How to help a young "head of golf operations" individual? Cancel The title field is required!

1. James Smith

   

   112 posts
   
   10/11/2012 10:10 AM

   Over a year ago my club canned our golf pro/GM. He had recently hired a young assistant (21yr.old now) about 3 weeks before he was canned. This assistant grew up on our course and his father is still a member. My club moved this guy up to run the operations temporarily while they searched for a new Pro. Well since we were doing poorly at the time the decision was made to not hire a pro and continue with the assistant running the show. Our membership loves the kid and is very pleased with his work and want him to continue in the roll he is playing in bringing our club back. I personally really like him because he is easy to get along with and has no "god-like" attitude that you get with a Pro that has been in the business for a while. It was my idea that he be given the title "head of golf operations" because rightfully he could not use the "Golf Pro" title legally. He is just young and needs to learn from experience is all. To sum it all up, he is a great fit for our club. I would like too be able to help him along in any way possible. At one point I probably could of been promoted to GM and placed over the entire operation, but that is not my desire and I honestly feel that going back to our department manager system we had before the last Golf Pro was promoted to Golf Pro/GM.
   
   I will be truthful in that I do not know many golf pros in the business. I am looking for any advice I could pass along to him as well as any learning sites he may be able to use. I can help teach him management skills which I have a little experience in. I do not think he is still a member in the PGA since we do not have a golf pro for him to apprentice under. he does need more training though. I wish he had a mentor from another club that could help him out. Does the PGA have a forum site like we do?
   
   Has any of you went through a similar situation?

   
   
   
   
2. Michael Vogt

   

   2 posts
   
   10/12/2012 8:10 AM

   James:
   
   Working with all types of clubs there is a formula that serves clubs well. Obviously, each club is unique and their path to success is greatly guided by its leaders.
   
   The number one reason clubs begin to have operational problems is there has never been a goal or mission that cements the membership and employees together. Try to establish a clear and concise list of accomplishments for a reasonable amount of time (easy fixes, big wins). Find out what your membership wants, within reason, and deliver, flawlessly. The difference between a [u">"very satisfied"[/u"> member and just a [u">"satisfied"[/u"> member is enormous.
   
   I am assuming you have a food and beverage component to your club. And a repurposed golf assistant may not have a good handle on this side of the business. F&B take suck the life out of a club if not managed correctly. The club managers association has many offerings that may help this bright young man in this area.
   
   Although the firm I work with does satisfaction surveys, you could begin on your own. Ask each question two ways. What is important to your members, (golf, food, pool, tennis, etc.) and how satisfied each member is with each of the activity or feature. Hopefully, there is high numbers on the relationship between importance and satisfaction in each activity at your club. If there is a disconnect, you'll know where to focus your efforts. Each time you ask the questions you can be more specific on the portion of the activity or feature that needs management education or attention. A good example are sand bunkers, they always score high in importance and low in satisfaction, go figure.
   
   Go to CMAA.org, they have some decent resources for most areas of club management.
   
   Call me anytime with questions, I may be able to help you get started. The main resource is the person, and it appears you have a young man that's worthy of the investment.
   
   Good luck,