Any Superintendents out there that had to take over Cancel The title field is required!

1. James Smith

   

   112 posts
   
   9/1/2014 6:09 AM

   their club GM position. We have a small private, member owned club that struggles from year to year (like most clubs). I was approached yesterday by our club President about my thoughts on me becoming a GM for our club. This was just him thinking so far as he is trying to make improvements to our clubs management structure which only consist of a club pro, office manager and myself the course superintendent. We have only had one GM in the clubs history, which was the golf pro at the time and it was a huge fail! Not that it could not work but this guy was just power hungry which caused all kinds of conflicts. Our current pro has only been here a year and already does not get along with the office manager. My 20 years of service without any incidents is most likely the reason he feels I am the person for the position.
   
   Let me state that until now I have never wanted anythig to do with being the clubs GM! I simply love what I do out doors too much!
   
   My issue is that I can see that we need a leader becuase our Board of Directors has always been weak when it comes to club policies. I am afraid that if I do not take the position our club may go down hill which we cannot afford to do. I do not think any more money would be involved (I could be wrong). I am now almost 52 and know at some point and time I may have to take the position of overseer of our club but to be honest I was expecting it to not happen until I reached my 60's.
   
   What I would like to know is how did the transition go with your change? Since we are low on dollars I would have to train other crew members to step up and do more of my work on the course. What hurdles did you face in the transition? how much time do you devote to superintendent duties compared to GM duties? if you had to go through it again what would you change? how did other department heads take the transition? how much input do you give in the daily operations of the other departments?
   
   feel free to email me or call if you do not want to post it here.
   
   For the first time since I have been here I cannot come up with a single reason what I should not try to run both sides of this business. Deep down inside me I know it can only get worse if I simply stand back and not care about who runs this place.

   
   
   
   
2. Sandy Clark

   

   0 posts
   
   9/1/2014 8:09 AM

   I think you should do it without a second thought. Our business is evolving and honestly, turf management is about third on the list for many of us. If you do a balanced and fair job, it will be appreciated by everyone.

   
   
   
   
3. Todd Bishop

   

   1 posts
   
   9/1/2014 9:09 AM

   I was in a very similar situation as you are describing and I opted to make the leap. It was very rewarding because we were able to make a positive impact and I learned a new set of skills. The negatives can be added stress because you are now in charge of the business as a whole succeed or fail. The biggest stress for me was the financial end, not the accounting part but cash flow. If you have positive cash flow everyone is happy but if not then its just the opposite. Having a solid team is critical, think outside the box, what can you bring to help the situation.
   
   The transition went fairly smoothly in part because I had the respect of other dept heads and employees. There were a few unpleasant situations with dealing with employees that were under productive or unreliable but that is part of any supervisors realm. I didn't spend much time with the golf course because I had a great staff and a solid program in place. The big challenge for me was having to get in front of so many different personalities and make things mesh positively with employees, members and guests. You have to have the right personality to juggle all the different parts of the business. It can be done but don't think for one second it will be easy or quick fix. There will likely be days where you will question the decision to move up but dig deep and keep the goal in front of everyone.
   
   It sounds like you have already spent a lot of time considering the move and you would be doing it for all the right reasons. I know of several other superintendents that have made the move and have been very successful. Good Luck with your decision and don't be afraid to be the leader your club needs.
   
   Todd J. Bishop
   Madison Country Club

   
   
   
   
4. Christopher Thuer

   

   101 posts
   
   9/1/2014 1:09 PM

   From what I know of you I think you becoming GM should be a win/win for you and the club. But, do what your gut says.

   
   Chris Thuer, CGCS, Bear Slide Golf Club, Cicero, IN
   
   
5. Ronald Kirkman

   

   40 posts
   
   9/1/2014 5:09 PM

   Randini;
   
   Take the job or maybe you will have someone like your old Pro back. Then, what will you do? You know you can handle it and we know you can. End of discussion. Congratulations.
   
   Capt. Kirk
   Retired Alien
   Needham Golf Club
   Needham, MA

   
   
   
   
6. Melvin Waldron

   

   43 posts
   
   9/2/2014 9:09 AM

   Ronald Kirkman said: Randini;
   
   Take the job or maybe you will have someone like your old Pro back. Then, what will you do? You know you can handle it and we know you can. End of discussion. Congratulations.
   
   Capt. Kirk
   Retired Alien
   Needham Golf Club
   Needham, MA

   
   
   I bet the Capt. would come down and consult for you if needed, just point him in the direction of the nearest casino after his visit.
   
   I think you make a good case for yourself and the club, I can't help with your transition and other questions because I haven't done it myself, but I think learing to delegate some of your tasks might be the toughest part of it. Good Luck with whatever you decide to do, I think you can handle it with no problems.
   
   Mel

   
   Melvin H. Waldron III, CGCS, Horton Smith Golf Course, City of Springfield/Greene County MO
   
   
7. James Smith

   

   112 posts
   
   9/9/2014 7:09 AM

   Guys thanks for the confidence in my abilities!
   I was hoping for some first hand advice but what I got does help.
   
   As I mentioned above this is just being talked about between the club president and myself at the moment. I have sent him a pros and cons list as well as a whats to be expected from me as a GM list. This is not a move I wish to jump into without completely thinking it over and the first and most important issue I have is that if it does not work out that I simply move back to my current position with no hard feelings from either side.
   Some issues that seem to stick out for me is how much I will still be expected to do on the golf course from day to day. With a very small crew (and mostly knuckleheads due to our low pay rate) I tend to be a on hands type of person. Every day I am doing something on the course and I generally do all of the projects. I really do not have a crew that can get it done right without me being a part of the project. The one person I can trust to do things the most is also my Equipment tech/Assistant. Without extra funds I cannot get a second person that can take soome of the pressure off of this guy and I do not think it would be fair to add more to his plate without seeing some type of a drop off on his other duties. I am afraid that if I take on the GM duties the courses conditions will slowly going down hill. To be honest he can be a hot head and the extra pressure may send him over the edge.
   To be honest, I do not want the position because of the title and prestige it can bring (I can only see this mattering if I was looking for another position). This will not be a suit and tie position for me. I will not inherit a new desk and secretary! It will simply be more work and using my managing skills to get us on the right track and helping us stay there. My desire to step up is to keep my club from stepping backwards with the wrong person like in the past.
   If anyone out there has first hand experience and would like to discuss their challenges please contact me.

   
   
   
   
8. Quigney Michael T

   
   9/10/2014 3:09 PM

   James,
   
   I have served as both GM and Superintendent for 8 years at our course. We are a municipal golf course located outside of Pittsburgh. We do 30-35K rounds per year. I was asked to "look after" the inside operation following the 2006 season when the GM resigned and the clubhouse manager was fired. I have been the "interim" GM ever since.
   
   The skills you have as a successful superintendent will help you tremendously inside. Organization, communication, problem solving, and creativity will serve you well.
   
   I have had the good fortune of having some pretty good people to work with over the years. We have had 2 clubhouse managers during my time as GM. Neither one had any "formal" golf training. The first was a guy with a good background in business looking for a change. He worked well for 6 years before moving on to another job on good terms. Our current clubhouse manager was promoted from within. He has worked with us for 8 years has done a solid job transitioning to clubhouse manager. My point is - you MUST find someone inside you can trust. Having a person to handle the day to day BS is crucial. My focus on the inside is simple. Keep customers happy, we only sell/do things that we make money at, keep customers happy, keep the building clean and organized, keep customers happy.
   
   Your outside staff will react to your new position in 2 ways. Some will see it as an opportunity to take on additional responsibility and will support you. Others will see it as an opportunity to do less work because you are not on the course as much. I have been lucky to have most of our outside staff be supportive. Those who can't do that aren't going to work with us for very long.
   
   As far as time management - good luck. I battle this constantly. My priority has been and will be the golf course. I occasionally take paperwork home (invoices to code, pesticide records to enter) but I don't make it a habit. I have found that the best time to get a lot of office work done is early in the day. Our maintenance staff starts at 5:30 or 6 depending on the time of year. I often get to work at 4 or 4:30 and get a ton of work done in the office. My wife and kids are sleeping at this time so I'm not missing out on family stuff. I normally leave between 4:30 and 5 to go home. In season (for us it is April-October) I usually work 60-70 hours per week. In the offseason it is closer to 40. I am lucky that the people I work for understand the time I put in and are fine with me taking time off when I can.
   
   Overall - I am glad I took the job. The experience has been great. I feel confident I could take a job managing any type of business and be successful. I encourage you to give this strong consideration. Your passion for the golf course is evident in your posts. Your club would be hard pressed to find someone more passionate about the success of the golf course.
   
   Best of luck and feel free to contact me if you have any other questions.
   
   Mike Quigney
   Moon Golf Club