club operations « Ideas and Information | Club Resources International

Archive for the ‘club operations’ Category

Spelling Out Your Disciplinary Process

Monday, May 17th, 2010

Discipline is necessary to maintain the direction and focus of any organization and to establish and maintain standards of quality and service. The desire is to achieve excellence and success and supervisors should understand that these goals are dependent upon the quality and commitment of employees.

Unfortunately, in every group of employees, there are some who have attitude problems, lack commitment, or are not capable of meeting standards. When confronted with such a problem employee, it is the responsibility of supervisors to deal quickly and effectively with the situation before it degrades the efforts of the rest of the staff.

The following are suggested guidelines for a club’s disciplinary process:

Supervisor’s Responsibility. It does no good to have rules, regulations, and policies spelled out, if they are not going to be enforced by all supervisors. Whenever a supervisor overlooks an infraction, he encourages others to similar violations. A lax supervisor can be more damaging than no supervisor at all. Further, supervisors are expected to actively confront any problem employee in their departments with the aim of correcting the problem. If it cannot be corrected in a reasonable period of time, supervisors are expected to discharge the individual while following established termination policies.

Good Communication. Good communication is important when working with a problem employee. Some supervisors do not like to confront staff on seemingly “small” issues. As a result, many small problems build up until the supervisor finally blows his top and is ready to fire the employee. However, termination is inappropriate because the supervisor has not previously discussed the problems with the employee, warned him of the consequences of continued problems, or offered any help to correct the problem. Good communication would prevent this situation. If the supervisor talks frequently with employees, points out minor problems as they occur, and addresses continuing problems in a proactive and formal way, an employee will never be surprised should he be discharged.

Disciplinary Philosophy. The club subscribes to the “Hot Stove” approach to discipline. Employees are told what is expected of them and what the consequences are of ignoring rules, requirements, policy, and procedure. If they then touch the hot stove, they get burned. The rationale behind this philosophy is that supervisors want to deal with staff as adults who are responsible for their own actions and they want to avoid inconsistency in applying rules, requirements, policies, and procedures.

Rules, Requirements, Policies, and Procedures. This philosophy requires that supervisors tell staff what is expected of them. First, do this by spelling out in detail what the club’s rules, requirements, policies, and procedures are. The Employee Handbook contains many club-wide rules for employees. Second, expend some effort through orientations and formal training to make staff fully aware of their responsibilities and the club’s expectations.

Fairness and Consistency. A club’s disciplinary process must be fair and consistent. This will follow naturally from rules, requirements, policies, and procedures being applied fairly and consistently to all employees. Supervisors who are not fair and consistent will create major problems within their departments. There is no quicker way to destroy departmental morale and trust than to play favorites. Often the perception of fairness is as important as the reality. Supervisors should not only be fair, but also give all appearances of being fair.

Constructive and Progressive. The club’s disciplinary process is designed to be both constructive and progressive. By this it is meant that all disciplinary actions are aimed at correcting erroneous or inappropriate behavior and successive disciplinary actions will be progressively more severe. These two aspects are, in reality, part of the same philosophy. While the club wants to help employees overcome their problems, when the problems continue, it wants to get the employee’s attention with progressively more severe consequences.

Higher Standard for Supervisors. Because of a supervisor’s position, experience, training, education, and other factors that led to hiring, they are held to a higher standard of conduct and performance than line staff. In disputes between staff and supervisors, it is expected that supervisors will have solidly documented cases showing thorough investigation of any incident. While supervisors will always be supported when in the right, line employees will be given the benefit of the doubt when there is insufficient evidence or the absence of a thorough investigation. The best way for a supervisor to ensure that he is supported in his decisions is to have all his facts together before taking disciplinary action.

Summary. Given the many potential pitfalls in discharging problematic employees, all managers and supervisors must have a thorough understanding of a club’s disciplinary process. Spelling out the key elements of that process is an important first step.

Thanks and have a great day!

Ed Rehkopf

This weekly blog comments on and discusses the club industry and its challenges. From time to time, we will feature guest bloggers — those managers and industry experts who have something of interest to say to all of us. We also welcome feedback and comment upon the blog, hoping that it will become a useful sounding board for what’s on the minds of hardworking club managers throughout the country and around the world.

Club Resources International - Management Resources for Clubs!

Tags: club operations, staff discipline
Posted in club operations, staff discipline | No Comments »

Adding Value - The Club Controller

Monday, May 10th, 2010

The Club Controller is an important member of the club management team. There are a number of constituencies that rely on the expertise and efforts of the Controller, including the General Manager, the club’s Board or ownership, the department heads with bottom line responsibility, and, of course, the employees who jobs depend upon the solvency of the club.

The Controller’s role is more than that of an accountant who, according to accounting definitions, records and reports financial transactions. In addition to maintaining the General Ledger, Accounts Payable, Member Billing and Accounts Receivable, Payroll, and Financial Reporting, the Controller plays a vital role by assisting managers in maintaining the profitability of the club.

The functions of the Controller tend to fall into a routine of monitoring daily activity, processing bi-weekly payroll, ongoing processing and payment of invoices, monthly member billing, and end of month closing and financial reporting. Once a year, the Controller has a central role in the annual budgeting process for the club.

But the Controller also provides guidance and assistance to the General Manager and department heads in meeting their fiscal responsibilities to the club and its members. These managers have a broad range of detail- and labor-intensive requirements and must deal with the daily challenges that arise in a high quality service environment. By keeping in mind the underlying principle of service-based leadership – of providing the necessary tools, training, resources, and support to key constituents – Controllers should offer targeted outreach assistance to managers; particularly to department heads – those key individuals with bottom line responsibilities.

Outreach services include:

Ensuring that department heads have clear accounting guidance: Written accounting standards, policies, and procedures should be available to all managers. While Club Resources International has produced and offers a great many of these, detailed procedural guidance should be prepared and implemented at the club level.

Assisting department heads with club-required programs: Department heads may need assistance with benchmarking spreadsheets, Tools to Beat Budget, Annual Budgeting, and preparing for monthly meetings to review financial performance.

Providing timely operating data: Those with bottom line responsibility have need for timely information about their operations. The two most important are Weekly Revenue Reports and Pay Period Summary Reports that allow managers to monitor their revenues and their single largest expense – payroll.

Ongoing training on accounting issues: In any complex operation there is the need for ongoing refresher training on key matters. Staff turnover and the constant focus on daily operations sometimes make it difficult for managers to keep accounting issues foremost in mind. Controllers should monitor departmental compliance with accounting policies and provide refresher training for arising issues and ongoing problems.

Making periodic visits to department heads: These visits, based on the premise of “How can I help you,” “Is there anything the Accounting Department can do to assist,” or “Your department seems to struggle with timely inventories. Is there anything we can do to help?” When coupled with a service-based attitude, such visits will go a long way in improving accounting processes while building a positive team spirit among managers.

Conducting an accounting audit of each department: This annual check-up should be conducted with an attitude of helping department heads. A simple checklist of important accounting considerations will provide both the department head and the Controller with a guide to identify and address areas needing improvement. After the audit is completed, the Controller should work with the department head to draw up a plan of action to address any issues or concerns.

While the foregoing may sound like a lot of additional effort for the Controller, a club with a smooth functioning accounting process will usually perform better. Additionally, many of the continuing irritations for the accounting staff arise from operating departments failing to meet accounting requirements in a timely and accurate manner. These two benefits alone will make the Controller’s extra efforts well worthwhile.

Thanks and have a great day!

Ed Rehkopf

Club Resources International - Management Resources for Clubs!

Tags: club controller, club operations
Posted in club controller, club operations, employee empowerment | No Comments »

10 Disciplines that Will Transform Your Club

Monday, May 3rd, 2010

Arguably the greatest business book to appear in the last quarter century is Jim Collins’ Good to Great, Why Some Companies Make the Leap . . . and Others Don’t. In preparation for the book the author and his research team identified and examined 11 publicly traded companies that significantly outperformed their competitors for a period of 15 or more years to find out what made them so successful. The findings were sometimes surprising, often at odds with conventional wisdom, but definitive in that they were based on empirical evidence, not business theory.

One of the findings is that all Good to Great companies had a culture of discipline. Quoting from the book:

“Much of the answer to the question of ‘good to great’ lies in the discipline to do whatever it takes to become the best within carefully selected arenas and then seek continual improvement in these. It’s really just that simple.”

“A culture of discipline is not just about action. It is about getting disciplined people who engage in disciplined thought and who then take disciplined action.”

Here are ten disciplines for the club industry that, when conscientiously and consistently applied, will revolutionize your operation.

Service-Based Leadership. Don’t assume that your management team has the necessary leadership skills. Consistent, club-wide leadership is necessary to ensure that the General Manager’s vision is thoroughly implemented and consistently communicated to all employees. To avoid dilution of core values managers must be trained to a common understanding and application of leadership. Service-Based Leadership provides the example of service to all employees and creates the environment for employee empowerment.
Organizational Values and Culture of Service. Every employee must be immersed in a consistently reinforced culture of service based on well-defined values. Unless you establish the desired culture of service, one will arise on its own and invariably will be at odds with your vision.
Benchmarking. You can’t improve what you don’t measure. All club departments must be benchmarked in detail. These benchmarks will tell you far more about your operation than just whether or not you made a profit.
Tools to Beat Budget. The discipline of tracking your revenues and expenses in real time will focus the entire management team on meeting or exceeding budgets. It will also make budgeting for future periods far easier and more accurate.
Continual Process Improvement. Never rest on your laurels. Yesterday’s accomplishments may have been good enough for yesterday, but being the best requires never-ending effort. Create a culture of continual process improvement to relentlessly pursue excellence. Your mantra, like that of your members, must be “what have you done for me lately?”
Disciplined Hiring and Screening for Success. Turnover is prohibitively expensive in the people- and detail-intensive arena of club operations. The discipline of hiring well and getting the right people in the right seats will lower your employee turnover rate. Benchmark your turnover rate by department to continually analyze and improve performance in this critical area.
Work Planning and Performance Review with Measurable Accountabilities. To keep organizational development and progress coordinated and on track, every department head must have a work plan with specific tasks, timelines, and accomplishments. These coupled with detailed departmental benchmarks will permit performance reviews to be based on measurable accountabilities instead of gut feel. When the entire management team is held individually accountable, performance naturally improves.
On the Go Training. Training is a necessity in the people- and detail-intensive club business. There is much for employees to know and master, but with tight budgets and a pressing schedule of operations it is often neglected. One way to overcome this is to format essential training in small on-the-go sessions that can be taught in spare moments or pre-shift meetings. When material is prepared this way, it becomes a matter of daily discipline to pull out and review essential material. The final discipline is to keep track of all training sessions so that over time nothing is overlooked.
Member Relationship Management. Members are the life blood of your club. How you and your staff interact with them is more important than anything else you do. Your relationship with your members cannot be left to chance. It must be managed as carefully as your budget and requires a formal plan and thorough training of employees. In the final analysis, member relationship management will determine whether or not you meet your budget and your mission of exceeding member expectations.
Employee Empowerment. John Tschohl, founder of the Quality Service Institute, says “Without empowerment, an organization will never be a service leader. Empowerment is the most critical skill an employee can master and a company can drive in order to lure and keep customers.”

Empowered employees are viewed as full-fledged partners in your quest for high levels of quality and service. They are encouraged to think, act, and make decisions on their own based on guidelines you define, but they must fully sense the club’s commitment to such empowerment. Simply saying that employees are empowered does not make it so.

Excellence in the service industry is neither easy to achieve nor commonly found. It takes commitment and “the will to make it happen.” Jim Collins says being great requires “disciplined people taking disciplined action” day in and day out in the face of any adversity. But for those who choose to meet the challenge, the rewards are as great as the effort involved.

Thanks and have a great day!

Ed Rehkopf

Club Resources International - Management Resources for Clubs!

Tags: club operations, disciplines
Posted in club operations, disciplines | No Comments »

What is the Proper Role of General Managers in Private Clubs?

Monday, April 26th, 2010

I’m probably going out on a limb with this blog, but I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about what is the proper role for a club General Manager. I recognize that there is no single right answer to this question, that it depends to a great deal on the strengths and weaknesses of the individual, the size and organization of the club, as well as the desires and direction of the club’s board. Nevertheless, here’s my stab at it along with my rationale.

General Managers of private clubs wear a lot of hats and tend to be involved in a large number of ongoing day-to-day operational activities and issues. This involvement seems to flow from various organizational deficiencies:

Some department heads need a lot of guidance to properly run their departments. The GM must get involved because a subordinate manager created problems. This is usually a direct result of poor training and leadership development.

The organization of work at clubs is inadequate or inefficient, requiring frequent GM interventions. This is a result of a lack of or inadequately implemented operating systems and training of subordinate managers.

The GM gets involved in responding to complaints about poor member service. This is usually a result of inadequate staff training for which the department heads are responsible.

The GM does not have sufficient reporting mechanisms to monitor the performance of the club departments. This masks problems that arise and grow undetected, eventually blowing up, and ultimately requiring time-consuming GM intervention and involvement. If the GM is only using the monthly operating statement to monitor performance, he is flying blind to the details of his operation and does not have real-time information upon which to take action and base decisions. A properly implemented system of departmental benchmarks and reports would help with this problem.

The difficulty of holding department heads accountable for the performance of their departments, which leads to toleration of weak department heads and poor performing departments. Without work plans with measurable accountabilities and benchmarks any attempt to hold subordinates accountable is dependent upon weak and subjective evaluations.

The miring of General Managers in day-to-day operational problems prevents them from engaging their key strategic responsibilities.

The following is my list of the strategic requirements of a club General Manager:

1. In conjunction with the club Board of Directors, establishing the club culture, mission, vision, guiding principles and operating standards of the club.

2. Establishing a strategic plan to accomplish the same.

3. Providing the Board with timely and accurate information and routine reports to help them fulfill their requirements to oversee the operation.

4. Managing member perceptions by maintaining a visible presence in the operation and communicating frequently and thoroughly with the membership.

5. Maximizing membership sales by ensuring that a “stretch” marketing plan is developed and that the Membership Sales Director provides ongoing reports detailing efforts to generate leads, qualify prospects, and close membership sales.

6. Establishing and ensuring compliance with club operating standards, policies, and procedures (the operations plan).

7. Providing ongoing strategic thinking, planning, and decision making.

8. Implementing and maintaining a discipline of thorough planning and continual process improvement.

9. Establishing annual operating and capital budgets to guide the financial performance of the club.

10. Establishing and ensuring implementation or execution of club culture, club annual plan, annual operating and capital budgets, and department head work plans.

11. Establishing monthly review of departmental operating performance, ongoing departmental benchmarks, Tools to Beat Budget, and other indicators of operating performance.

12. Monitoring and establishing accountability for operating performance of all departments.

13. Establishing consistent club-wide leadership and professional development of department heads and supervisors to include:

a. Training (leadership development, club culture, legal compliance issues [sexual harassment, appropriate interview questions, disciplinary procedures, etc.], liability abatement issues [safety, food sanitation, hazardous material handling, responsible alcohol service, etc.], and club organizational issues).

b. Work planning by developing meaningful goals, work plans, and objective measures of performance.

c. Mentoring of key subordinates to take on some of the GM’s duties.

d. Monitoring performance using Tools to Beat Budget and monthly benchmarks and reports from subordinates.

e. Conducting meaningful reviews tied to work plan accomplishment and operational performance.

f. Establishing accountability based upon meeting work plans and performance goals.

14. Establishing and ensuring staff development to include:

a. Initial training in club culture, liability abatement issues, and position skills training.

b. Ongoing training in same.

c. Employee empowerment.

15. Establishing and maintaining the means to continually communicate with constituencies.

16. Ensuring department heads topgrade talent by using Disciplined Hiring and Screen for Success when recruiting, screening, and hiring.

17. Ensuring appropriate internal controls.

18. Ensuring the cleanliness, upkeep, and maintenance of all club facilities, grounds, furniture, fixtures, and equipment.

19. Ensuring a safe operation for employees and members.

20. Ensuring the club’s legal compliance with all aspects of federal, state, and local laws such as FLSA, FMLA, ADA, EEOC, youth employment, alcohol laws, food sanitation, etc.

21. Establishing and maintaining a continually fresh and robust schedule of activity programming for members of all ages and interests.

22. Ongoing professional self-development per self-developed work plan presented to and approved by the club Board of Directors.

As can be seen from the foregoing list of requirements, a club General Manager has much to do – primarily in guiding the direction, quality, and performance of the club. Given the scope of these large responsibilities, GMs cannot afford to be bogged down in the day-to-day details of the operation – this detail is the job of individual department heads.

Though it is often a challenging and time-consuming process to organize the operation, train subordinate managers to fulfill their responsibilities, and maintain the high standards to which all clubs aspire, ultimately the time spent developing managers and establishing the disciplines of a well-run club are worth the effort. No General Manager can do it all and must depend upon subordinate managers to do their jobs properly to give him or her time to focus on strategic issues.

Jim Collins, in his groundbreaking book Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap . . . and Others Don’t, identified the critical success factors of great companies. One of those factors was the need for “disciplined people taking disciplined action.” In other words, the entire management staff must understand the full requirements of their positions and execute them in a disciplined way – that is, routinely and without being told. Only then can the chief executive focus on the long term health and direction of the company. While Collins’ book addressed large publicly traded companies, I’m convinced the same principles apply just as much in the challenging world of private club management.

Having put my thoughts out there, I’m anxious to hear other opinions. Post a comment or send your thoughts to ed@myclubresource.com.

Thanks and have a great day!

Ed Rehkopf

Club Resources International - Management Resources for Clubs!

Tags: club operations, General Manager's role
Posted in General Manager's role, club operations | No Comments »

21 Ways to Boost Your Golf Business

Monday, April 19th, 2010

Here are twenty-one ways to boost rounds at daily fee and semi-private golf courses.

Increase benefits of memberships to drive # of memberships. Increasing membership benefits may make them more attractive, causing more players to join.
Target area businesses for an Employee Appreciation Day outing. Prepare a letter and send to local companies proposing an outing. Package the golf, prizes, and F&B to make it easy for companies to say “yes.”
Target area business for a Company Golf Team League. Each team would require 4 players. Prepare a letter to local businesses explaining the league, format of competition, dates to play, package cost to sponsor a team. Also, use display ads to market leagues.
Interclub League play in various categories (seniors, men, women, and youths). Sound out membership for players to play in matches against other clubs and golf courses. Coordinate league play with other clubs and golf courses. Establish pricing, prizes, and schedule of play.
Work with competitors and local hotel to put together and co-op out-of-towner golf package – 3 days, 2 nights of golf. Price package, coordinate with other courses and hotel. Market during winter months in selected NE or Midwest golf markets to try to improve winter play.
Beginners’ Golf Package – “Learn to Play in Six Easy Weeks” – Lessons, rounds, club fitting and sale, pairings with other beginners. Set up package, market through web site and display ads. An excellent promotion for spring; also works for youth golf during summer months.
Free swing evaluation – with written evaluation from the pro. Establish standardized form to use to identify the problems of a golfer’s swing and how to correct. Focus on stance, grip, swing mechanics, exercises to address each noted problem.
Go after County and City employees. Special discount with ID card. Establish a County and City golf team; include them in Company Golf Team League. Or, simply set up a weekly time for such employees to play at a discount; could be a 9-hole round after work during summer month.
Through benchmarking determine all times when the course is most empty and available for play. These times should be discounted and marketed for price sensitive players.
Package reasonably priced mini-outings limited to a dozen or so players. Market these for traditionally slow days. Make the package all-inclusive with golf and cart fees, box lunches, beverages, and prizes.
Build a mailing list of non-profits (churches and service organizations), businesses, core golfers, veterans, etc. Start with phone book and query current membership. Ensure that you are familiar enough with MS-Word Mail Merge and Mailing List functions to quickly produce and send flyers, letters, and other marketing material to selected mailing lists.
Offer and advertise incentives to current members to bring in new members. This should be part of our internal marketing effort to your membership. Devise incentives and market them.
Always collect email addresses of players and build a database of members and players to broadcast email announcements – “We still have Tee-times available this weekend. The weather is forecasted to be great and we have a fun format event for Sunday afternoon. Give us a call.” This type of last-minute marketing is used to fill empty tee times. It can also be used during cooler or inclement weather to attract golfers at a discounted rate.
Establish Competitive Flight Ladders. Highly competitive golfers play to try to climb the ladder for bragging rights and a trophy. Construct the ladder and prominently display it in the pro shop. Results of all matches should be publicized in a newsletter, email blasts, and in the pro shop.
Classify current golfers as “competitive” vs. “recreational” and design specific events for each.
Use giveaways (inexpensive logoed items) for all first time visitors to course.
Consider giving away rounds to try to build volume. Free green fee, pay only cart fee. This approach can be used at slow times of year, week, and days. Establish guidelines, goals, and benchmarks to measure benefit.
Build an annual calendar of events – “12-months of golf traditions” – one specially formatted tournament each month. Most golfers use stroke play most of the time. There are many other “fun” formats to be used. Develop and schedule such “tournaments” for each month and market through emails, newsletter, web site, and display ads. Visit http://golf.about.com/cs/golfterms/a/formatsbets.htm for ideas.
Offer “Weekend Golf” for a weekday price at certain times of the year. Using past benchmarks, identify the times of year to offer this; market through emails, newsletter, web site, and display ads.
Market to area hotels for “golf specials for their guests.” Develop a list of local hotels and motels and establish a relationship with their management to allow their guests to play at a discounted rate and free rental clubs.
Find a stay at home parent or someone looking for part time employment with clerical skills to execute marketing efforts such as direct mail. Given the administrative burden on the Head and Assistant Pro, it may make sense to hire and develop someone who can quickly react to opportunities and execute a predetermined marketing effort – web site, emails, flyers, mailers, and display ads.

The two most important aspects of marketing excess capacity and open times on your course are to build an email database of players and to recognize your course’s use patterns through continual benchmarking. The email list will become your most prized possession and can be used to notify players of events and periods of discounted play. But to take advantage of the timeliness of open tee times, you must have a variety of promotional programs and messages ready to go at a moment’s notice.

Thanks and have a great day!

Ed Rehkopf

Club Resources International - Management Resources for Clubs!

Tags: club operations, golf, marketing
Posted in club operations, golf, marketing | 1 Comment »

Guest Blog: How Technology is Changing the Way Clubs Hire

Monday, April 12th, 2010

This guest blog is excerpted from a White Paper by the same title.

Three major factors are driving change in the employment landscape today. They are the Economy, Technology, and Communication. These three forces will change nearly everything you know about hiring and employment. The effects they have are happening now.

Let’s start with the economy. Obvious to everyone at this point is the fact that we are undeniably in a recession which plays a major role in how we recruit, hire, manage, compensate and retain employees.

Secondly, we are in the midst of a major revolution in technology and the way it is used in our daily lives. This is true from both a personal and professional perspective and affects nearly every aspect of the hiring process.

Finally, the way we communicate and interact with others has undergone drastic changes which have a tremendous effect on all employment related processes.

Based on these three factors, here are the top six predicted changes that will affect the way you recruit, hire and employ at your club.

1. Increased Employment Litigation. As clubs continue to reduce staff levels in an effort to meet shrinking budgets, litigation will rise. It will become very important to carefully evaluate your hiring, employment and termination practices to protect your club.

2. More Important to “Hire Right.” It will become increasingly important to hire the right person. Hiring will take on a more “holistic” approach, looking not only for the right skill set and experience, but also for the right “fit” and “personality.” As staffs are reduced and hires become fewer, the value of a good hire goes up. Likewise, the cost of a bad hire goes up.

3. Technology Will Play a Bigger Role. Due to both of the above factors and an overwhelming number of applicants, recruiting, and interviewing will be much more time consuming. Making a hiring decision will naturally be more difficult. Technology will help hiring managers take control and ensure they are acquiring the best talent.

4. Shift in Recruitment Methods. We have already seen a huge shift how potential employees and employers connect. The internet has completely changed the game. Both job seekers and hiring managers now utilize personal and professional networks, online profiles and specialty job boards to find a position.

5. Personal/Professional Life Blurs. Whether you like it or not, our lives are becoming more transparent and the line between our personal and professional life is quickly blurring. This presents quite a paradox. On the one hand, we fear for our privacy rights through ID cards, cameras, and other monitoring while on the other hand we voluntarily publish personal details about our lives and relationships on the internet for the entire world to see.

6. Social Media More Critical To Hiring Process. Social media is already playing a major role in the employment process and the importance of this role is rapidly increasing. Who you are and what you do online will become more of a factor related to hiring and getting hired.

When we make a hire, whether it be a server, groundskeeper or department head, we do not want to be forced to reinvent the wheel each time. We want to have a progressive system in place that yields consistent results and helps us make the best hire with the most talent in the shortest amount of time.

What can you do to stack the odds in your favor? Here are the top five tips to better hiring:

1. Build an Optimized Careers Site within your Club Website. Your careers site can and should be an extension of your club site. Ideally, it should create a vision of what it is like to work at your club, all job postings are current, and it allows for online applications.

2. Use PUSH Technology When Posting Positions. By pushing out to free job boards, you will extend your reach to potential applicants at no cost to the club!

3. Capture Applicant Information into a Database. This requires an application management system” sometimes referred to as an “applicant tracking” or “hiring process management” system. With the recession and increasing ease of internet-based applications, the number of job seekers responding to each job posting has risen dramatically. A database and automated process of screening will drastically reduce your hiring workload.

4. Use Job Alerts to Build a Passive Applicant Pool. This next tip may be the most valuable one. People with an interest in working at your club can ask to be notified of openings in which they have interest. This will enable your club to keep potential employees alerted every time you post a new opening.

5. Leverage Social Media to Make Better Hires. The two most important ways Social Media is impacting hiring are communicating/connecting with potential employees and vetting prospective employees. Understanding this phenomenon is essential to your hiring only the “right” people for your club.

The world of employment has and continues to experience drastic change. There is more competition for jobs due to a declining economy, the cost of making bad hires is increasing, the importance of making good hires is increasing, and technology is completely changing the way the game is played.

Don’t let these changes and opportunities pass you by. Be proactive and move quickly to leverage these new and exciting approaches to ensure you are hiring simpler, better and more effectively.

You will find the improvements in attracting more high quality applicants, shortening the time to hire; relieving the administrative burden and eliminating traditional recruitment costs will produce an almost immediate ROI for your club!

Click here to read the full White Paper.

Tom Howard, President, ClubPay

Tom has worked in the private club industry for over 20 years working in various positions within private country clubs including food and beverage manager, general manager and director of operations. For ten years, Tom has helped over 600 clubs “get the most out of technology” in his role as Vice President of Technology Training Associates (TTA), the largest provider of the Jonas Software in the country.

Club Resources International - Management Resources for Clubs!

Tags: club operations, hiring
Posted in club operations, hiring | No Comments »

Assert Your Competence and Authority with Benchmarks

Thursday, April 1st, 2010

(I apologize to those who follow my regular weekly blog. A lightning strike Sunday night fried my motherboard and modem. I’m just getting back up and running this morning. Here’s the blog that should have been posted Monday morning:)

At one time or another every club manager’s abilities are challenged by a pointed question from a committee or board member. For example:

Mrs. Johnson, a member of the clubhouse committee, asks in a sharp tone, “Mr. Smith, why don’t you do a better job of training your waiters in the dining room?”

While there are certainly many possible responses to this complaint disguised as a question, consider the benefits of a reply like this:

“Well, Mrs. Johnson, last year each of our servers had 20 hours of formal training, plus we conduct brief on-the-go training sessions as part of every pre-shift meeting. On average each server who has been with us for six months or more has had over 40 hours of job specific training. Last year, club-wide we averaged just over 92 hours per employee of formal training on a wide range of topics, including organizational values, legal and liability abatement, work rules and club policies, and safety, as well as job-specific skills. This was a 7% increase over the previous year. We’re currently working on a program to expand server training with a series of videos on tableside etiquette and serving techniques, which we’ll roll out next month. We’re always working on ways to improve the efficiency of our training delivery system, but keep in mind that every hour of training costs the club $10.47. I’d be happy to share our methods, resources, and job specific curriculum with you, as we could always use another set of eyes on what we’re doing.”

Mrs. Johnson nods her head knowingly and replies in a much softer tone, “Uh . . . no thanks, Mr. Smith. I was just wondering how we go about training our staff.”

As this example suggests, there is no better way to assert your competence and authority than to be conversant with a wide range of operational data. Such information is as useful to the head golf professional, golf course superintendent, clubhouse manager, dining room supervisor, chef, and controller, as it is for the club’s General Manager.

But to have such information at your fingertips, ready for any and all challenges, requires that every club department benchmark their operations in detail. While these details are absolutely essential to the department head, important summary benchmarks must be forwarded monthly to the controller for inclusion in the Executive Metrics Report. This report is then attached to the monthly financial statement and forwarded to various board and committee members. Ultimately this information, tracked over time, educates board members and helps the General Manager establish his authority while advancing his vision and agenda for the club.

Knowledge is Power! And the more knowledge you have about your operations, the more power and control you will have over the club’s direction and your own destiny. So avail yourself of the great variety of benchmarking resources available on the Club Resources International website and start benchmarking your operation today!

Thanks and have a great day!

Ed Rehkopf

Club Resources International - Management Resources for Clubs!

Tags: benchmarking, club operations
Posted in benchmarking, club operations, service-based leadership | No Comments »

Continual Process Improvement

Monday, March 22nd, 2010

Given the many details associated with managing a quality, high-end club, it is imperative that management commit to and promote a process of continual improvement in all areas of the operation. This requires a positive emphasis on problem discovery, a discipline of constant review, and an understanding that in quality service operations, the devil is in the details. As more and more areas of the club’s operations become systematized and routine, management at all levels, with the commitment and assistance of their empowered employees, must continually “peel the onion” to deeper and deeper layers of detail. Further, no detail must be seen as too trivial to warrant management’s attention and the establishment of standards and procedures to ensure it is attended to by the staff.

fancy-table-setting-2 The purpose of Continual Process Improvement is to constantly seek better ways of doing things – that is to improve the efficiency, effectiveness, and financial performance of the club while providing a quality of service and level of satisfaction that encourages greater use and enjoyment by members.

The discipline of Continual Process Improvement requires that all managers and supervisors are focused on and committed to improving the performance of their club, department, or section at all times. It means that no manager or supervisor should be satisfied with the status quo, but should constantly be looking for ways to improve.

In order to ensure the development of such a discipline in the club, the General Manager must constantly remind subordinate managers of the need to improve and make improving existing operations a key component of subordinates’ annual work plans. Further, the GM should continually enquire, “What are you doing today to improve your department?” When this level of interest is demonstrated by the GM, subordinate managers and supervisors will understand the importance of Continual Process Improvement.

Examples of Continual Process Improvement

Review of Revenue Generation or Payroll Cost during monthly budget review. Formulation of initiatives to increase revenue such as promotions, specialty dining nights, additional golf programming, tennis clinics, etc.

Review of retail benchmarks by the Head Golf Professional can help him improve his future retail buys. By knowing what sold and what didn’t sell, and what percentage of overall sales were soft goods versus hard goods he can make informed determinations about purchasing and merchandising.

The HR Manager can review employee turnover rates and exit interviews by department to determine which Department Heads need further training in Disciplined Hiring or counseling on better treatment of employees.

Annual review of club standards, policies, and procedures by department to see what worked and what didn’t. Brainstorming modifications of same to improve operations.

Monthly review of major costs by Department Heads to see if there is a better or cheaper alternative to current expenditures. The Controller can do the same for Administrative and General expenses.

Review of forecasted business levels and actual staffing by day of week and meal period to improve future F&B staff scheduling.

Review of training material with new hires after their introductory period. Determine how well initial skills training met the actual needs of new employees.

Examine and propose modifications to equipment placement or work flow in kitchen or food pantry areas to increase the efficiency of staff.

Methodologies for Continual Process Improvement include:

Preparing in-depth subordinate managers’ work plans and performance reviews. The time spent continually improving the work performance of your subordinates will allow you to focus on more strategic issues, delegate more day-to-day tasks to subordinates, and plot and follow the improvement of your club - department by department.

Reviewing major events, activities, and programs. Formal meetings after the Member-Guest Tournament, Mothers’ Day Brunch, 4^th of July Festivities, Summer Camp, Swim Team season, etc., will allow all Department Heads to review execution and performance from their individual perspectives. The best time to do this is the week following the event when all is fresh in everyone’s mind. Have your Administrative Assistant sit in and take notes which are then distributed to all interested parties. Next year, as planning starts, pull out the notes from the previous year and make adjustments as necessary.

Selecting one department per month and conducting an in-depth review. In the course of a year all departments would be reviewed. Take a half day for the review and include other Department Heads in the process. Start by having the selected Department Head give an overview briefing regarding the department’s operation. The overview should be an honest “State of the Union” about where the department is and where it is going. Cover goals, both short and long-term, challenges and obstacles, key member interfaces, special services touches, review of training process, and review of departmental financial performance and benchmarks. Give a tour of work spaces describing issues with work flow, storage, telecommunications, etc. After the briefing and tour, ask other Department Heads to help brainstorms ideas for improving departmental performance. To be most effective, the subject Department Head should set the agenda and guide the discussion. After the session, the Department Head should draw up an action plan to implement ideas with a timeline and milestones for completion. The effort put into a monthly departmental review should provide multiple benefits such as continually “confronting the brutal facts” of departmental operations, fostering a sense of teamwork among Department Heads, and, of course, Continual Process Improvement.

Continual General Manager interest in improvement is the single most important driver of Continual Process Improvement. When the GM requires Department Heads to demonstrate CIP, and their performance review depends upon it, it will happen. Without the GM’s interest, it won’t!

Without a means of measuring improvements, it is impossible to gauge the benefits of any changes to the operation. But before you can evaluate the impact of any changes, you must know what the operating standard is (i.e., the existing benchmark or “baseline” of any operation, event, or process). When you know your operating standard, you can then compare changes in the standard as a result of new initiatives or changes to the operation. For example:

The Food and Beverage Director determines that with improved product training servers will be better able to “upsell” members on wines. Because she tracks her numbers of bottles of wine sold per day, week, and month, she knows that the club typically sells 47 bottles of wine per month at an average sale of $16.43. After several weeks of intensive wine training for her staff, she begins to see the number of bottles sold creep up, along with the average sale. After four months, her new operating standard is an average of 71 bottles of wine sold per month with an average sale of $19.12. Further, because she benchmarked which particular wines were selling well and coordinated her wine purchases with the chef’s new menu offerings, she was able to offer a new selection of higher margin Chilean and Australian reds.

Continual Process Improvement is a discipline found in most successful enterprises. It is done with the understanding that in a competitive marketplace what you do successfully today, may not be successful tomorrow. In a world where rapid change and innovation have become the norm, we can only maintain our reputation for quality service by continually working to improve that service. In the words of our members, “What have you done for me lately?”

Thanks and have a great day!

Ed Rehkopf

Club Resources International - Management Resources for Clubs!

Tags: club operations, continual process improvement
Posted in club operations, continual process improvement | 1 Comment »

How Many Silos Does Your Club Have?

Monday, March 15th, 2010

Teamwork pays off. We’ve all seen examples in the sports world of one team playing well together beating a team with superior individual talent. Legendary University of North Carolina basketball coach Dean Smith made a name for himself by fielding balanced teams known for their teamwork as opposed to teams with individual high scoring stars. Some wag once said, “Dean Smith was the only coach who could keep Michael Jordan to less than 20 points a game” - because of his insistence on selflessness and teamwork.

Teamwork is also important in business where complex organizations depend upon the strengths of different departments working together. The term “silo” has come to represent individual managers and departments focused solely on their own agendas, functions, and tasks. The image of a silo, standing tall with sheer walls separating its contents from other silos, is an apt analogy for business departments who work alone with minimal contact with adjacent departments regardless of degree of interdependence and common purpose.

Silos are quite prevalent in the club business where individual departments perform certain well-defined functions in the overall club scheme. While some usually have good communications and working relationships, such as golf operations and golf course maintenance, less often is this the case between clubhouse functions, such as food and beverage, membership, and administration, and outside functions. In many cases some department heads only encounter each other at the General Manager’s staff meetings.

The danger in having silos in your club is that some managers have little understanding beyond a broad conception of what other managers or their departments do. Without a keener appreciation of all elements of the club’s operations, how can department heads work together as a team to understand and exceed members’ expectations?

This is particularly important in those club departments that provide a supporting function to other operations, such as accounting, human resources, administration, and facilities management. Unless these department heads get out and meet frequently with their operational counterparts, they are unable to get important feedback or conceive of better ways to serve their internal customers.

So how does a General Manager go about breaking down the silos of a club? Here are some suggestions:

1. Hold regularly scheduled weekly meetings with all department heads. These meetings allow each attendee to update others on what they are working on. Obviously, this keeps everyone better informed and gives each a better understanding of what others do.

2. Use the annual club planning process as a team building exercise. Many minds are better than one and often an outside view on problems can bring a fresh approach. Read the article “A Discipline of Planning” for more information.

3. Once a month have one department head lead a brainstorming session to improve their operation. See the article “ Continual Process Improvement” to see how it works.

4. Take department heads to lunch at a nice restaurant once a quarter for socializing. Follow the lunch with a brief presentation and Q&A session by a community or business leader. Often these individuals can come from the club’s membership and would be happy, maybe even honored, to speak to their club’s leadership.

5. Hold “Wow Factor” brainstorming sessions with all department heads. Read the article “What Have You Done for Me Lately” for information about such sessions.

The Bottom Line: The more your department heads interact with one another in formal and informal settings, the better they will understand the common challenges they face in running a high quality, member-focused club. When this happens they will naturally begin functioning as a team committed to their common purpose regardless of individual function.

Thanks and have a great day!

Ed Rehkopf

Club Resources International - Management Resources for Clubs!

Tags: club operations, teamwork
Posted in club operations, teamwork | No Comments »

Guest Blog: Make the Most of Your Club Website – 10 Tips for 2010

Monday, March 8th, 2010

For many clubs, 2009 was an extremely challenging year and was a very real sign of things to come as we embark on 2010 and beyond. Waitlists have all but disappeared, membership numbers are down, and in turn club staff are asked to do more with less while management is faced with intense scrutiny of expenses and forced to cut wherever possible.

Undoubtedly, 2010 will be another challenging year for most clubs. That said, your club’s website can be an effective tool to assist you in weathering the storm by increasing member engagement and thereby increasing club revenue.

Over the past decade, club websites have evolved from simplistic pages consisting of various pictures and static content to transactional websites where members can view important information such as their online statements and club rosters.

In 2010 the key to many clubs’ success is to implement a fully integrated and interactive website that is well designed, easy to locate in search engines, and provides fresh, relevant content to both members and the general public.

10 strategies for an engaged membership in 2010:

1. Invest in online statements and online payments. Online statements have proven to be a staple in the vast majority of club websites and continue to provide value to the club. This functionality provides several benefits including cost reduction through reduced calls to accounting staff and online viewing of statements, and increased website traffic on a weekly, monthly, and yearly basis.

2. Consider implementing online tee times in 2010. Many clubs have implemented the ability to book their tee times online. This is the single biggest driver of website traffic when implemented correctly. It is not uncommon to see login rates to the club website as well as site traffic double as a result of online tee times. It also provides the ability to reduce costs at the Pro Shop and offers better service to your members.

3. Implement member engagement strategies through online booking modules for event registration, dining, court booking, lessons, etc. When utilized effectively, these modules engage members - providing a compelling reason for your members to regularly visit your website.

4. Implement an email marketing strategy that is integrated with your website and club management system. It has been proven that email marketing is one of the most effective yet inexpensive tools available to drive club revenue. By combining member data, email marketing tools and your website, you are able to offer your members quality, personalized communication. Leverage the data in your club management system to implement your communication strategies. Using email marketing strategies, personalized messages regarding events can be targeted and sent en masse to relevant members with a link back to your website to register. This full circle communication strategy is a powerful, low cost strategy that can change your business in 2010.

5. Implement social networking tools. The social revolution is here. In 2010, take the time to become familiar with today’s tools. Is it a fad? Watch the following social revolution video on YouTube and draw your own conclusions - there are certainly some interesting facts brought to light.
Social Media revolution -http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIFYPQjYhv8

Some strategies to consider

Enable RSS on your website so that users can subscribe to your content and allow other web sites to syndicate your content on their site
Have a blog that is integrated into your website
Create Twitter and Facebook accounts for your club. Cross-linking these to and from your website will garner interest and support for a Facebook group you’ve created.

6. Implement a junior program section for your website. There is really no magic in this formula as the current generation of youth lives and breathes the Internet and its social networking aspects. Consider a section catered to your youth programs at the club. Examples might include relevant YouTube videos for game improvement; a blog by your Tennis, Golf or Yachting Pro; or even a Facebook page for the club juniors. They are the future of the club and the easiest segment to engage through your website with the right tools.

7. Implement content creation and publishing strategies and stick to them. Fresh, relevant content is one of the keys to an active readership. Implement automatic date ranging of content to ensure that stale content around holidays, special events or tournaments does not remain on the site after their time has past.

8. Change your members’ only landing page frequently. This is the first page members see every time they login to your club website. Make the most of the member experience by providing relevant and timely content about upcoming events, birthdays, news items, etc. and provide intuitive links to the interactive features of the site.

9. Review your site’s SEO (search engine optimization) to ensure that your site can easily be found by Google and other search engines. Implement effective page descriptions and key words for your site’s pages to ensure that you are listed with Google local. There are several resources available on the Internet today to assist you in effectively optimizing your site with respect to search engines. Talk to your web provider about reviewing your current SEO strategy.

10. Monitor your site analytics to measure your site effectiveness. By utilizing tools such as Google analytics you can mine large amounts of user data in terms of interaction with your website. This information provides invaluable insight into how visitors are interacting with your website.

In conclusion, an effective website does not need to be overcomplicated or elaborate - it simply needs to cater to the needs of your existing and potential members. Remember, your existing and potential members are busy individuals just like you - they have come to expect the ability to view and book almost everything online in today’s marketplace. Make it easy for them to access your site, complete their club related transactions (viewing and paying statements, event/court/tee time bookings, etc.), and then get on with their day-to-day activities. Realistically, there is no single electronic silver bullet that can address all of your club’s needs; however, when your website, club management system, and email marketing tool are working in concert, together they provide you with a powerful toolset with which to increase member engagement at the club.

Steve Cowan, Vice President of Web Service, Jonas Software

Mr. Cowan is recognized for his expertise in online services and marketing and has been responsible for the launch of several key online initiatives that have significantly influenced the club management industry. Prior to joining CSI in 2004 as the Director of Sales Operations, Mr. Cowan held numerous leadership roles with organizations such as ADC Telecom and Business Objects. Mr. Cowan holds an Honours BBA from Wilfrid Laurier University and an MBA from York University.

Tags: club website, email marketing strategy, online statements, online tee times, social networking tools
Posted in Social Network Marketing, club website, email marketing strategy, online statements, online tee times | No Comments »

Ideas and Information | Club Resources International

Archive for the ‘club operations’ Category

Spelling Out Your Disciplinary Process

Adding Value - The Club Controller

10 Disciplines that Will Transform Your Club

What is the Proper Role of General Managers in Private Clubs?

21 Ways to Boost Your Golf Business

Guest Blog: How Technology is Changing the Way Clubs Hire

Assert Your Competence and Authority with Benchmarks

Continual Process Improvement

How Many Silos Does Your Club Have?

Categories

Navigation

Navigation