CLUBHOUSE EUROPE
Appointments – CMAE helps boost careers – page 5
Powerplay – CMAE webinars are here to help MDP pathway – updates and sign ups HQ Building the Business – protecting the bottom line Hospitality Social Media Awards – it’s time to shine
ISSUE 21
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What Matters Most to You Matters Most to Us. The all-new Greensmaster eTriFlex Series riding greensmowers provide all the innovative features of the original TriFlex and more. The eTriFlex lineup includes a Lithium-Ion powered and an Engine Generator model, with no onboard hydraulic fluid. The new Radius Dependent Speed (RDS™) System, in combination with the Lift-In-Turn cutting unit leveling feature virtually eliminates the effect known as “Triplex-Ring”. This along with many new features provide added versatility, simplified service, and ultimately, more productivity.
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WELCOME
Welcome
Contributors
Fellow Club Management Leaders “I find television very educational. The minute somebody turns it on, I go to the library and read a good book.” So said the inimitable Groucho Marx. The world has turned upside down in more ways than one. TV is consumed in 12 minute clips, on catch up, downloaded, on demand and – ironically – more likely to be watched on a screen smaller than the TV set your Grandparents owned. And it is this digital world that we have turned to during our lockdown. When Eric Yuan proposed to his superiors at Cisco Systems that they invest in online conferencing software, they demurred, citing problems with broadband width, cyber security and the lack of willingness of business to change. Yaun accepted their decision and left to set up Zoom. In a little less than four months, Yaun’s company name has become a verb. We now ‘meet by Zoom’ and it is hard to imagine life without it. The vital work required by our Boards and committees has been enabled by video conferencing, staff morale has been sustained through online meetings and Annual General Meetings have been held with members, in many cases, improving our work/life balance at the same time. CMAE has been no different. Our network has been sustained through the power of the internet, with critical management education being delivered to enable us to address many existential threats to our clubs. We have learnt from our friends who first experienced lockdown, from those who were in the vanguard of reopening and received valuable insights from industry leaders on how best to manage the most challenging situations. Over the last four months, CMAE has delivered 35 webinars covering all our competencies, which were attended by over 300 delegates. Our track record in delivering high quality education has been recognised by the R&A, who have provided financial support for us to supply insights at a much deeper, more engaged level. What has all of this achieved? It is increasingly clear that the safety of our staff and members has been enhanced, membership engagement has been sustained and both out club and CMAE communities enriched. Further analysis will be more revealing, but anecdotally, there are a great many stories being told about how many managers have benefitted from the power of our network. But the printed word still has its place. Within these pages, you’ll learn how Spain, Portugal, Ireland and Qatar are working through COVID-19, you will hear from a CMAE member who started his Manager’s role just as the pandemic raised its head and from a CMDip who’s furloughing and subsequent redundancy has done nothing to quash his desire to inspire us all to hard today to secure tomorrow. So whilst Groucho maybe wasn’t a prophet, there is still a value in switching off the monitor for half an hour and lifting something good to read. This issue is packed with great ideas and new directions which I urge you to make the most of. Join in the conversation, share with your Tribe and most importantly keep your comments coming.
James Burns CCM President, Club Managers Association of Europe
Simon Bell CMDip
James Burns CCM
Alexandre Barroso CMDip
Mike Braidwood CCM
Niall Carroll CMDip
Howard Craft CMDip
Sean Ferris
David Foster
Debbie Goddard
Craig Higgs
Alberto Iglesias CCM
Fraser Jervis CMDip
Torbjörn Johansson
Caroline Scoular
Nick Sellens
Jill Slingsby
CMAE Board of Directors David Balden CCM dcb@caledonianclub.com Michael Braidwood CCM mbraidwood@ecgolf.com James Burns CCM james.burns@cmaeurope.org Niall Carroll CMDip niall@cducestates.com Debbie Goddard debbie.goddard@cmaeurope.org Alberto Iglesias CCM aiglesias@fdlgolf.es Torbjorn Johansson Torbjorn.johansson@cmaeurope.org Michael Newland CCM michael@theberkshire.co.uk Silvia Serrano CCM serrano_silvia@yahoo.es Mary Lou Watkins CMDip office@luffnessnew.com
Editor Caroline Scoular caroline@alchemymedia.co.uk Design David Foster Editorial Nick Sellens Sales and Marketing Manager Leigh-Ann Ogilvie Circulation Jonathan Hardy Association Manager Debbie Goddard Debbie.Goddard@cmaeurope.org Publishing Director Sean Ferris sean@alchemymedia.co.uk Clubhouse Europe is published by Alchemy Contract Publishing Ltd.
ACP Gainsborough House 59/60 Thames Street Windsor Berkshire SL4 1TX United Kingdom t. +44 (0)1753 272022 f. +44 (0)1753 272021 e.info@alchemycontractpublishing.co.uk www.alchemycontractpublishing.co.uk
CMAE The Club Managers Association of Europe 1b Bagshaw Close Ryton on Dunsmore Warwickshire CV8 3EX United Kingdom t. +44 (0) 247 669 2359
The views expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the publishers or the CMAE. Clubhouse Europe does not verify the claims made by advertisers regarding their products.
CLUBHOUSE EUROPE 3
Contents 28
18 25 The 2020 Clubhouse Europe Survey
5 News round-up News and views from the world of CMAE.
11
28 Six months in the life of a new manager In January 2020 Fraser Jervis CMDip was appointed as the new Manager of Lanark Golf Club in Scotland. We caught up with him to see how his first six months in the job have been.
6 Management Development Programmes Latest updates on MDP courses for 2020/2021.
11 CMAE’s Powerplay Suite The CMAE continues in its mission to help members across Europe and the Middle East through good times and bad. Director of Education Torbjörn “Toby” Johansson, explains the positive and proactive activities designed to help the CMAE Tribe drive their clubs into a brighter future.
17 Cyberspace here we come The Spanish Association of Golf Club Managers has jumped wholeheartedly into the educational trend of webinars, and is looking forward to all the new opportunities that technology can provide.
18 The wonder of webinars Director of Golf at Portugal’s Troia Golf, Alexandre Barroso CMDip, explains how the Association of Golf Managers of Portugal has been exploiting the wonder of webinars.
21
The 2020 Clubhouse Europe Survey aims to identify the views and concerns of clubs. Please spend a few minutes completing this important survey. Together we can collectively identify new opportunities and tackle emerging issues.
31 Clubhouse Awards launch They’re back! It’s time to shine in the 2020 Clubhouse Awards.
33 HQ Building the Business 19 ZOOMing ahead The COVID-19 pandemic has brought many new initiatives into play that were previously either ignored or not given much thought, says Niall Carroll CMDip from the Irish Golf & Club Managers Association (IGCMA).
21 The word from Qatar “I think for most of us it was the uncertainty of how long we would be closed for during COVID19 that was the most unsettling,” says Mike Braidwood CCM. So how has Education City Golf Club in Doha, Qatar, fared?
Is your club set to come out of the COVID-19 crisis in fighting fit shape? Now is the time to review that all-important bottom line. Plus: new energy comparison site.
34 Hospitality Social Media Awards With digital communications playing an ever more important role in club business thanks to COVID-19, now’s the time to enter these prestigious Awards.
36 Contactless solutions Golf Genius is supplying the European Tour with a contactless, safety-driven solution following the resumption of the 2020 Race to Dubai season.
42 Personality profiling Howard Craft CMDip, Manager at Berkhamsted Golf Club, hosted a Lumina Spark Workshop, designed to boost performance. For more information on any of these articles or to contribute to our next issue, contact Editor Caroline Scoular. e. caroline@alchemymedia.co.uk t. +44 (0)1753 272022 For more information on the CMAE, its events and/or courses contact Debbie Goddard. e. debbie.goddard@cmaeurope.org t. +44 (0) 247 669 2359
4 CLUBHOUSE EUROPE
News from the frontline CMAE’s first 35 webinars CMAE’s Powerplay series of webinars was launched on 31 March in swift response to COVID-19. Designed to help members work through the ongoing pandemic (both professionally and personally) the webinars are based on bite-sized contributions from the CMAE Presenter Pool and from members keen to share their experiences, advice and ideas on managing clubs in these extraordinary times. The aim is to enable participants to then deliver the very best guidance to their Board, their members and their teams.
CMAE’s Director of Education Torbjorn Johansson has been delighted by the success of the Powerplay series so far. “The feedback from our members on Powerplay has been truly fantastic with many finding solace and inspiration from the educators and members who have all been kind enough to participate and share their experience,” he said. “What started as a tool to support our members through the difficult times has now developed into something much more and we look forward to developing Powerplay even more beyond the COVID-19 crisis.” CMAE has made the latest edition of the Powerplay Panel available for everybody, including those outside of the CMAE membership to view Joining CMAE’s Director of Education Torbjorn Johansson for the discussion are two of CMAE’s most dynamic presenters from their roster of quality educators, Darshan Singh and Bill Sanderson, who reflect and discuss the content from some of the 35 webinars that have been made readily available to CMAE members, the key learnings that viewers can take from the series and the impact that the webinars have had personally. • Turn to pages 13-16 for more on the Powerplay series.
Applications for 2020 Joe Perdue Bursary now open The 2020 Joe Perdue Bursary is open to applicants. This year the Joe Perdue Bursary will provide two awards to two worthy candidates. The first Bursary will cover the cost (up to £1,800) of attendance at the next CMAA World Conference to be held in the USA. This award will cover all travel and accommodation, plus subsistence expenses. It is open to members already on the CMAE’s
Management Development Programme (MDP), as World Conference attendance is one of the criteria necessary to take the globally recognised Certified Club Manager (CCM) exam. The second Bursary will be awarded to cover the costs (up to £1600) of attending the CMAE MDP Strategy and Leadership course in the 2020/21 Academic Year. This award is open to all members of CMAE and
Alliance Partners who want to progress on the MDP pathway and gain invaluable skills, knowledge and networking to accelerate their professional development. The closing date for applications for the 2020/21 academic year is 21 August, 2020. • Interested in applying? Contact Debbie Goddard by email Debbie.goddard@cmaeurope.org
CMDip Greenkeeper secures Club Secretary role Senior Greenkeeper James Lillitou CMDip has been appointed as Club Secretary of Flackwell Heath Golf Club, his first job in a club management position following his progression on the CMAE’s MDP pathway. James has been working as the Senior Greenkeeper at Beaconsfield Golf Club for over 15 years. Keen to progress his career into club management, he enrolled on the CMAE’s Management Development Programme (MDP) completing both Part 1 and 2, gaining his Club Management Diploma (CMD). Having studied sports psychology and now armed with the CMDip certification as well as his many years experience in course maintenance, James’s dream has now
James Lillitou CMDip
become a reality with his appointment at the South Buckinghamshire club. “Making the transition from greenkeeping to club management was always something I
had wished to do but never thought realistically achievable. But through the support both mentally and financially of Beaconsfield Golf Club, especially my line manager Stuart Langhorn CMDip and the training provided by CMAE this has become the most amazing reality and I cannot wait to get started on my new career path,” he said. “There are many people from CMAE to thank, but Toby Johansson, Darshan Singh, Bill Sanderson and Kerry Martinez Sanderson deserve a special mention for all their support, as well as everyone I have met along the way whilst on my training weeks. Starting my CMAE journey is truly the best decision I have ever made.”
Luke Edgcumbe CMDip new appointment Tandridge Golf Club has appointed CMAE member Luke Edgcumbe CMDip as its new General Manager to oversee the club’s drive to improve the member experience and attract new golfers. Luke moves from Royal-Mid Surrey where he spent seven years at the helm coordinating major investment for the club, along with membership retention, attracting new members and securing the club as a host venue for prestigious tournaments. It has been an admirable career path for the 52-year-old, who has extensive experience in managing quality clubs and hotels across the UK, including spells at Sundridge Park Golf
Club, Tyrrells Wood Golf Club, Marriott St Pierre Golf & Country Club and Marriott Forest of Arden Golf & Country Club. Luke, who has two diplomas in hotel management, as well as the CMAE’s diploma in club management (CMDip), is keen to build on the work of former secretary Andrew Tanner, who recently retired after a successful decade at Tandridge. Luke said: “It’s obviously a very strange time to be starting a new role just as the club is reopening after a global pandemic, but I am excited by the challenge and enthused at the prospect of what we can achieve here. “It’s a course steeped in history and
Luke Edgcumbe CMDip
tradition, yet the management team and board have a forward-thinking vision and a great membership. The golf course is first class, the clubhouse restaurant is famous for its ‘Tandridge lunch’, and there’s a unique and special atmosphere around the whole estate. It’s a great ‘head start’ for me and, despite the challenge that 2020 has presented all golf clubs with, we can be confident about the future prospects for Tandridge.”
New certified club manager amongst England’s ranks CMAE is pleased to announce that Alex Woodward has achieved the globally recognised status of Certified Club Manager (CCM) having recently passed the exam.
Alex is currently the General Manager of Hankley Common Golf Club in Surrey, having joined the club at the start of 2018. Prior to this he was the General Manager of Boyce Hill
Golf Club in Essex, where he won GCMA ‘Newcomer of the Year’ Award in 2015 . He was also the Club Mirror Awards ‘Manager of the Year’ in 2017. CLUBHOUSE EUROPE 5
MDP COURSES
MDP updates and FAQs We’re delighted by the number of people contacting us regarding what’s happening with our upcoming MDP courses. It’s a great affirmation of the high regard our community holds them in, and you can be assured that we’re monitoring the global situation 24/7. Please do keep the calls and queries coming. The COVID-19 picture changes on a daily basis and we will respond accordingly. This is our current position.
A
s it stands, CMAE is hoping that the majority of the Autumn/Winter MDP schedule will go ahead as planned. This is, however, dependent on whether a second wave of COVID-19 hits. Safety for all our members and colleagues is paramount, of course. Earlier in the year we had to postpone our MDPs in Dubai and London to 2021 and our MDP 1 in Dublin to November. There was absolutely no way we could go ahead with them in the midst of a pandemic sadly, so all delegates booked onto those courses were given the option of a refund, to transfer onto the rescheduled 2021 date, or to transfer onto an alternative MDP date. Our MDP Food & Beverage in Spain, planned for November, will most likely not go ahead. The majority of our delegates and presenters will be travelling from overseas and based on current procedures will be required to quarantine on arrival and probably when travelling back home. This is not ideal for anybody involved. We hope to be able to proceed with our MDP 1 and 2 courses in Stirling, Manchester and Dublin as planned. However, depending on what social distancing measures are in place at the time, we may need to run the courses at a reduced capacity, which means delegate places may be limited. We may also need to restrict the courses to only delegates who are residing in the country where the course is hosted in order to limit the need for travel and quarantine. The same goes for our MDP Golf Management course in St Andrews. The CMAE Board and Education Policy Committee have taken the stance that we won’t rush into hosting courses again until we are certain that we can do so in a safe environment. The safety of our delegates, presenters and staff is as always our number one priority.
MDP - PLANNED DATES
LOCATION
HOST
MDP Part 1 26 - 30 October 2020 16 - 20 November 2020 25 - 29 January 2021 22 - 26 February 2021 2 - 6 May 2021
Stirling, Scotland Dublin, Ireland Manchester, England London, England Dubai, UAE
SGCMA/CMAE IGCMA/CMAE CMAE England CMAE England Dubai Golf/CMAE
MDP Part 2 9 - 13 November 2020 15 - 19 February 2021 2 - 6 May 2021
Manchester, England Stirling, Scotland Dubai, UAE
CMAE England SGCMA/CMAE Dubai Golf/CMAE
MDP Golf Management 30 November - 4 December
St Andrews, Scotland
CMAE
MDP Food & Beverage Management 2 - 6 May 2021 Dubai, UAE
CMAE/Dubai Golf
MDP 3 Strategy & Leadership 18 - 22 January 2021
Prague, Czech Republic
CMAE
MDP Sport & Recreation* 2 - 6 August 2021
London, England
CMAE
To register your interest in attending any of the above courses please contact debbie.goddard@cmaeurope.org or use this QR code (see left). * New programme; launches in 2021
Along with the rest of the world, at this point in time we’re unable to make 100% irreversible decisions whilst not knowing what the situation will look like in three to four month’s time. This is obviously a huge disappointment to all of us here and to all of our Tribe who are on – or plan to be on – the MDP Pathway. Rest assured, while that pathway might be blocked at the moment thanks to COVID-19, we’re working on it! We hope to be able to have more clarity on the situation by the end of the Summer and will continue to announce any updates by email and in our Clubnetworker newsletter. In the meantime, be sure to keep in touch, reach out to us with any concerns and be sure to engage with our webinars and PowerPlay. Stay Safe. Torbjorn Johansson CMAE Director of Education
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GET INVOLVED If anybody is interested in attending a course date, please do get in touch with us on office@cmaeurope.org and we will register your interest until a time when we have a decision if the course will go ahead and under what capacity.
Join up, join in – the value of MDP courses
“
CMAE’s Management Development Programme (MDP) is an education programme for Managers in Europe, Middle East & Northern Africa. Have a read of what our Middle East colleagues have to say. Education City Golf Club, Qatar
CCM has benefitted me in many ways. First of all the education and experience in trying to attain the CCM was exceptional. I knew despite being a Club GM of over 10 years that I had blind spots in my overall knowledge. The Management development programmes, World Conference and study that I put into preparing for the CCM exam really helped me fill in the gaps in my knowledge. Secondly the people I met on that journey: fellow delegates, presenters and CCMs has really boosted my network and I now have a trusted group of advisors and specialists that I can lean on when I need additional advice. I would really recommend anyone who is serious about a long career in the club industry to invest time in their personal development and work towards attaining the CCM designation.
“
”
Mike Braidwood CCM, General Manager Education City Golf Club, Doha, Qatar
I recently attended MDP1 of the CMAE course and can’t speak highly enough of the first stage of this course. The presenters all showed great passion for their particular topic and ensured that we gained a huge amount of practical knowledge and ideas from each element of the programme. I look forward to attending MDP2 next year and implementing some of my new knowledge and skill set in the meantime.
”
Jack Woods, Golf Professional Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club, UAE Al Mouj Golf, Oman
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Having attended MDP1 earlier this year I was very much looking forward to MDP2 and it did not disappoint. A great course with a wealth of information delivered in the classroom by very experienced and engaging presenters and also the opportunity to share experiences and opinions with other delegates outside of the classroom throughout the week. Highly recommended for anyone in the industry looking to further their knowledge and progress their career.
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Jamie Wood, Director of Golf Al Mouj Golf, Oman
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Great speakers, great delegates. MDP2 takes your management and self management skills to next level. Salman Nasser Al Khanji, Qatar Golf Association, Doha,Qatar
“
The MDP course on Food and Beverage is very exciting. It was indeed a great learning experience for a person like me who has no much knowledge about restaurant. The course taught us on how to prepare a big event, banquet, going through hygiene and knowing what kind of food that can cause allergy to the customers. It is also worth noting that it is important to control the cost of the food and recycle it (food wastage). I was also able to learn on how to prepare the menu, evaluate and update it. All information from the course is very important for me as a Deputy General Manager as it gives a tool to handle a restaurant and communicate with food & beverage personnel. Overall, it was an excellent course with valuable information that I can use in my professional career.
”
Mohammed Al Naimi Deputy General Manager Education City Golf Club, Doha, Qatar Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club
CLUBHOUSE EUROPE 7
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SUPPORTING THE INDUSTRY
CMAE and The R&A in deeper cooperation CMAE hit the ground running as soon as it was clear that COVID-19 was coming, says Torbjörn “Toby” Johansson. How could we support our membership in the best possible way when the inevitable recession hits the club industry? Could we do online workshops? What would they look like? What could we charge? So many questions and really no right or wrong answers at that point. Then the phone rang...
I
t was the R&A on the line telling us that they would support us in doing something for Golf Clubs in the “post COVID-19” world. Since we already had plans in place, we found a solution which both of us believed in and the two-day Virtual Workshop, How To Manage & Lead Your Club Out Of The Post COVID-19 Recession was born. The first two-day session takes place on 11-12 of August. The first group of managers will come from Oman, United Arab Emirates, England, Scotland and Ireland. The education is built on five core modules – Strategy: Finance: Leadership: People & Communication. Within each module there will be five key elements and a key management tool to take away. What we will try to do for two days is to equip these people in the best possible way with frameworks so they can build the necessary templates when recession hits the industry. It is all about being prepared and preparation is key. (A lot of things are key, but that is what we will talk about!) As always with CMAE, we need to do things a bit differently to many others. We will build this on interaction. This will not be a webinar. This must be an event where participants and speakers work side by side in order to get physical, even though it is in the virtual world. When the two days are over, we will be able to offer it again to new managers who plan ahead. In many countries right now, we see an increase in members joining golf clubs. At the same time we
The two-day session will include input from key CMAE presenters and industry experts, including Bill Sanderson (above), John Bull (right), Darshan Singh (above right) and Debra Adams (bottom right) have seen many people being made redundant and F&B hit really hard. Recession is coming – all numbers point in that direction. Be prepared and act. Don’t waste the time now and wait to REact.
CLUBHOUSE EUROPE 9
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FUTURE PERSPECTIVES
A view from the sidelines Having been furloughed from his club since that fateful lockdown day in March and with the spectre of redundancy now looming, it’s been hard for Simon Bell CMDip PGA to watch from the sidelines as most of his peers and former golf industry colleagues have been busier than ever or returning to work.
A
longside the usual feelings redundancy gives you, such as fear, embarrassment, inadequacy or, if you’re lucky, freedom, I have also noticed in myself a growing feeling of missing out. Missing out on what is undoubtedly the best opportunity in a generation to turn the tide on falling participation and membership numbers. It’s been amazing to see daily announcements from golf clubs reporting their highest membership numbers in years or the holy grail of ‘our membership is full.’ However few have outwardly acknowledged the almost inevitable drop off that will be seen in 3-12 months time, when the true financial toll of this dreadful pandemic begins to show itself. After a 20.4% collapse in the gross domestic product in April alone, the UK is predicted an overall shrink in the economy of 8% by the end of 2020, putting it on course for its’ worst recession in over three centuries. Unemployment in the UK is set to rise to around 3.5 million people, meaning that by the end of the year up to 11% of the workforce may be out of work. Hopefully the scenario will be better than expected, but regardless of the actual numbers a percentage of those people will be your members, and golf as an industry needs to be planning how to combat this inevitability now. How are we going to stop members leaving or make new members want to stay? Are we recognising and taking advantage of the new trends we are seeing at present? One of the big trends I have witnessed from afar is the move to a more personal service for members and visitors. The UK hospitality industry has always been reluctant to embrace the service culture displayed in other countries, most notably the USA. The idea of serving people has never sat well with the traditional British hospitality worker, but at present we have little choice. The need to offer table service in your clubhouse and utilise new digital platforms however is a massive opportunity. A lot of clubs I know have also redistributed staff and accepted additional help from members, enabling them to offer gate greeters, starters and course marshals. All these have been undertaken as a necessity at this time, however the importance to the customer should not go unnoticed. They are all touch points between the club and the golfer, ways to increase positive interaction and importantly they have delivered a huge improvement in the customer service standard being experienced at a lot of golf clubs. As a club have you noticed improved member/visitor satisfaction levels? Do you measure that? If you have, are you planning to keep these processes in
10 CLUBHOUSE EUROPE
Simon Bell CMDip PGA place or simply revert back to old practices as soon as possible? Maybe there is a business case to be made for maintaining this improved level of service and ways to maximise the impact derived from it?
To the customer, the experience they get at your club, minus what it costs them, dictates how much value they put on it. EXPERIENCE - COST = VALUE. The more valuable it is to them, the more likely they are to renew. If there is a positive to be found from the events of 2020 it is that clubs have been forced to improve the experience they offer to golfers. However in most cases they haven’t yet increased their cost (pricing). Therefore at present, the value of your club to your customers has been increased and this represents a moment of opportunity! According to Forbes (September 2019) 84% of companies that work to improve their customer experience report an increase in their revenue. If you have a full membership how can you generate more subscription income? If you have a full tee sheet how can you possibly generate more green fee revenue? The answer to both is obviously increase the price. Again, in this moment you have an improved product which is delivering greater value than before covid. If you want to increase your pricing then you mustmaintain or even further improve the experience your customers are receiving. Don’t just go back to the old ways and ask for more money, because by then people may not have it to spend. At that point the value they derive from their membership will hold the key to whether or not they decide to prioritise other expenditure and allow their membership to lapse. Be strategic in your approach to generating more revenue. A full golf course will create opportunities
“
Does your club have an app? Get one. The effectiveness of push notifications is enormous. Communicate hard with all your members, customers and visitors. Get out in front and focus on making your existing customer base happy. I have never been asked by a business to simply go out and make sure people are happy. Happy people renew!
”
but the Italian spirit won’t be
for casual spend on food & drink. A fully engaged membership are the perfect target audience for member referals, function and party bookings, weddings, business meetings, retail spend and all smaller income streams associated with golf clubs. They are also your best opportunity to interact with the local community and, when happy, your biggest, loudest fans. I started running my own golf trips in 2015 and have seen an increase in numbers of 400% up to this year. At the end of each trip I ask for feedback and tweak the product in the hope people will come again and again. When I receive this feedback the phrases that reappear time after time are ‘a truly memorable experience, genuine and professional, members requirements above all else, attention to detail, work ethic, mutual respect and trust.’ None of those cost a penny! As I look on from the sidelines, like an unused sub in the Champions League Final, it feels as if focus should already be turning to retention. With most clubs renewing between February & May each year, there are only 6-8 months remaining to ensure your members are happy enough to renew. All the feedback since the restart says golfers have loved the simple changes clubs have made to get their courses open again. Pre-booking all golf, permission to change shoes in the car park, play at 10-12 minute intervals and often in reduced group sizes. 3 & 1/2 hour rounds have become commonplace again. At clubs that have embraced the technology out there, customers have been able to book tee times online, play at a great pace, order food and drinks on their
phone, sit on the patio enjoying table service and still be home in good time. That sounds like a great experience to me! It has never been the norm, but now people know it can be done maybe they will expect it. Maybe they absolutely should expect it and this is what we will refer to as the new normal? For sure new members are getting the best view of your club right now. For many of them this will be their first experience of membership of a golf club. How we engage with them over this next few months is hugely important. Are you doing everything you can to make them feel part of the family, to integrate them with club life? Potentially the only other people who know how they’re feeling are other new members. Maybe a new members WhatsApp group would be a way to introduce people and find playing partners. You as ‘admin’ can add content and drive participation and they can opt out at any time. New member evenings are commonplace too, but the chance of them all being free on a Wednesday at 5pm (for example) is fairly slim. Established members will of course be noticing changes too and it’s vital we remind them how valued they are despite an influx of new faces. Does your club have an app? Get one. The effectiveness of push notifications alone is enormous. Content posted onto the app also means less calls to the already overstretched office and clubhouse teams. Communicate hard with all your members and visitors. Get out in front and focus on making your existing customer base happy. I have sadly never been asked by a business to simply go out and make sure people are happy. Happy people renew! Any inter-
broken, views I’ve says had inBrodie the past 15 years have involved delivering a business or marketing plan for new customers, but very few have focused on their current members or asked for a retention plan. My father spent 12 years as a cabin crew manager on Concorde. The pride he showed in delivering ‘the best service in the skies’ was staggering. If you can make your teams that proud to deliver your business standard your customers will feel it. Have you got a business standard you operate by, a mission statement, values you deliver day in day out? Horrible business’y words I know, but all aimed at one thing MAKING PEOPLE HAPPY - and not just customers, but probably more importantly your staff as well. Happy employees will take care of your customers and make a success of your business. Time on the sidelines has been lovely. Time with my family I will most likely never get again. I wouldn’t change it for the world, but I’m frustrated! Frustrated that I haven’t, as yet, been involved in this momentous time for the industry I love. I am itching to get back, full of energy and ideas. For many years now I’ve been convinced that the key to strong golf membership numbers is not continuous recruitment, but in delivering an experience that consistently exceeds the price tag. Making people feel engaged, valued and part of something special is a valuable skill. Maybe I’m an idealist, but training your team to make your customers feel all those things is money well spent. Make sure you ask your members what will make them renew year after year? The answers may well be very similar. Go beyond happy, go for delight!
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CMAE IN ACTION
The creation of CMAE’s Webinar Series:
Powerplay Suite The CMAE continues in its mission to help members across Europe and the Middle East through good times and bad, with ‘bad’ being the current distressing but dynamic challenge. Here, Director of Education Torbjörn “Toby” Johansson, explains the positive and proactive activities designed to help the CMAE Tribe drive their clubs into a brighter future.
“
A
s the last couple of months have been unprecedented with lockdowns, furlough and more than enough stress to last the years to come, I was extremely fortunate to see that CMAE as an organisation is in a good place. We had a very good 2019 with loyal and supportive Corporate Partners and our MDP Pathway has been filled with delegates we even had waiting lists on most programmes. For me personally, with full time employees in different offices in different countries, I found that we didn’t have to restrict anything; we are used to communicating electronically, be that zoom, Skype, emails, calls. It’s an amazing electronic world we live in thankfully! In fact we were able to actually increase parts of the work we put in because when COVID-19 made us cancel a few MDPs (Dublin, Baku, Dubai and London) it created new spaces in the calendar for creativity and innovation. After some creative sessions with mentors and MDP presenters (friends) a concept was formed called the PowerPlay Suite. It was build to try and support our Tribe in these difficult times. As a Secretary/GM/CEO it might have felt lonelier than ever; we needed to be there in any way possible. With a suite of opportunities, depending on the situation and on what learning outcomes we wanted in respective situation, we believed we could tailor video/live events to do just that. We came up with four different PowerPlay concepts (a whole suite) – PowerPlay 600, Powerplay CoffeeShop, Powerplay Panel and Powerplay Live. Powerplay 600 A video with 600 seconds on one subject – a bite sized contribution from CMAE’s Presenter Pool to deal with the situation you face, in whichever of the 40 countries we represent – right here right now. We want to bring you the very best ideas from the unique team of professional international presenters we have gathered, as well as from within the membership. We want to bring you thoughts, concepts and advice on managing your club in these strange times and help you to deliver the very best guidance to your Board, your members and your teams. Video: 600 seconds.
Powerplay CoffeeShop: To evolve and develop the Powerplay 600 theme we also introduced the Powerplay CoffeeShop. This is a great opportunity to speak with talented, successful and highly engaging members, presenters or industry experts over a virtual coffee to talk about the extraordinary situation we are all facing and to get great ideas on how to deal with it. This is a conversation with a purpose. To spread the benefits of the CMAE Tribe and put them to work on behalf of everyone. We share the challenge. We share the stresses and strains. Video: 20-25 minutes. Powerplay Panel This is a recorded discussion between a minimum of three people (including myself or other CMAE representatives) to a maximum of five people. A current topic is dissected and discussed with 1-2 experts in the area, along with managers who share their views. There are also sessions where only members discuss a current trend or action. These question-led discussions means that all participants are able to paint and share their picture. Video: Timings vary. Powerplay Live We also wanted to have the option of doing Live events where we have participants actively involved, with a
The Powerplay CoffeeShop is a conversation with a purpose – to spread the benefits of the CMAE Tribe and put them to work on behalf of everyone. We share the challenge. We share the stresses and strains.
”
lot of Q&As and interaction. With Powerplay Live we pick specific subjects to discuss, all moderated by a CMAE representative to ensure the event runs smoothly and encourages lively discussion and sharing of experiences and advice. Video: Timings vary Looking back now on the first couple of months, it has really been a wonderful challenge and we’ve been evolving as we go along, with better video backgrounds, better editing and better content. In the critical early COVID-19 days we began by delivering three videos/webinars per week, and after summer our aim is to deliver one high quality video/webinar each week and make sure to keep it up all year long. This is here to stay. Our very first session was Stress Management with Bill Sanderson. I still remember clearly how many times we tried it to make sure we got it right in the end. The quality of sound wasn’t great, but we could deal with it! I’m glad we have come this far and we now have rules in place for what to actually
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CMAE IN ACTION
send to our membership. The quality of content in the first one was great, but we would go about it very differently now and secure details that we hadn’t yet learned at that stage in March. (I think we are not alone in this!) The sessions that have influenced me personally the most would be: 1. Speaking about Black Lives Matter with Passion Graham, Clubhouse Manager at the Desert Mountain Club. Her personal passion is amazing and you can’t help but be caught up in enjoying her company. I had the pleasure of seeing her in action when I visited Arizona and her club as part of BMI Sport & Recreation in January. 2. Ascanio Pacelli CCM, Club Manager and Head Pro at Terre de Consoli Golf Club (just outside Rome) when he spoke about his family and how COVID-19 was communicated in Italy in February. Asc is just so passionate about what he does (and I actually loved the fact that his son peeked in when we spoke to see what was happening!). 3. The first Live session we had. We put a lot of effort into that with rehearsals and pages and pages of texts before doing it. I am glad we had everything in place and it did all work very well, but I am also sure it was because of the people we had on that session along with CMAE’s very own Debbie (Goddard)
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who was there to support it from start to finish. The most entertaining video was when Bill Sanderson, Darshan Singh and me did a review of the “first season” and tried to find golden nuggets and then discuss them. The conversation felt so relaxed and enjoyable that we will probably try to do that again once every two or three months. We’ll also invite other people to join us as we go along.
I have had the pleasure of being in all Webinars. For Powerplay 600. My role is more limited compared to the other concepts where I lead the conversation, but the P600 are, however, some of the best eye openers with some great models being guided through by great people. I’m very proud of Andrew Whitelaw CCM, GM at Portmarnock Golf Club in Ireland, who did a Powerplay 600 in great fashion. With over 3500 members in over 40 countries we know that what one member wants will be different to the other. That is one of the reasons why we have developed more concepts. There are also more opportunities ahead. For example, turning a conversation into a podcast for anyone just listening on the way to or from the club. We could do shorter and/or longer sessions, to fit with the needs of the listener/viewer. You can be very sure that we are trying to deliver something in the best way possible. We have just started on this journey so any feedback you can send to us is appreciated. If you are yet to see these, do login on to our website (members only) and you’ll find them all gathered together under “Webinars”. Must go; it’s time to continue planning and recording the new sessions! I really do look forward to hearing from you. #Proud Torbjörn “Toby” Johansson, CMAE Director of Education
CMAE Webinars and Videos – the story so far When
Powerplay 600
Powerplay CoffeeShop
Powerplay Panel
Who
What
Content
Bill Sanderson
600
Stress Management
3
Laurie Martin
600
Navigating through tough times
7
Darshan Singh
600
Leading your club through the Coronavirus Crisis
9
Ascanio Pacelli, CCM
Coffee
Italy – Pandemic status
14
Mark Bradford
600
Marketing Continuity Guide
15
Steuart Fotheringham
600
Lockdown tips for the club
17
Alberto Iglesias, CCM
Coffee
Spain – Pandemic status
22
Laurie Martin
600
STARS model
23
Will Hewitt
600
Free COVID-19 templates
27
Darshan Singh
600
Emotional Intelligence
29
Kevin Fish, CCM
600
Club Management Beyond Lockdown
30
Chris May, CCM
Coffee
Dubai - Just opened after lockdown
1
Ross Matheson
Coffee
Wimbledon - AELTC
4
Nathanael Pietrzak, CCM
Coffee
France - Pandemic status
6
Laurie Martin
600
Death and grief
8
Andy Brown
Coffee
Toro’s support during the Pandemic
11
Cristian Fiora, CCM
Coffee
Living in North Italy
13
Marcie Mills CCM, Kyle Draper CCM, Desi Speh
Panel
US Club General Managers’ status
15
Bill Sanderson
600
Creative Strategy
18
Steven Brown
600
F&B – Cost control
20
Francisco de Lancastre David, Chris May CCM & Bill Sanderson
LIVE
Opening up after lockdown
22
Andre Van Hall
600
Coping with change
27
Andrew Whitelaw, CCM
600
Building trust through communication
29
Adam Rowledge
600
Career development in lockdown
Powerplay Live
March 27 April
May
Key: Powerplay 600 = cap image; Powerplay CoffeeShop =cup; Powerplay Panel=3heads; Powerplay Live = camera
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CMAE IN ACTION
CMAE Webinars and Videos – the story so far When
Powerplay 600
Powerplay CoffeeShop
Who
What
Content
1
Laurie Martin
Coffee
Lockdown in Canada – update
3
Jeffrey Kreafle
Coffee
Leading your time through crisis
5
Jules Murray
600
Strategy
8
John Bull
600
How do we emerge from COVID-19
10
Ed Plunket, Ann Robbie & Bill Sanderson
LIVE
London City Clubs – update
12
Craig Higgs
Coffee
Golf tournaments online
16
Steven Brown
Coffee
Questions on F&B in lockdown
23
David Wallace
600
Driving Team Performance
25
Cindy Schoenrich
Coffee
Yacht Clubs in a pandemic
30
Alexandre Barroso
Coffee
Resorts through COVID-19
Powerplay Panel
Powerplay Live
June
July 2
Bill Sanderson, Darshan Singh & Torbjorn Johansson
7
Passion Graham
Coffee
Black Lives Matters
9
Steuart Fotheringham
Coffee
Health & Safety update
14
Staffan Tuomolin CCM
Coffee
Finland through a pandemic
16
Johan Mihkelsen-Ringqvist
Coffee
Sweden’s largest golf club in memberships
21
Bill Sanderson
600
Managing the change curve
23
Ed Chapman
Coffee
The value of reading books
28
Ed Plunket
Coffee
Redundancy – emotional rollercoaster
600
Employer branding
“ 30
Adam Keable
Reflections on Webinar Series – Spring
We have just started on this journey, so any feedback you can send to us is appreciated. If you are yet to see these webinars, do login on to our website and you’ll find them all gathered together.
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TRAINING AND TECHNOLOGY
Cyberspace here we come “We are becoming extremely fond of webinars at the Spanish Association of Golf Club Managers (AEGG),” says Alberto Iglesias CCM from AEGG’s Education Committee and the CMAE’s Board of Directors.
S
ince 2007, when Club Manager Spain (the pre-AEGG association) was launched, education has been at the centre of all activities offered to Spanish club managers. For many years, the most basic form of an educational session included taking students and the speaker to the same physical space, the classroom. Fortunately, technology has provided us all with a very different space: cyberspace. You know how it looks. A black rectangle-shaped screen that illuminates at the same time on all participants’ computers, creating an easily accessible and affordable “classroom”. AEGG’s new webinar program launched 15 days after the CMAE’s new Board of Directors was announced. It was April 8. The COVID-19 alarm status was in force in Spain. No one could leave their home without adequate justification. The atmosphere was perfect for webinars. There were hundreds of club managers eager for information and eager to learn skills that can help them cope and succeed in an unprecedented and clueless situation. The first two sessions covered current relevant topics: Legal aspects that affect the state of alarm and How to implement ERTE, the system established by the Spanish Government to facilitate companies to close and provide employees with financial support while they are temporarily unable to work.
At the end of May we had brought in four other great golf industry professionals to give us feedback on F&B, Communication, Pro-shop and GreenFees and Membership Sales. After that, as the possibility of reopening the golf courses was becoming a certainty, the Education Committee contacted two highly relevant people. Antonio Zapatero, the most prominent figure at the head of the Emergency Hospital created with more than a thousand beds for patients in less than two weeks at the IFEMA Conference Centre on the outskirts of Madrid, to treat patients with coronavirus. He explained in great detail the management strategies and techniques used. More than 4,000 patients were transferred to his hospital. Only 17 died. This event had a different format and there were more than 20 club managers present who asked Zapatero how he dealt with the development of the teams of workers, with the motivation of the staff and how he maintained high morale in both the sick and workers through a growing wave of terrible news from outside. With this, the objective was to make the managers of the webinar protagonists. How hard was it to get through this fantastic webinar? We could only do it with another extremely prominent figure who answered questions from AEGG members: José María Olazábal. The two-time Masters champion and captain of the Ryder Cup-
winning team titled his session Designing the Present and Future of Golf. An eloquent title for his current activity as a golf course designer, and his views on how to help golf grow in the near future. It was impossible to focus alone on the future, as Olazábal brought back memories of his successful career and of his late good friend Seve Ballesteros. It was an emotional and refreshing session, all in one. Webinar attendance has now been shortened, as golf clubs have restarted their activities, but all webinars are registered and offered through the AEGG website to members, so they can be seen over and over again at no additional cost. A survey of all AEGG members will help us design a comprehensive webinar program for the rest of the year. All this gives us the opportunity to have another educational format that does not take away from what we have already been doing for years, such as the MDP or the face-to-face regional sessions of one or two days; these also provide the fantastic networking that forms the TRIBE of CMAE. We are delighted to have jumped into this educational trend, and look forward to new opportunities that technology can provide to expand opportunities for AEGG members.
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COMMUNICATIONS
The wonder of webinars The pandemic that closed Europe and the World arrived in Portugal at the beginning of March and plunged the country into a true lockdown between March 19 and May 4. Alexandre Barroso, Director of Golf, Troia Golf, explains how the Association of Golf Managers of Portugal has been exploiting the wonder of webinars.
L
ockdown caused serious damage to Portugal’s tourism and to the country’s economy. Golf didn’t escape either, being also very dependent on the international market. Portuguese courses are designed for the pay and play market, particularly with European tourists. Very few courses depend on members for their income. It was in this context that the Association of Golf Managers of Portugal (AGGP) launched webinars. The first took place three weeks after lockdown began, when the industry first started to raise its head, looking for a light at the end of the COVID-19 tunnel. At that time, golf managers, in conjunction with the Portuguese Golf Federation, the Association of Green Keepers and the National Confederation of the Golf Industry, began to prepare for the reopening of courses. Webinars became the means by which the AGGP could engage with golf directors from other countries, exchanging ideas and advice. Participants from six countries joined in this first webinar to discuss the situation and share how their different countries were reacting to the pandemic. Thanks go to Sean Corte-Real, General Manager in La Cala, Spain; Dave Kelly, General Manager in Galway, Ireland; Jerry Kilby CCM from Kanda Golf, General Manager at Woodcote Park, England; Lars Lindegren,
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General Manager at Furesoe Golf, Denmark and Magnus Jivén, General Manager at Ljunghusen Golf Club, Sweden, for sharing their valuable insights. The second webinar took place a week later, focusing on the countries which predominantly feed the Portugese golf market, namely the UK and Scandinavia. This time we were joined by Portugal Tourism’s José Aragão, responsible for the British market and Stig Kaspersen, responsible for the Scandinavian market, as well as two golf operators, Sara Nilsson and Cameron Ritchie from Easton Golf (SW) and Golf Breaks (UK).
Given huge restrictions on the movement of people and the ban on clusters, the use of Webinars is proving a highly effective way to debate critical issues. They brings many advantages, including ease of use and particularly the ability to involve participants from across the globe at any day and any time, without travel costs and without travel time. Webinars are already earning their place as a communications tool of the future, especially in a world that progressively needs to share information, where time is a precious asset and the digital world is increasingly accessible and simple to use.
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TECHNOLOGY TO THE FORE
ZOOMing ahead intimesofcrisis with the IGCMA The COVID-19 pandemic has brought many new initiatives into play that were previously either ignored or not given much thought, says Niall Carroll from the Irish Golf & Club Managers Association (IGCMA). Online communication was one of those. But what a different picture now.
A
lthough there was Skype and a few similar types of video conferencing applications on the market, we as an association made very little use of them. And then we discovered ZOOM. For some reason ZOOM was different. Easy to use and cost efficient, ZOOM just got the traction at the right time. So when we introduced ZOOM meetings on April 9 as a way of communicating with our members, nobody thought we would get the response we achieved. From our very first ZOOM meeting with Golf Ireland, the Golfing Union of Ireland (GUI) and the Irish Ladies Golf Union (ILGU), it has proved the catalyst in increasing our communication and networking capability. From an early start of 26 participants we rapidly grew to 57 with Pat Finn (GUI) when the Back to Golf Protocols for Ireland were being discussed. We had 53 on the call with BRSGolfNow, when their system upgrade caused major disruption for man-
agers just as golfers were getting back to Golf. In between, we ran a very successful Social Media Seminar which attracted 27 participants. Our weekly call now brings in anything from 30 members upwards. Our colleagues in the Northern Irish Golf Club Managers’ Association (NIGCMA)have also taken part, so we have now become a true all-Ireland association for the club industry. We hope to continue with ZOOM, as long as there is a demand to have it there. All at the IGCMA feel it is a very simple way of keeping in touch, asking questions, getting quick answers to short surveys and generally being kept up to date with developments in our industry. Our managers have responded magnificently to this unforeseen crisis. Developing new protocols, sourcing sanitising equipment, obtaining details on Revenue related staff issues, taking the initiative on any number of issues around the club, from contacting members to rearranging fixtures, catering, the bar
etc, our managers all stood tall. The generous sharing of information, documents and so on, have all helped each other stay in the forefront of the battle. That is ongoing, and while we asked if our members would prefer less frequent meetings, the answer was a resounding “No”. Weekly is what is required. So every Thursday morning at 11.00am, IGCMA members log in from all around the country and catch up on what is happening live at that moment. Key to its success has been the “Chairmanship” of our President John McCormack CCM. His calm, control over the discussion has facilitated an easy flow of information in every direction, which has been crucial to the success. We are now looking at the remainder of 2020 and further ahead into 2021 and the video conferencing seminar is here to stay. It is our plan to hold some online education seminars in the future months as we return to the new normal.
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COVID-19 PERSPECTIVES
Covid and technology “I think for most of us it was the uncertainty of how long we would be closed for during COVID-19 that was the most unsettling,” says Mike Braidwood CCM, CMAE’s Education Policy Committee Chairman and General Manager at Education City Golf Club in Doha, Qatar. So how has the club fared and what does the future look like?
V
ery early on, our team at Education City Golf Club (ECGC) started to look at ways in which we could still engage with our customers, and through brain storming and watching what others were doing we came up with our plan. One thing that became very apparent very quickly is how unprepared our industry is in deriving revenues when we are closed! One clear opportunity, however, was on line golf lessons; it’s easy. The customer films his/her swing, sends it in to us and our pros do the analysis. We made the decision, however, to engage our community with complimentary online lessons rather than charging for them, knowing full well that when we reopened the clients would be loyal and come back for the real thing (which they have done). Our online lessons were done by using a software called V1 which allowed our pros to give detailed analysis and instruction. This worked well and
formed a strong pupil-professional bond. We did try to deliver junior golf classes on Zoom but this proved challenging. People homes were not quite set up for it and kids’ attention spans are really short! To be honest, I think the kids had had so much online learning anyway that anything else was just a bit too much. I think a big win for a lot of organisations has been taking the time to put in additional training hours. At ECGC our Golf Operations manager developed a number of online presentations to further develop the operations team. In addition, he developed some online tutorials for the members to get more out of the technology we use, such as how to book tee time on line and how to get the most out
Mike Braidwood: “Our Podcasts have great traction and it is now a product that we can sell to sponsors.”
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COVID-19 PERSPECTIVES
of our tournament app Golf Genius, as when we reopened we did all our scoring using the Golf Genius app. For our junior management I developed six webinars and delivered these each Tuesday on the following subjects: • The next step: a guide for junior managers to move into leadership roles. • Financial presentations: how to present to your owners . • Leadership. • F&B 101. • Attention to detail. • What gets measured gets done. Developing these presentation was a worthwhile exercise as we now have them for future reference and they’ve also been excellent development for the team who listened to them. A number of our associates took time to update their CPD [Continuing Professional Development] and engaged on webinars from their respective professional organisations and from industry suppliers such as SAGE, Golf Genius and Jonas.
One of our most worthwhile engagement activities was setting up our own pod casts. Early on in the lockdown we were approached by someone in Qatar to go to their pod cast to celebrate virtual Women in Golf Day. To add to this we invited Solheim Cup winning Captain Catriona Matthew to join us. The pod cast worked well so we decided to start our own Education City Golf Club ‘Play Life Better’ podcasts, using a piece of software called Be
Live. Our intent is to keep the focus on golf and to bring in people of various backgrounds, all of whom can tell a good story and offer advice to our viewers and listeners on how to improve their golf. We have had a rules expert, golf psychologist, self-talk expert, fitness coach as well as leading players such as Colin Montgomerie. Coming soon are Jose Maria Olazabal, Thomas Bjorn and Paul Lawrie. I have written to the great Jack Nicklaus to invite him on, but haven’t heard back yet! Our Podcasts have had great traction and it is now a product that we can sell to the sponsors of the Qatar Masters, as we can easily do a series of podcasts in the run up to the event with a Qatar Masters theme. Moving forward, in August we’re joining the Qatar Foundation Community Summer Camp which will reach thousands of people in the local community. We have chosen to develop a series of 30 videos on ‘Why golf?’ where we will detail a different demographic and highlight what benefits they get out of playing the game. These videos, in conjunction with some live content, will go out on a platform call JAM which will allow for community interaction. COVID-19 has certainly taught us a few lessons, and thankfully we’ve stayed proactive enough to engage and develop our database over these difficult times. I think as a result we have strengthened our team, attracted more followers and now have an engaging podcast product that can continue to draw in more customers as well as corporate partners.
CONTACT DETAILS Michael Braidwood General Manager P.O.Box 12182, Doha, Qatar Mobile: +974 3304 5499 Email: mbraidwood@ecgolf.com www.ecgolf.com
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INDUSTRY SURVEY
The 2020 Clubhouse Europe Survey The 2020 Clubhouse Europe Survey aims to identify the views and concerns of clubs with an eye to the future. Together we can identify new opportunities and tackle emerging issues. Your input is crucial, so please spend a few minutes completing this important survey. You can either email your response to caroline@alchemymedia.co.uk, complete it online at https://s.surveyplanet.com/9fpn3hAeSK or access it at the QR Code on the next page. Thank you in advance for your time. DEADLINE: 31 August, 2020 GENERAL 1.
What best describes your club? (e.g.: Golf Club, Tennis Club, Sailing Club, Sports Club)
2.
How many members do you have?
3.
What best describes the age/gender of your members? (e.g: Juniors under 18, 5%; 18-30s, 10%; 31-50s, 70%; over 50s, 15%. Male, xx%; Female, xx%)
4.
5.
Which are the most important target markets for membership drives? What promotions have you employed to encourage new members? Has it worked?
6. On average, how regularly did most of your members visit the club pre COVID-19?Â
7.
In the past year (pre COVID-19) had you noticed a change in the frequency of people visiting? Please describe.
8. What is the approximate split between Green Fees & F&B revenue? 9.
What is your main source of business information?
10. How many people see your copy of Clubhouse Europe? 11. Which elements of Clubhouse Europe do you read? BUSINESS TURNOVER 12. Since reopening, what is your percentage of sales compared to the same period last year?
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INDUSTRY SURVEY 13. How confident do you feel about the future of the club? (e.g: not very; moderately; extremely) NEW LAUNCHES 14. Have you taken on any new drinks/products at the club bar in the last 12 months? If yes, please list new additions (if possible) 15. What has prompted you to bring in newproducts (of any sort). Eg: trade press/sales reps/distribution channels etc. BRANDS 16. What are your best selling ciders? 17. What are your best selling lagers? 18. What are your best selling bitters? 19. What are your best selling spirits? 20. What are your best selling soft drinks? 21. Which wines – styles and serves – are your best sellers? 22. How do you purchase drinks? 23. Who do you rate as your top 3 food & drink suppliers? 24. Who do you use for your grounds equipment?
29. Which social media platforms are the most used by your club? (Please rank 1, 2, 3) Twitter [ ] Facebook. [ ] Instagram. [ ] Other (please list) CATERING 30. How many different food areas/outlets does your club have? Please briefly describe.
TRAINING AND EMPLOYMENT 25. How long have you been in the the club/hospitality industry?
31. How many meals (pre COVID-19) would you expect to serve on your busiest day?
THE FUTURE 35. What positives has your club managed to make out of the COVID-19 challenges? 36. What turnover changes do you expect to see in the next 12 months as a result of COVID-19? 37. What is your most important business objective by year end? 38. How much do you estimate your club will spend on club refurbishment, upkeep, facilities or improvements over the next 12 months?
ENTERTAINMENT
39. How responsive/positive have your members been surrounding lockdown/ reopening?
32. How important is live entertainment to your club?
40. Have you had to adjust membership fees to account for the club’s lockdown?
33. How else do you encourage members to the club?
41. How has staffing/furloughing worked during lock down?
34. Do you have either/both BT Sport/Sky Sports?
42. What excites you most about the future?
26. What qualifications do you have ? 27. Are you on the MDP Pathway? If not, what would encourage you to join it? COMMUNICATIONS 28. What is your most effective means of communication with your members?
SURVEY RESPONSE Thank you for taking the time to complete this survey. Either: 1. Email your response to caroline@alchemymedia.co.uk 2. Complete it online at https://s.surveyplanet.com/ 9fpn3hAeSK 3. Access it at this QR Code.
Survey results will be posted at www.clubhouseeurope.com 26 CLUBHOUSE EUROPE
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PROFILE
The life of a manager –sixmonthsintothejob In January 2020 Fraser Jervis CMDip was appointed as the new Manager of Lanark Golf Club in Scotland. We caught up with him to see how his first six months in the job have been.
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was raised in the village of West Calder in West Lothian which is about 20 miles from the Royal Burgh of Lanark. For as long as I can recall, Lanark Golf Club was rated as one of the top golf courses in Scotland and its moorland is widely regarded by all. I had my first experience of the course when I caddied for the Assistant Professional of my home club, Harburn. Unfortunately, he didn’t qualify that day, however, the course and clubhouse made a lasting impression on this 16-year-old and I was in awe of my surroundings. As a serving Police Officer, I qualified and played in the UK Police Championships held at Lanark Golf Club in 2003 and the comments from all 105 qualifiers were universal in terms of how much they enjoyed the course. After retiring from the police service in 2014, it was a natural move for me to get involved in golf club management. I first swung a golf club at the age of 9 years and have pretty much been hooked on golf ever since and have played in competitions as far away as Australia. I was Captain of Harburn Golf club from 20042006 and was President of the Linlithgowshire Golf Association in 2008. Having manged two clubs in my short time as a golf club manager, I gained invaluable experience which I believe provided me with the necessary tools to move to a bigger club. When the manager’s job at Lanark was advertised, I felt the opportunity was too good to pass up. Objectives for the club Lanark Golf Club had been run exceptionally well for almost 28 years under George Cuthill, a native of Lanark whose family have been associated with the golf club for many years. My short term goal was to enhance the communication between the Council, Manager and the membership. I absolutely believe that communication and trust are essential to allow a golf club to run effectively. Openness and transparency are key to forming mutually beneficial partnerships and this includes all aspects of golf club management. I ensured that I spoke with every member of staff in my first week and outlined my vision and plans, however, I asked each and every one of them what improvements they
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club is being run, recognising any ongoing issues and developing plans to improve the quality of the product. Having been involved in golf from a very young age, I firmly believe that golf clubs should provide an exceptional service to its members and guests alike. I want people to tell others what a great experience they had at Lanark Golf Club throughout the whole time they were at the club. If that is the case, members will remain loyal and they will bring in new members. Visitors will continually return and recommend the club to others who will also visit. Make the experience memorable for all the right reasons and the club will benefit.
Fraser Jervis CMDip thought could be made to the running of the club and why. The information I gained from each of them was invaluable in assisting me and it also established a rapport with staff who immediately understood they were valued. My main long term objective was to improve the governance of the club and how it was run. My focus was to develop a 5 year strategic plan with defined objectives and goals. Again, this requires ‘buy in’ from staff and Council. The focus is on analysing how the
The first six months and lockdown The first six months have gone by in a blur. I started on 6th January and had no handover from the previous manager, who had only been in post for 21 months. He had moved on and was back involved in his previous career, albeit at a higher level, the main issue being that he had left in November and the club had no manager during the ensuing period. The Assistant had done a fabulous job but it was impossible for her to do everything. With a great deal of assistance, I managed to get the various issues resolved and a set of accounts prepared prior to the AGM which was held on 14th March. However, by the time
of the AGM the coronavirus pandemic was taking hold in the UK and I guess most people knew that lockdown was almost inevitable. Lockdown was announced in the UK on 23rd March, three days before I issued the members with their annual subscriptions, talk about walking into the eye of the storm! The next seven weeks were spent, mostly working from home on my laptop and with a great deal of help from my assistant we managed to cajole 96% of the membership into paying their fees. The early part of this process was fraught and it was a worrying time waiting to see if enough members supported the club in a truly difficult situation. Communication was key and the membership did respond magnificently. During this time I had to furlough the majority of staff. I had barely got to know them when I had to do this and although it was absolutely the correct decision it was not an ideal position to be put in. I explained the whole situation to each and every one of them; honesty and transparency is the only way to deal with staff. I think they all responded positively to this There are two flats attached to the club and to make matters worse one of the residents tested positive for COVID-19. Apart from the obvious concerns around his health, it resulted in me having to put measures in place to protect the health and safety of others. As we are gradually coming out of this pandemic, I realise that although golf is so important to people’s mental and physical health and the prospect of playing will be celebrated, it pales into insignificance when compared with the devastation this virus has brought to so many people’s lives. With a return to golf and members being able to come back and play the course, albeit under tight restrictions, I am looking forward to meeting the many members I was unable to before of this fabulous golf club and I hope the waters run far more smoothly in the coming months ahead. From Police Inspector to Club Manager I actually spent 30 years in the police service, the last 12 of which were as an Inspector. When I retired, I took six months out and enjoyed four fantastic holidays, one of which was two weeks in Myrtle Beach with my wife and another couple enjoying some of the golf courses South Carolina has to offer. After I’d enjoyed my holidays and was rested up, I realised at 49 years, I had to do something else and with my whole life involved in golf, it was a natural decision to look at golf management. During the latter part of my career in the police service, I was heavily involved in the planning of large scale events and indeed was responsible for the policing arrangements. I also project managed the integration of three areas into one fully functioning unit. These transferrable skills have assisted me greatly during my five years in golf club management and assisted the clubs I have worked in and I have already project managed large pieces of work which although difficult have proven to be successful. Apart from the administrative side, I have been lucky enough to play at reasonable level. I played off a handicap of plus one for a number of years and was
LANARK GOLF CLUB - A POTTED HISTORY Lanark Golf Club was established on the 4th of October 1851 making it the 25th oldest golf club in the world. At that time the course comprised only six holes, set out on the Common Moor, then owned by the Royal Burgh of Lanark. Unlike many of the early golf clubs the location of the course has never changed and golf has now been played on The Moor for almost 170 years. In 1897 at a cost of £3 and 10 shillings (£3.50), Tom Morris (Snr) was employed to lay out 18 holes and in 1927 James Braid supervised the construction of several new holes to produce the basic layout which, with the exception of longer tees and modern bunkering, remains largely unchanged to this day. Testament indeed to the skill of these famous course architects. Lanark is often compared favourably with the King’s course at Gleneagles, offering a similar moorland challenge set in wonderful scenic countryside. In 1920 the LSM Railway Company decided, only on the casting vote of its chairman, to build its world famous hotel at Gleneagles rather than Lanark. From its beginning the Club has had connections with the Army. In early days the militia were encamped on what is today’s practice ground and when Winston Barracks were built nearby, a close affinity between the Club and the Cameronian Regiment was established. The historic link has been celebrated by renaming the main bar as the Cameronian Lounge. Several of the Club’s trophies have been presented by the Regiment including the 1893 mess silverware, which as the Army Cup, is played for each year in the invitational foursomes competition. In 1995 the Club purchased the course from the local District Council. Until then it had owned only the land on which the clubhouse was built. In 2008 the Club’s constitution was altered to allow women to become full members. The course record is 62 and is currently held jointly by professional Craig Maltman and amateur John Bauer of Lanark. In 1951 the “Centenary Handbook” was published and in 2001 “Fifty Years On” celebrating the Club’s 150th anniversary.
lucky enough to play in various competitions in different countries. I even managed to play in Regional Open Qualifying twice and on one of those occasions lost in a play-off. The game has been my passion and I want to put something back into it. I have had so many wonderful experiences, met so many great people and developed friendships which will last for a lifetime. I would love to encourage more people into this fantastic game of ours and make golf the ‘go to’ sport for many people. On the CMAE and SGCMA The CMAE has been nothing short of excellent. Having completed four of the MDP courses, the knowledge I have gained from presenters and the experience and connections I have made with fellow managers across the globe, has been invaluable and I
will encourage any manager to enrol on this pathway. I would relish the opportunity to be involved with CMAE as my knowledge and experience grow and very shortly I will sign up to the final MDP course with the intention of sitting the CCM exam in the next two years. In terms of the SGCMA, again I have nothing but positive comments to make. Like CMAE, the networking opportunities that it presents is crucial. Both have provided me with a wide range of contacts who I can communicate with to gain their experience in any given situation. I have recently been appointed to the Board of Directors and taken on the role of Director of Communications which I hope to develop over the coming months and years. I see this as an opportunity to expand the membership base and provide greater support to managers within the industry.
CLUBHOUSE EUROPE 29
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CLUBHOUSE AWARDS
They’re back! Welcome to the Clubhouse Awards 2020 The Clubhouse Awards were first launched in 2006 to applaud excellence in golf clubs across the UK. Now the Awards are back – and with a vengeance!
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he Clubhouse Awards 2020 are now open for entries. From owners and club managers to business development teams and membership managers, these unique Awards underline the significant role that the golf clubs are playing in the UK and Europe. From the big hitters to smaller, communityfocussed clubs, the Awards are hard-fought and much prized and now include a number of International Categories. AND DON’T FORGET THE CLUBHOUSE CLASSIC
Our last tournament hosted 88 golfers from clubs around the country. To be held on the day of the Awards (date to be announced post Covid-19) the Clubhouse Classic is open to all-comers. HOW TO ENTER To nominate a club or enter your own, just email us with your name, job title, club and email address, along with which categories you would like to enter. Categories include • Business Initiative of the Year • Green Club of the Year • Marketing Initiative of the Year • Youth Initiative of the Year • Catering Club of the Year • Community Club of the Year • Refurbishment of the Year • Manager/Secretary of the Year • Steward of the Year • Chef of the Year • Golf Group of the Year • Clubhouse of the Year • Social Media club of the Year • Website of the Year • International Venue of the Year • International Clubhouse of the Year • International Social Media club of the Year • International Website of the Year
CLUB HOUSE Awards ’20
To enter, please email info@clubmirror.com
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HQ BUILDING THE BUSINESS
HQ Building the Business – free UK reader service Is your club set to come out of the COVID-19 crisis in fighting fit shape? Now is the time to review that all-important bottom line. We’re here to help with all your purchasing queries. In this issue we focus on energy, and UK clubs can check out the new energy comparison site.
Free EV Car Charging Why should I install Free EV chargers at my organisation? • Lower your club’s carbon footprint and improve your green credentials. • Free or low-cost EV charging is an extremely affordable perk to offer as part of an attractive benefits package for staff. • Run your club’s vehicles in the most cost-effective and environmental way. • Clearly and obviously demonstrate your commitment to climate change. • Create an additional revenue stream by charging for your EV charging services. (T&C’s Apply.)
Tips for Savings There’s no denying that clubs are expensive to run. The Carbon Trust estimates that the annual energy costs for the small businesses exceeded £1.3 billion as of 2018. So if you’re one of these feeling the pinch. Here are a few ways that you can reduce your costs.
“David and the HQ team have been very successful in reducing costs for our members. They specialise in the field of energy management, however, within the company they also are able to reduce costs in other key areas as well. Find the time to have a conversation with David. It will pay dividends!” Dave Edmundson, Chair, Spring North
Lower your heating costs Try to avoid overheating your corridors and offices. You should be aiming for a temperature between 19-21°C. Any higher and it can become uncomfortable for your staff and members. Grants and funding schemes are still available subject to survey, credit and application process, please contact us for more details. Get Smarter with lighting Cut the cost of lighting by installing occupancy and
daylight sensors. Smarter lighting will ensure that your lights are only on when they are required. Take this tip to the next level by replacing your lights with energy-saving equivalents – such as T5 tubes or compact fluorescent or LED lamps. Doing so could reduce your electricity consumption by up to 80% as well as lower wasted heat.
How to contact Us For cost saving reviews for your business, please contact us via +44 (0)1753 272022 or email info@clubmirror.com. www.hqbuildingthebusiness.com
Our services include: Energy management & compliance• Office supplies • Telecoms • IT & digital support • Waste management • Fire equipment & maintenance • Boiler & air-conditioning replacement and maintenance • Renewable technologies • Health & Safety • HR • Transaction Handling • Food & Drink • Business insurance • ANPR/Parking facilities • Refurbishment • LED projects
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HOSPITALITY SOCIAL MEDIA AWARDS
Hospitality Social Media Awards Social Media – making it count. Are you engaging with your members? Reaching out with advice on Covid-19? Sharing ideas with your CMAE tribe? Social media is immediate, accessible and – literally – at everyone’s finger tips. So now’s the time to throw a spotlight on all that you do. Welcome to the Hospitality Social Media Awards.
he Hospitality Social Media Awards (HoSMA) are the only pan- industry awards designed to celebrate golf clubs, golf resorts and licensed outlets of all types and sizes who are using social media to help engage with their members and broader communities. Clubs of all shapes, types and sizes, along with colleagues from across the Hospitality spectrum, are invited to enter their good news stories on how social media is proving a valuable asset for both the business and members. Want a sense of the event? Head over to www.facebook.com/ HSMAwards for a flavour of last year’s event, happily held at the
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House of Commons, London. To see 2019’s finalists then it’s www.hsma.biz/news, and don’t forget the twitter handle – twitter.com/HSMAwards. What are they again? Just to recap! The Hospitality Social Media Awards celebrate how social media is helping clubs and the hospitality sector as a whole to communicate build their business. Last year saw hundreds of entries from all forms of hospitality imaginable, from golf clubs and tennis clubs to hotels and spas. So whether you’re a prolific tweeter or a facebook aficionado using social media to spread the word, we’re waiting for your entry. See opposite page for how to enter. Good luck!
2019 winners
Club Insure’s Jason Cook (left) presents Leicestershire County Cricket Club with the opening category of the 2019 Hospitality Social Media Awards, Sports Club of the Year.
Golf Club of the Year goes to the impressive Formby Golf Club, presented by Bob Williams (centre), Chief Executive of the Golf Club Managers Association.
BT Sport’s Ed Cracknell (centre) presents worthy winners South Shields FC with the 2019 Football Club of the Year trophy.
Canterbury Rugby Club’s Ian Lloyd (right) collects the Rugby Club of the Year trophy from Club Control’s Chris McNally.
HOW TO ENTER
Dransfields’ Trevor Roberts (left) congratulates Northern FC on becoming joint winner of the 2019 Community Club of the Year Award.
To enter online – visit www.hsma.biz/enter or use this QR code. Alternatively – email info@hsma.biz with your details and we’ll send you a self-entry form.
Wortley Men’s Club celebrate their joint win of Community Club of the Year, collecting their trophy from Trevor Roberts, Dransfields (centre).
CLUBHOUSE EUROPE 35
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GOING CONTACTLESS
Contactless solution for European Tour Golf Genius, provider of cloud-based golf tournament management systems, is supplying the European Tour with a contactless, safety-driven solution following the resumption of the 2020 Race to Dubai season.
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ew software from Golf Genius, launched at the Austrian Open, is designed to replace the need for on-site player registration, allowing players to book pre-tournament practice rounds remotely without the need for faceto-face contact with event organisers. The system, which was also in operation at the Euram Bank Open in Austria, was also used at July’s Betfred British Masters, as the European Tour schedule resumed without spectators following the enforced break due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “Our solution facilitates quick and easy registration for events which, crucially, removes the need for players and caddies to have face-to-face interaction with event staff,” said Craig Higgs, Managing Director of Golf Genius International. “In these times of heightened security and social distancing, the software provides a safe digital platform which affords peace of mind and drastically reduces the time taken to register for events and book practice rounds.” To register for on-site event access, players access the event portal, which opens virtually on the Sunday before each tournament and provides realtime tournament information that would previously have been distributed as a PDF. Within 20 minutes of its launch 90 golfers had
36 CLUBHOUSE EUROPE
registered for tournaments and 150 practice were booked. rounds have been booked in the same timeframe. A global text messaging system is also set to be implemented through the portal in the coming weeks.
CONTACT DETAILS Clubs interested in receiving a free Golf Genius demo should contact Craig Higgs by email -craig@golfgenius.com. Alternatively, for more information contact Phil Craghill, Director, GMS at phil@gmsgolf.co.uk
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CLUBHOUSE
Alchemy Contract Publishing proudly presents Clubhouse Europe in association with the Club Managers Association of Europe
ISSUE 21
EUROPE
Appointments – CMAE helps boost careers – page 5
Powerplay – CMAE webinars are here to help MDP pathway – updates and sign ups HQ Building the Business – protecting the bottom line Hospitality Social Media Awards – it’s time to shine
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PERSONALITY PROFILING
Building team spirit at Berkhamsted When Berkhamsted Golf Club’s progressive young club manager, Howard Craft CMDip, met CMAE presenter and management training consultant Kevin Fish in 2019 on an MDP2 course, talk turned to personality profiling. So what happened next?
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Back Row L-R. Ryan Austen (Bar Manager), Ben Hunter (Deputy Club Manager), Daniel Taylor (House Manager). Front Row L-R. Gerald Bruce (Course Manager), Howard Craft CMDip (Club Manager)
John Clarke, Head PGA Pro
astic and optimistic. “Broadly speaking, golf club managers in the USA tend to come from hospitality backgrounds, and are the life and soul of the party: what you might call green/yellow type personalities. In the UK, club managers are more likely to be structured, disciplined, organised, almost military in nature – in other words, more from the blue/red spectrum. “Behaviours which sometimes jump out of people can often de-rail their careers, or affect their personal lives. So it is satisfying to hear managers open up, and comment respectfully on how each other’s behaviours are received in the work place. You can’t change anything unless you are aware of it, and this Lumina session gives people the chance to discover exactly what they need to change to fit better in the team. “At Berkhamsted, it was remarkable to see the emotional commitment grow as each individual bought into the process. This team now understands each other far better than before.” Five months later, and given the curveball thrown at all golf clubs by the pandemic, what benefits has Howard seen since personality-profiling his team? “Communication between the HODs is far better,”
Trevor Taylor, Head Chef
Photograph of team & John Clarke by Andy Hiseman. Trevor Taylor by Ben Hunter
C
an personality profiling help a GM to ‘manage the people who manage the golf club’? This was the concept which led Howard to host a pre-lockdown Lumina Spark session at Berkhamsted in early March 2020, led by Kevin Fish and involving seven HODs including Howard and his Deputy Manager, Head Chef, Bar Manager and House Manager. Also present were two 30-year Berkhamsted legends, Head PGA Pro John Clarke and Course Manager Gerald Bruce, who have both seen many changes at the classic English heathland golf course over the decades. Neither, however, had ever been asked to reveal their ‘colour energies’ before. “As the GM you have to accept that you can’t do it all yourself. Your Heads of Department must efficiently cover all the bases,” said Howard, 36, who came to Berkhamsted in January 2018 after eight years of management experience at multi-site owner BGL Golf. “During my Club Management Diploma I gained an understanding of how you can always extract more from your team than you think. After experiencing psychometric testing in my previous job, I was confident that the team at Berkhamsted would benefit. “We went into the process hoping to understand each other better, but we emerged with much more than that.” Kevin initially sent each participant a 144-question self-examination, producing an individual portrait of each person. These were discussed in the first part of the day’s session. “It was entertaining to hear the revelations about each other’s personalities via the individual portraits,” said Howard. “Some difficult truths and surprises were exposed, but as we progressed the team’s initial scepticism diminished to be replaced by a growing appreciation for what made each other tick.” Kevin Fish, founder of Contemporary Club Leadership, explains the four basic ‘colour energies’ involved in the Lumina Spark process: “Red represents the more commanding, direct, up-front side of a personality. Blue indicates conscientiousness, being organised, looking for things to be evidencebased. Green stands for empowering others, being in touch with your feelings, and diplomacy, whereas Yellow personalities are more inspirational, enthusi-
he said. “We all know now not to email Gerald, our Course Manager! Phone him up instead. Trevor, our Head Chef, is a livewire, red off the charts like many chefs, but he interacts with the management team much better now. Something similar can also be said for John, our Head Pro. “Our objective-setting and staff efficiency have improved. Staff are, after all, our biggest cost. Teamwork is better and there’s a new bond of trust. People feel more valued by the others, and we can finally recognise each other’s comfort zones. “I’m certain that this experience will translate to a clear and sustainable performance benefit for Berkhamsted Golf Club in the years to come.” CMAE includes a personal Lumina Spark Portrait for delegates in each MDP 2 as well as a Lumina Leader Portrait for all participants in MDP Strategy & Leadership. More details on MDP courses and their content can be found at https://www.cmaeurope.org/education/mdp. Alternatively email office@cmaeurope.org
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CLUBHOUSE
Alchemy Contract Publishing proudly presents Clubhouse Europe in association with the Club Managers Association of Europe
EUROPE
Appointments – CMAE helps boost careers – page 5
ISSUE 21
Powerplay – CMAE webinars are here to help MDP pathway – updates and sign ups HQ Building the Business – protecting the bottom line Hospitality Social Media Awards – it’s time to shine
To see what Alchemy Contract Publishing could do for you please call Sean Ferris on +44 (0) 1753 272022