen as old-fashioned, traditional, or in ways simply incongruent with what your club really stands for. While clubs should never feel technology should be forced on them, they should at least consider what existing members and prospective members want; what the club needs to operate efficiently and effectively fulfill its mission; and what club leaders require to effectively develop, monitor, and maintain the club’s strategic direction. Most importantly, clubs should be prepared to act on their findings.

Embracing change

How then should a club approach technological change? In short, with an open-mind and a pragmatic, data-driven approach combined with the support and buy-in of staff, members and club stakeholders.

Whether the aim is to increase productivity, reduce costs or deliver a better experience to members and guests, those invested in the success and sustainability of the club will recognize the intention to improve. Not only will this protect against the market forces of standing still, it will take those invested in the club on a journey towards a better, brighter, more sustainable future.

For help on identifying and embracing emerging technology at your club, connect with Derek Johnston.

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