Golf Management Australia E-Mag - Autumn 2017

Autumn 2017

LIVE STREAMING “that’s cute”

also in this issue NEW AGCSA CEO CRAIG WOOD CMAA POST CONFERENCE REPORT

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BY SCHWEPPES AUSTRALIA PTY LTD.

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

BY AARON MUIRHEAD

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n behalf of the GMA National Board, it is with great pleasure that we share with you another edition of the GMA National e-Magazine. This publication is designed to inform the membership of what is happening in the industry at state and National level along with providing relevant informative articles from sponsors of GMA. This publication is a source of information for members and sponsors on what is happening at National and State levels and is also an opportunity for GMA members to be involved in the publication. If your club or a club that you know of is doing something interesting, unique or exceptionally well, please send information through to me so that the successes can be shared amongst all GMA managers.

About GMA Golf Management Australia is the professional organisation serving the needs of managers within Australian Golf. This e-magazine is now a major communications channel and deliverance of up-to-date information for managers involved in all areas of golf administration throughout

I hope you find the e-magazine interesting and look forward to receiving any relevant articles in the future. If you have any feedback on the publication or have any ideas on how we can make it better and more informative, please don’t hesitate to contact me at aaron.muirhead@nudgeegolf.com.au

Australia.

On behalf of the GMA National Board and Management, we look forward to seeing you all at the GMA National Conference in October this year in Adelaide.

administrators throughout Australia.

Membership to GMA is open to all Golf Club Managers and

We hope that the e-magazine will broaden the resources available to

Aaron Muirhead

managers – aiding the fulfillment of their occupational objectives.

Publisher GOLF INDUSTRY CENTRAL Morlo Pty Ltd ACN 123 872 784 ABN 1812 3872 784 PO BOX 4743, Robina Town Centre Robina, QLD, Australia 4230

GMA Executive

Contents may not be reproduced without written permission. Views expressed in editorial contributions do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this publication and it’s management.

Stewart Fenton President

Anthony Masters Director

Andrew Gay Director

Kathy Neagle Director

Paul Paterson Director

Aaron Muirhead Director

Brad Dawson Director

John Stamp Executive Officer

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FROM THE PRESIDENT’S DESK

BY STEWART FENTON Dear Members, One of the questions that is often raised as a key issue in golf clubs is the role of the Board versus the role of management. I accept that in any club access to resources, particularly human and financial resources, often impacts on the reliance on volunteers (and often Directors) to carry out duties that in some clubs would be undertaken by paid staff. This clearly “blurs” the lines between these responsibilities.

However, in a simple context the Board is responsible for the governance of the organisation. Governance is the strategic task of setting the organisation’s strategic goals, direction, limitations and accountability frameworks.

Management is responsible for the allocation of resources and overseeing the day to day operations of the organisation.

One way to think about this is that governance determines the “What” – what the strategic direction of the organisation is and should be in the future. Management determines the “How” – how the organisation will reach those goals and aspirations. Another way is thinking about viability and sustainability versus service delivery and operations.

In any good, well-functioning Board environment, Board Members (Directors) should not involve themselves in the day to day operational running of the Club, unless there is a clear need for them to do so. It is vital for the effective running of any organisation that management are left to the day to day operations of the business and that there is a clear segregation of duties and responsibilities of the Board from those of management.

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GOLF MANAGEMENT AUSTRALIA

The analogy of steering versus rowing is often used to describe the delineation of roles between Directors and managers.

If Directors are not aware of their responsibilities versus those of management, it is very important that they are given some training (part of a Board Induction process is ideal) in order that they become aware of their responsibilities as soon as practical upon their appointment. Otherwise it has the potential to lead to conflict between the Board and management, and in doing so it is likely to lead to “dysfunctionality” of the board, ineffective decision making (often getting “bogged” down in discussion about matters that should be left to management) and a feeling of resentment from management towards that board member(s).

All Board members should also have a clear position description that outlines their role and responsibilities. In a perfect world all Directors should also be provided with the position description of the General Manager so they are very clear on what your role, responsibilities and most importantly accountabilities are.

A very useful matrix that looks at board versus management responsibility in the context of golf clubs is shown on the opposite page.

There are some great resources available from the Golf Australia Club Support website (http://clubsupport.golf.org.au/) that will assist managers in this area. The Australian Institute of Company Directors (http://aicd. companydirectors.com.au/) also have some fantastic resources available.

Stewart Fenton GMA President

AUTUMN EDITION 2017

Board Responsibility

Cross over of responsibilities

Management Responsibility

Setting the strategic plan and monitoring and reviewing it

Meeting and monitoring achievement of objectives

Implementation of strategies to achieve and drive the strategic plan

Approving Budgets

Approving purchases outside of budget or above a certain delegation

Purchasing within budget and within a certain board delegated maximum limit

Overseeing the finances of the club

Keeping day to day operations and projects within budget

Detailed reporting to board of actuals versus budget and reasons for variances

Risk management

Constant assessment of risk

Reporting to board on risk, actual and potential, developing a risk management plan

Compliance - comes with a While Directors have a legal responsibility for legal responsibility for all Direc- compliance the General Manager typically tors does not. Therefore to effectively discharge their duty board members must be able to show they were diligent in finding out about their legal responsibilities and to be kept informed of what management is doing to ensure compliance.

Ensure that a culture of compliance is developed throughout the Club.

General framework for staffing matters, approval of staff budgets, increases, performance assessment of General Manager

Day to day staff matters such as appointments, roles, processes and procedures, structures leave, performance appraisals, conditions etc

Senior Management Performance issues, serious grievances against the General Manager

Club policy (such as Articles and Bylaws)

There should be an expectation of no compliance breaches by management.

Day to day policies and procedures

Review of the Boards structure and composition. Ensuring the Board consists of the right skills for that Club. Board succession planning.

Appointment of General Manager

Appointment of senior management team as per Club policy (eg Superintendent, Head Professional)

Appointment of management team and day to day staff. Organisational structure within the context of staff budgets and framework

Senior Management Succession planning

Source: Adapted from an Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) resource on Board responsibilities

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VICTORIA PROVISIONAL MEMBERS TRAINING Next week, Golf Management Victoria’s Provisional members will be invited to apply for a mythical role being “advertised” seeking applicants for a role as golf club General Manager. This is the second year in which GMV provides its provisional members with the opportunity to gain experience in applying for senior positions and the process they can expect in such an undertaking.

All applicants will receive feedback on their applications. Those shortlisted will be split into groups before being individually interviewed by two panels each of which will comprise of club officers who will conduct the interviews in a similar pressure cooker environment that applicants for legitimate roles can expect to experience. Candidates may also be invited to undertake psychometric assessment as many clubs are now conducting such tests during their recruitment process.

From each of the two panels a successful candidate will be determined with both individuals to be the recipients of funding to attend the GMA conference in Adelaide in October 2017.

CMAA WORLD CONFERENCE Four members of GMV, namely Chris Anderson (Mansfield GC), Michael Crough (Ballarat GC) Ben Telley (The Eastern GC) and Peter Paccagnan (The Metropolitan GC) recent returned from attending the US annual World Conference which this year was staged in Orlando. All four were recipients of partial bursaries provided by GMV with the support of our major sponsor, Schweppes.

were a large number of educational opportunities which were relevant to not only my club, but to Golf club’s generally in Australia, and it was a wonderful opportunity to network with Club managers from around the globe. There was great comradery between the group of Australian attendees, with everyone appearing to enjoy their time in Orlando”.

NEW MEMBERS A very warm welcome to members of GMV namely, Scott Eduatti (Amstel GC), Shaun Smith (Kingston Beach GC) and Craig Prothero (Mooroopna GC).

GMA NATIONAL CONFERENCE Clearly, the talented array of speakers being presented at the conference is already resonating within the industry and we are delighted with the feedback being received suggesting a large contingent of GMV members will be attending the GMA Conference.

As in past years, thanks again to the great financial support of our sponsors in Schweppes, Niche Corporation, Network Steadfast, Hostplus, Robert Oatley Wines, Miclub, Yamaha and Lion, GMV will be providing financial support to those members who will be traveling to in Adelaide in October.

Bursaries have been offered to GMV members for over twenty years and all those who have experienced the opportunity to attend a world conference have been effusive in respect of the benefits they’ve gained by attending.

We are also aware Andrea Watson, the 2ic at Royal Melbourne attending the conference as did a smattering of other club managers from around Australia and we trust they similarly benefitted.

As Chris Anderson expressed when writing to thank GMV for his bursary; “Well the 90th CMAA World Conference has been held, and I’m pleased to say that I found it to be absolutely brilliant! There

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GOLF MANAGEMENT AUSTRALIA

AUTUMN EDITION 2017

VICTORIA We encourage all GMV members to make the commitment to attend with previous attendees being able to attest that the value of the networking opportunities and educational content is invaluable.

GUEST DAY A wonderful chance for GMV members and their guests to network together with our sponsors was the recent Guest day at Amstel GC (Ranfurlie golf course). Host GM, Peter Butler and new GMV member Scott Eduatti facilitated a perfect light lunch before the field hit off to play the challenging and very enjoyable course.

Indicative of the challenge presented, despite the benign conditions was the winning individual score of 38 points returned by the guest of Woodlands GM, Richard Tullberg, being his course 2ic Samuel Langford.

VALE The news of the passing of former Woodlands GM, Ian Hibbins was learned in recent weeks. Always a popular man with his industry peers and the club world, Ian will be missed by all who knew him.

Winners of the team event were Chris Little, Richard Berry and Michael Umbers from our valued sponsors Miclub and Yarra Yarra GM Peter Vlahandreas.

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NEW SOUTH WALES

METRO/SOUTH WINS INAUGURAL GMA NSW TEAM CHALLENGE

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he Metro South/West team has taken out the inaugural opening event Challenge Shield – sponsored by Lion and Fine Wine Partners – played at the Elanora Country Club on 6th February.

The revamped event attracted a field of almost 70 players and now looks like becoming a permanent fixture on the GMA NSW Events Calendar. The best four scores from each region are combined to make the winning score.

The winning team – Ryde-Parramatta’s Brenden Ellam (39), Jason Kitchingman (35) from Bankstown, Tony Rosillo (33) from Massey Park and Nora Nagy (32) The Coast – returned a combined score of 139 to win by four points in the stableford event.

The runner-up team was Metro North – with Gordon’s Cameron Braid (40), Andy Hugill (33) of Mona Vale, John Harrison (31) of Monash and Anthony Dignan (31) from Long Reef.

Third place went to the Hunter Region team of Trevor Harrison (36) of Nelson Bay, David Lulham (31) from Wyong, Paul Foulcher (28) from Newcastle and Morriset’s Ian Taylor (28).

The best GM score for the day went to Cameron Braid with 40pts followed closely by Brenden Ellam with 39.

Best corporate partner/Guest score for the day was Nathan Garlick from Garlos Pies with 36pts followed by Dominic Stammers of Programmed Property Services with 35.

Nearest-the-pins were taken out by Noel Robertson of Roseville Golf Club and Anthony Dignan.

GMA NSW would like to thank the General Manager of Elanora Country Club, Cathy Neagle, and her team for hosting the event. A big thanks also to the day’s sponsors, Lion and Fine Wine Partners.

GMA NSW CORPORATE PARTNERS’ & MEMBERS’ GUESTS DAY - CHANGE OF VENUE & DATE TO NSW GOLF CLUB A reminder that entries are open for the annual GMA NSW Corporate Partners’ & Members’ Guests Day which will now be played at the New South Wales Golf Club at La Perouse and on a new date of Tuesday 28th March.

To assist Pennant Hills GC return its three partially weather damaged greens to normal playing standards by end of March for a major charity event, the GMA has agreed to accept an offer to move the event to NSW GC which has been put forward as an alternative venue.

The main event of the day will be a 2BBB Stableford and a Single Stableford with GMA Managers playing

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GOLF MANAGEMENT AUSTRALIA

for the Ken Collins Perpetual Trophy (see attached flyer for further information).

The day will commence with a light lunch at 11.30am followed by a 12.30pm shotgun start.

Golf will be followed by canapés, drinks and presentation at 5pm. Cost for the all inclusive day is now $125 per player. There are limited carts which can be booked separately through the pro shop (9311 2573).

To make a booking click here. Organise your team now for a great day of golf and networking at one of Sydney’s premiere golf courses.

AUTUMN EDITION 2017

NEW SOUTH WALES

MANAGER OF THE YEAR ATTENDS CMAA WORLD CONFERENCE The winner of last year’s GMA NSW Manager of the Year Award, Paul McAra of Coffs Harbour Golf Club, has just returned from attending the CMAA World Conference in Orlando as his prize.

The Club Manager of the Year award recognises a member who has excelled in their position during the past year.

The winner receives the award to study the latest in club management trends from speakers and other managers from around the world.

Paul (right) is seen in this photo with GMA NSW President, Paul Paterson, who also attended the conference representing GMA National, of which he is a Board member.

MATCHPLAY TITLE UNDERWAY The first round of matches are about to get underway in the GMA NSW annual Matchplay Tournament.

Players will be competing for the Ken Lyons Trophy in an event which has been running for 11 years. The defending Champion is Matthew Furze (Asquith Golf Club).

The event is played on a knockout basis (off handicap) and runs from March to October with up to five matches in total should entrants progress to the final. Matches are played on a mutually agreed neutral course and in addition to the competitive nature of the event, it is another opportunity to network with fellow General Managers.

WWW.GMA.ORG.AU

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CMAA POST CONFERENCE REPORT

by Paul Paterson

PAUL PATERSON, CEO OF AVONDALE GOLF CLUB IN NSW AND STRATEGIC PLANNING DIRECTOR OF GOLF MANAGEMENT AUSTRALIA, RECENTLY ATTENDED THE CMAA 90TH WORLD CONFERENCE ON CLUB MANAGEMENT AND CLUB BUSINESS EXPO IN ORLANDO, FLORIDA. The Conference is an annual event run by the Club Manager’s Association of America (CMAA). The CMAA is the professional Association for managers of membership clubs. CMAA has close to 6,500 members across all classifications. Manager members run more than 2,500 country, golf, city, athletic, faculty, yacht, town and military clubs.

The objectives of the Association are to promote and advance friendly relations among persons connected with the management of clubs and other associations of similar character; to encourage the education and advancement of members; and to assist club officers and members, through their managers, to secure the utmost in efficient and successful operations.

Whilst the conference was very wide reaching in its topic, the following topics came across strongly during the sessions that I attended:

• Leadership • Membership and Marketing • Social media • Facility Management • Board governance/management empowerment • Interpersonal Skills • Human and Professional Resources • Accounting and Financial management • Staying relevant in the industry and keeping pace with changes in society The CMAA conference had an extremely high level of professional speakers mixed with highly renowned Club Managers delivering the seminars.

This is my second attendance at a CMAA conference, with my first being in New Orleans in 2011. I value the experience very highly and would recommend any Club Manager in Australia to experience the conferences first hand. I appreciate that the cost can be quite high but I guarantee you will return refreshed, energised and with lots of ideas to implement both at your Club and with your own professional development.

If anyone has any questions or would like any advice on the conference, please feel free to contact me personally to discuss on (02) 9449 6455 or paul@avondalegolfclub.com.au To read Paul’s full report, please visit the GMA website http://www.gma.org.au/cms/2017/03/cmaa-postconference-report-paul-paterson/

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GOLF MANAGEMENT AUSTRALIA

AUTUMN EDITION 2017

WESTERN AUSTRALIA MEMBERSHIP IN THE RECENT MONTHS GMAWA WELCOMED THE FOLLOWING NEW MEMBERS Susan Douglas (Geraldton GC) as an ordinary member, with April Boord (Kalgoorlie GC) and Matt Harding (Araluen Resort) joining as provisional members.

Retirement of Linda Borrell – Kwinana Golf Club.

On behalf of all members of GMAWA, we wish Linda Borrell well in her upcoming retirement from Kwinana Golf Club, where she is due to finish at the end of March. Linda is currently our second longest serving member of GMAWA, having joined August 2006. Recently Linda was awarded employee of the year at the 2016 WA Golf Industry Awards and we congratulate Linda on her career and we all hope you enjoy your retirement.

RECENT APPOINTMENTS

across the state and we have been averaging over 100 players on these days.

Each year GMAWA receives funds from the golf days which is reinvested back to the GMAWA members through subsidies and provisions for education at our quarterly GMAWA meetings, State Conference, National Conference and International Conferences such as in New Zealand.

On-going professional development is important to ensure all members improve knowledge and skills through new experiences that benefit both the individual and the club. Through the generosity of the clubs, allowing GMAWA to use their course, we are able to provide this service to our members.

Congratulations to Matt Espie who was recently appointed General Manager of Melville Glades Golf Club, Matt was previously the golf manager at the Club.

CMAA WORLD CONFERENCE This year’s conference was held in Orlando and ran from the 7 – 11th of February. This year’s CMAA conference scholarship was awarded to Bruce Mead from Royal Fremantle Golf Club.

The conference is a great opportunity to rub shoulders with club managers from all over the world and hear the latest management trends - at the biggest conference of its type in the world.

We are looking forward to hearing all about the conference from Bruce once upon his return at one of our GMAWA business meetings. Bruce will also hold a presentation to GolfWA, one of the cosponsors with Schweppes of the scholarship.

GOLF DAYS GMAWA is fortunate to have the support of 26 local clubs, by allowing GMA Golf Days to run every fortnight. With strong support from clubs, the time sheet is filled with club members from

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LIVE STREAMING – “THAT’S CUTE” By: Greg Oakford “THAT’S CUTE” AND “BUT HOW DO I WATCH IT?” ARE A FEW COMMENTS I’VE HEARD OVER THE PAST MONTH WHILST BEING IN THE THROES OF EXECUTING THE LIVE STREAM AT THE 2017 OATES VIC OPEN. Still being in the infancy of the biggest communication shift the world has ever seen, I can empathise with those that haven’t quite got their heads around the 2017 world we’re currently living in, yet alone what 2022 and 2027 is going to look like.

This year, the Oates Vic Open went down the non-traditional path once again and I’m not talking about the brilliance of the format (brainchild of David Greenhill), nor am I talking about the thousands of spectators being able to walk the fairways.

In 2017, the event’s final two rounds were live streamed, a term that can often drum up negative connotations thanks to early evolution of the product. Anyone that’s watched a live stream previously with drop outs, poor sound quality and lagging will

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know what I’m talking about.

But let me remind everyone, it’s 2017, watching a quote/unquote “live stream” is as about identical as you can get to watching it on a traditional TV broadcast. Just ask any NBA basketball fan in Australia who have ditched their Foxtel service for NBA League Pass and made Australia the highest League Pass subscription country per capita in the world.

When the decision was made to trial live streaming for the 2016 Oates Vic Open, there were some doubts on several fronts including the strength of the Internet in Barwon Heads at the time. With limited time to promote the inaugural live stream offering, we kept our promotional gun in its holster to a degree but come midday on Saturday 6 February 2016, our fears were quickly shifted into wide eyes of optimism, as we knew we had a real product to work with moving forwards.

Having confidence in knowing we could deliver a quality HD live stream broadcast this year in conjunction with Australian

GOLF MANAGEMENT AUSTRALIA

AUTUMN EDITION 2017

Network Production, we began to run some digital promotions in January.

We targeted golf fans both in Australia and internationally, particularly with the announcement that the Oates Vic Open would be co-sanctioned with the Ladies European Tour for the very first time.

Streaming across both YouTube and Facebook LIVE, views across both platforms surpassed 100,000

by Monday morning with many thousands from Europe opting to catch the replay on YouTube which was immediately available following Mel Reid’s winning putt on the third playoff hole. This was a 500% increase in views from 2016.

YouTube was the only platform used last year so the introduction of feeding the broadcast via two platforms in 2017 came with its own challenges but nothing that couldn’t be overcome. Facebook LIVE is still in its formative stage but there’s no denying its massive potential to generate audiences lightning quick.

feature story Only 20% of our total audience came via Facebook LIVE, a number that made sense to me with YouTube’s live product being more established and the majority of our viewers opting to watch via www.vicopengolf.com which contained the YouTube feed.

In 2018, I believe the YouTube to Facebook split will be more around 65%/35% as Facebook LIVE continues to innovate its live offering.

As a point of interest, it was only two weeks following the Oates Vic Open that the LPGA made claim that its Symetra Tour event The Florida Natural Charity Classic’s final round on March 12 would be the first professional women’s golf event to be ever broadcast on Facebook LIVE. Beaten to the punch were the Americans on this occasion. Golf Victoria could probably stake claim it was the first to ever use Facebook LIVE to live stream a junior golf event as well with the Sportscover Victorian Junior Masters final round being shown in early January this year.

Now don’t get me wrong, would we jump at an opportunity to have the Oates Vic Open broadcast on free-to-air or one of the many Fox Sports channels? Of course we would, but at what cost?

Unfortunately, Australian professional golf tournaments currently have poor leverage as a product with traditional TV networks. It’s sad but it’s also a reality. Most of the events you see shown on free-to-air or Fox Sports are costing event organisers big money to both pay for the broadcast production and the opportunity to have their event shown.

Live streaming the final two rounds of the Oates Vic Open costs approximately 5% of the total event budget, should we take the route of broadcasting it on a free-to-air network, we’re now talking upwards of 30% of the total event budget, simply not feasible for where the event currently stands.

So how do the numbers stack up? Well it’s not the 371,000 the 2016 Australian Women’s Open attracted or the 247,000 the now defunct 2016 Ladies Masters attracted across the ABC network but 100,000 is a big jump on the mere 19,000 we had tuning into “Life is Greener 2” on Channel Nine in 2014.

Life is Greener was an hour-long package including highlights and some colour pieces but struggled for relevancy being aired 1-2 weeks following the conclusion of the 2014 event. Key take-away: just because something’s on freeto-air doesn’t mean people are watching, not today where there are almost infinite options to view anything you want.

So, what does the future look like for live streaming? Very bright.

The barriers to entry are not even in the ballpark of what they used to be to showcase your event.

We don’t have to sit and wait to be picked by a traditional network, nor do we have to roll up to a network’s front door with a wheelbarrow of cash. We pick ourselves.

Is there still a big education piece to play out on how the ‘average Joe’ understands how to view a live stream and have the added benefit of watching it on their big screen? Absolutely, but remember

when you didn’t know how email worked or couldn’t work out how to buy something online?

It’s just a matter of time. This is just beginning.

I’ll leave you with one of the many messages we received about the 2017 Oates Vic Open live stream:

“Hello, thanks for a brilliant tournament. Love the concept of both men and women playing concurrently, the venue and such great organisation. It goes from strength to strength. This year was so good to watch high calibre women playing and such an exciting finish. Was unable to get there this year but to be able to watch the high quality live stream was amazing golf and almost better than being there. The cameras were up close, and being able to watch the interviews along the way was great. I was glued to my laptop both Sat and Sun. Have watched a lot of LPGA tournaments around the world on YouTube but this tournament was far and away the best I’ve watched because it was ‘up close and personal’ and so well organised. I tell anyone who will listen what a wonderful golf tournament the Oates Vic Open is.

Can’t wait for 2018.”

Greg Oakford Marketing & Communications Manager Golf Victoria LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/ gregoakford Twitter: @GregOakford

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MYGOLF DELIVERERS OF THE YEAR ANNOUNCED! CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR WINNERS OF THE MYGOLF DELIVERER OF THE YEAR AWARD, SUSANNE CULLEN AND JOHN COLLINS! The joint winners have shown great dedication and passion towards teaching the great game to junior golfers, through fun-based learning and basic skill development.

Susanne Cullen is the MyGolf deliverer at remote Alyangula Golf Club amid a superb tropical setting on Groote Eylandt, Northern Territory.

She first began the program as a way for junior golfers to develop their game through an accredited program, as well as introduce more people to golf.

Susanne describes the positives of the program as being the enthusiasm that radiates from the children as they learn drills and gain confidence through new skills. Susanne keeps the children entertained and engaged through fun learning activities that are held at a good pace to keep them engaged.

Through focusing on enjoyment and fundamental skill learning, Susanne has managed to establish a local program consisting of 74 junior participants!

Susanne will be rewarded with the opportunity to travel to Adelaide for the 2017 ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open, all the way from Groote Eylandt!

Her prize package includes accommodation at the Stamford Grand hotel, two season passes, Sunday hospitality at the Golf Australia Club, tickets to the champions cocktail party and two entries to play on Royal Adelaide in the Super Monday event after the tournament.

Congratulations Susanne!

John Collins, MyGolf deliverer at Brookwater Golf and Country Club south-west of Brisbane, has been teaching junior golf at the facility for the past three years.

John began the MyGolf program to create synergy between his sporting schools program visits and MyGolf as the national junior program.

“I was assisted in this process by Gold Queensland co-ordinator Scott Simons, who has been instrumental in helping me to form and grow the current MyGolf junior program at Brookwater,” Scott said.

“Another reason I signed up was to reach a wider catchment of children and not just rely on those who had previously visited the club.”

John’s initial MyGolf program had 25-30 registrations across different levels. That number has since grown to 40-45 per term.

“One of the positives I see with the MyGolf program is that now the PGA and Golf Australia are working together on creating a uniform national program that is recognised all over the country. It makes it much easier for those looking to get into the sport to find out where to begin.”

The program keeps the children engaged by creating numerous new training ideas and golf-related games to play during the sessions.

“Keeping the parents engaged is also key as they are the ones who ultimately do the registering and I keep them informed of when new programs are starting, any competitions we have coming up and any other various opportunities that we have coming up via my weekly newsletter,” John explained.

“For other clubs that are looking to implement a MyGolf program, I would suggest working with your local association and create that link with your local schools through the Sporting Schools program.

“I’d use that as a feeder to provide an opportunity to engage more children, provide them with information about the junior program at your club and hopefully a number of them will

sign up. “For those clubs starting up a junior program, I would suggest working out a plan of how you can provide a consistent structured program – for example, days and times that are consistent throughout the term and year – then find someone who is going to drive the program.”

When asked of Brookwater’s 2016 highlights for MyGolf, John replied: “It was to take a bus trip to Royal Pines for the Australian PGA Championship with all our MyGolfers and their parents for a behind-the-scenes tour of the tournament precinct conducted

by Matt Street.

“This trip was provided free of charge to all children who were currently registered in the Brookwater MyGolf program.”

John’s other projects involving MyGolf include quarterly “Big Hole Golf” fundraising days, which last year covered transport costs to the Australian PGA Championship and continue to provide opportunities for MyGolfers.

“Brookwater also made its debut in the Brisbane District Pee Wee Pennants at the end of last year, which again was afforded to us through signing up to MyGolf,” he said.

As reward for his hard work throughout the year, John was given the opportunity to attend the 2016 Australian PGA Championship on the Gold Coast in November, along with accommodation, corporate Sunday hospitality and two entries to play the championship course on the Monday after the event!

Congratulations John!

CLUB MEMBERSHIP DECLINE SLOWS Golf Australia in conjunction with Golf Management Australia (GMA) is pleased to present the 2015 National Golf Club Participation Report.

The fourth report of its kind, noted a 0.5% decline in national membership numbers in the 2015 year.

Membership pressure is more evident in regional areas, accounting for 60% of the national member mix, where an overall decline of 0.9% was reported.

Whilst club membership numbers in metropolitan areas fell by 0.4%, the report highlights that 34% of clubs across Australia reported a net increase in member numbers in 2015. Further, as a lead indicator to future demand outcomes, the report also notes that the national club member attrition rate also fell to 9%, down from 12% when first measured last year.

Also detailed in the report are the national competition rounds played outcomes for 2015. This data showed that there was a continuation of the growth in competition rounds being played, with a 1.9% increase recorded in 2015.

Cameron Wade, Director of Golf Development at Golf Australia said “The 2015 outcome is the smallest annual membership decline recorded since 1999. Off the back of another sub 1% membership decline in 2014, a declining attrition rate and steady growth in

competition rounds played, these results present an encouraging outlook for club golf in Australia.”

Other key findings in the report include: • National membership numbers across Australia were reported as 397,063 golfers • Females account for 20% of national members – a 1% decline from 2014 • Reported member numbers for social clubs have increased over the past five-years from 10,975 in 2011 to 20,745 in 2015 • The average age of club members across the country is just over 55 years with the average age of male members (53.4 years) being 9 years younger than females (62.5 years) • 54% of the national club golf membership base is aged 55 years or greater • Junior members under the age of 18 account for 3.6% of total members Click here to view the full report.

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PGA OF AUSTRALIA TRAINEE PROGRAM General Overview The Professional Golfers Association (PGA) of Australia traces its origins back to 1911, when a group of expatriate Scottish golf Professionals formed a national association to promote the game of golf and elevate the vocation of the golf Professional within Australia.

Since that time, the PGA has implemented a variety of successful apprentice and trainee programs that led to membership of the Association, with the current program both world-renowned and viewed as one of Australia’s leading sport specific workforce development programs.

Following an extensive review involving a range of golf-industry stakeholders, including a number of golf club General Managers, the PGA’s standard Trainee Program has recently been approved for important structural improvements. Each of the improvements is designed to ensure that the program delivers the outcomes PGA Members require as effective and successful golf-industry employers, employees and contractors across a range of roles. The recent improvements primarily relate to the Nationally Recognised Qualifications embedded within the program and the PGA Playing Standard, however, the program is subject to a regular annual review process and yearly enhancements.

The PGA Trainee Program is underpinned by five primary pillars that support the skills, knowledge and competencies of the future PGA Members who graduate from the program:

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Workplace-Based Training

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Nationally Recognised Qualifications

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Accreditations and Certifications

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Non-Accredited Training

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PGA Playing Standard

The workplace-based training component of the PGA Trainee Program is considered an essential aspect of the program and forms the foundation around which other program areas are based. Each PGA Trainee is required to be indentured to a Full PGA Member for

GOLF MANAGEMENT AUSTRALIA

The importance of the workplace-based training area of the Trainee Program cannot be overstated, with the workplace providing the targeted skill-development opportunities specific to the golf industry. In addition to the workplace being utilised as a training environment, it is also used to facilitate practical assessment via the PGA Member employer and each Trainee’s PGA Mentor, who is based at an alternative facility.

Nationally Accredited Qualifications The Nationally Recognised Qualifications embedded within the PGA Trainee Program provide an important and valid structure to the program, while delivering a wide variety of relevant learning outcomes to Trainees.

With four program subject areas of Coaching, Game Development, Small Business and Management, each of the qualifications is delivered in the context of the golf industry and address a variety of areas.

Via the Certificate III in Sport (Career Oriented Participation) being completed in year 1 of the program, Trainees concentrate on the development of their golf-industry knowledge, while also completing performance improvement modules, with each module designed to prepare Trainees for the challenges of the workplace and the increased rigor of years 2 and 3 of the program. Example modules within the Certificate III in Sport include: Media Skills, Finance Fundamentals, Personal Management and Sponsorship Proposals.

Commencing in 2018, year 2 Trainees will transition to the completion of a Certificate IV in Small Business Management, providing vital future skills for ProShop management and ownership while also having an immediate positive impact for current employers of PGA Trainees. Modules within the Certificate IV in Small Business include: Small Business Planning, Small Business Finance, Marketing and Customer Service.

Workplace-Based Training

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a minimum period of 3 years of supervised full-time employment, with Trainees therefore completing almost 6000 hours of workplace-based training prior to being eligible for graduation to Full PGA Membership.

Following completion of a Certificate IV in Small Business, year 3 PGA Trainees undertake a rigorous Diploma of Sport Coaching, which includes both coaching specific modules and a range of businessoriented training and assessment items. The qualification also contains a significant amount of material relating to Professional Golf Coach Accreditation via the Australian Sports Commission’s National Coaching Accreditation Scheme, the highest level of golf coach accreditation in Australia and the only accreditation that permits an individual to operate as a professional golf coach.

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Accreditations and Certifications Supporting the Nationally Recognised Qualifications of the Trainee Program is a range of relevant accreditations and certifications embedded across the program’s three years: -

Professional Golf Coach Accreditation

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Community Instructor - MyGolf Club Accreditation

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Community Instructor – MyGolf Schools Accreditation

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ASADA Level 1 Anti-Doping Accreditation

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ASADA Coaching Accreditation

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R & A Level 1 Rules of Golf Accreditation

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Apply First-Aid Qualification

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TrackMan Level 1 Professional Certification

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TrackMan Level 2 Professional Certification

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Working With Children Check (or equivalent)

Each of the aforementioned accreditations and certifications is included within the program to provide future PGA Members with the skills and accreditations to make them job-ready for the Australian golf-industry.

Non-Accredited Training In addition to Nationally Recognised Qualifications, Accreditations and Certifications embedded within the program, the PGA also requires Trainees to complete a range of non-accredited training and assessment specific to the golf industry. Examples of this non-accredited training include business finance, pro-shop merchandising, golf-club repair, working with golf-industry suppliers and creating inclusive golf clubs. The non-accredited training is implemented by the PGA to specifically address skill, knowledge and competency gaps not addressed by the Nationally Recognised Training or the Accreditations and Certifications within the program, thereby ensuring all golf industry requirements are fully-covered by the program.

PGA Playing Standard The PGA Playing Standard remains an important component of the PGA Trainee Program. With a proud history of a strong playing standard for entry into PGA Membership, the requirement to play competitive golf to a professional standard both validates an individual’s overall knowledge of the sport, while also forming a vital element of both the Diploma of Sport Coaching and Professional Golf Coach Accreditation.

PGA Trainees are now required to pass one rigorous PGA Playing Stage prior to being eligible for graduation to Full PGA Membership. The reduction from three Playing Stages to one provides additional opportunities for Trainees

to focus on the academic components of the program and the development of their workplace-based skills such as small business management, coaching or event management.

PGA e-learning Platform and Webinars First launched in 2011, it is important to note the role that the PGA’s own e-learning platform, The Fairway plays in the successful implementation of the Trainee Program across Australia. The Fairway is utilised in the delivery of over 75 online training and assessment modules within the program and therefore permits accessible completion of the program from virtually all geographical locations. In addition, the PGA also recently introduced PGA Webinars, further improving accessibility of training content and program information for PGA Trainees.

Benefits of the Program and Entry Requirements The PGA Trainee Program is ideal for both male and female golfers who have a passion for golf and a desire to translate that enthusiasm into a career in the sport as a PGA Professional. Over the three years of the program, PGA Trainees develop real skills for the workplace, in addition to being valuable employees for their club or facility.

By employing a PGA Trainee, not only is a golf club investing in a young person’s career, they are benefiting from an individual who is fully invested in the sport as an industry. In addition, the training being undertaken by a Trainee is fully facilitated by the PGA, with the golf club benefitting significantly from the new and improved skills, knowledge and competencies developed by their employee over the three years.

In summary, at the completion of the 3 years of the program, a Trainee will have completed 3 nationally recognised qualifications, 10 additional accreditations and certifications, almost 15 days of face-to-face training, 75 online training and assessment modules via The Fairway and approximately 6000 hours of indentured employment under a Full PGA Member. For these reasons, the PGA of Australia is confident that the program continues to address the needs of the Australian golf industry and the PGA will strive to ensure that it plays a key role in the success of the sport.

For further information relating to the PGA of Australia’s Trainee Program, please contact the PGA of Australia Training Manager, Stephanie Jamieson directly via (03) 8320 1937 or sjamieson@pga.org.au Alternatively, click on the following to be taken to the Trainee Program section of the PGA website for further information.

Geoff Stewart General Manager – Education PGA of Australia

CRAIG WOOD THE NEW CEO OF THE AGCSA On behalf of all Australian Golf Course Superintendent's Association members and staff, can I thank Stewart Fenton, John Stamp and the GMA team for the opportunity to contribute to this publication. Although I have been in the professional turf industry most of my career in various roles, as new CEO of the AGCSA it is apparent just how important it is that we maintain an open and trusting relationship between all of us invested in growing the game of golf.

and the US Tour's success and insatiable appetite for growth tends to mask the 'grass roots' issues there quite a bit more than in a country like Australia!)

But reality dictates that in an age of endless new technology, instant gratification and short attention spans that we now live in, we must now act as a united industry to identify the issues, address those problems and implement solutions to make our game and the magnificent facilities most clubs provide more relevant to today’s consumers.

We all see "doom and gloom" stories circulated about golf and clubs. Numbers of players are falling, as are the number of rounds played and money coming in to the game from sponsorship, let alone the number of top-level tournaments in our region has shrunk alarmingly. In reality, these problems are the same almost anywhere the game is played. I have just returned from the 2017 Golf Industry Show in Florida and the same issues were highlighted there by many countries. (The sheer financial might of the USGA

Today's choice of leisure activities is so diverse; it's mind-boggling to a former small town boy who grew up with a choice of cricket, footy, golf or tennis as the only real options! I believe the proof of this attitude change and abundance of choice available now is illustrated by this: In the '80s golf exploded on the back of Greg Norman's dominance.

People wanted to emulate his or Jan Stephenson's success and took to the game in droves.

Arguably, Australia has even more talent on view in the top echelon of golf now with Day,

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Webb, Lee, Scott, etc. but it is not translating to local growth in the game. We can't say people in the golf demographic aren't spending money on leisure because other similarly costed pursuits such as cycling are booming! The reality is that the game is seen by Gen X and Y as taking too long to play, is played too slowly, is relatively expensive and perhaps too conservative.

This means that for golf to thrive, all stakeholders must be actively involved in discussing, trialing and promoting changes the game needs to attract new blood. The awareness of this issue is such that a global company heavily invested in professional turf, Syngenta, conducted a study "Growing The Game Of Golf - Female Participation." It found the global golf economy could potentially grow by $35 Billion if the game, courses and facilities were friendlier to women. But, the report highlighted that the game must fit in with priorities such as career, family, other leisure pursuits and education.

As a traditionalist I love the history of golf clubs, be it the occasion of visiting a Royal Melbourne, or stopping at a regional club that struggles to find volunteers to cut fairways for a hit paying the (often too) cheap green fees. All of these clubs generally meet male golf lovers expectations. But, the study points out that unless we add touches like quality cafes & modern menu's, playgrounds and creches and structurally change the game in ways that women outline in the report, our game will struggle. Soon, maybe a session at your club's new

gymnasium, followed by a lesson from the female golf professional and a 6 hole round of golf on the purpose built "short course" will become the new normal for timepoor, over-stressed women (and men)?

I am sure that our entire industry must work closer than ever before to make these shifts before property developers provide further "compelling arguments" to many more great clubs. In response, the AGCSA is now working harder than ever to strengthen relationships with sister organisations like GMA, PGA, Golf Australia, and the Society of Australian Golf Course Architects because we realise that to change and adapt, we need to be unified. We must all strive to be better at what we

offer with a common goal. From hospitality staff, to the club pro and administrators, we are the masters of our destiny, and how these different sectors work as a team will define our future.

None more so than the Course Superintendent and their team of turf professionals, because these people provide the saleable product, a golf course that is usually the biggest measure used to judge your club.

AGCSA members now strive to improve their skills and knowledge in a broad range

of areas. Our members are incredibly competent in the difficult science of providing sports turf surfaces that are comparable to, and often better than anywhere else, often achieved with less resources.

But we are aware we must be part of a shared vision, operating efficiently with clear communication and planning with a mutual understanding, respect and trust in each of these allied parties.

The AGCSA, under our 2016 strategic plan, is determined to provide the resources to continually grow the skillset of our members so they continually offer more to you and your Boards, to their Course staff, and become an even more valuable spoke in the industry wheel. To this end,

we will be seeking feedback from all parties regularly to ensure we deliver skilled professionals who add value and guidance to your facility on an off course. I can assure you, the days of these talented people seeing their profession as "grasscutters" or "groundsmen" ended many years ago.

Every day, a Course Superintendent deals with financial management, often managing more staff than many small businesses employ, has to keep up with new technology and equipment, deal with changing environmental legislation and responsibilities, HR issues... all while trying to continuously improve a golf course in a hugely challenging Australian climate while critiqued by hundreds of "experts."

It’s a tough gig, but we know so is the job of everybody reading this and in our industry. Lets work as an industry: closer, smarter and with the goal of creating a great future for a great game.

Craig Wood is CEO of the Australian Golf Course Superintendents Association, the peak industry body for professional turf in Australia. Craig has had an extensive career within the Australian turf, agricultural & horticultural chemical industry utilising his professional turf qualifications which are complemented by a Bachelor of Commerce and a Grad Dip in Frontline Management.

WWW.GMA.ORG.AU

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GMA MEMBERS UP-SKILLING WITH ADVANCED CLUB MANAGEMENT PROGRAM IN 2017, MANY GMA MEMBERS WILL CONTINUE UNDERTAKING THEIR STUDIES OF THE ADVANCED CLUB MANAGEMENT PROGRAM, DELIVERED BY THE PGA INTERNATIONAL GOLF INSTITUTE (PGA IGI).

The PGA IGI’s Advanced Club Management Program, incorporating the qualification BSB61015 Advanced Diploma of Leadership and Management, provides students with access to best industry practices and current trends that best recognise the club management industry today and into the future.

Denise Ward, Accountant and Office Manager at Roseville Golf Club in Sydney, is currently enrolled in the Advanced Club Management Program.

Undertaking the program through e-learning via the PGA’s education platform, The Fairway, offers students like Denise flexibility throughout their learning process.

“The program has been beneficial to the workplace, with the e-learning format enabling you to work through the program when it’s convenient to you, usually on evenings and some weekends,” explained Ward.

Content within the qualification is designed to provide students with new skills and knowledge, or further quantify their current skills sets as experienced by Ward.

“It has assisted me as part of the management team to understand and discuss business goals and objectives through the additional knowledge gained,” said Ward.

“Some units are confirmation of knowledge you have gained over your career, which gives you confidence that thought processes and actions you would take have proven research behind them.”

Ward has found the addition of webinars to the learning as a great learning tool for her studies.

“It is good to see the PGA IGI working towards more webinars to assist all learning styles,’ discusses Ward.

“I listened to the marketing webinar delivered by the PGA’s General Manager – Marketing, and it was interesting to see how other organisations in

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the industry develop and deliver their programs.

It gives ‘realness’ to the work you are doing and assurance that you are heading in the right direction with your studies.”

As Christine Straw, PGA IGI Senior Manager explains, the webinars have been added to the program to further enhance the student experience.

“The webinars have been introduced to add to the content of the program, providing current best industry trends direct from industry leaders to our students,” “We are proud to work with industry leaders from the PGA, GMA, leading industry managers and experts in their fields to deliver this additional content for the students in the program,” said Straw.

New intakes are available each month for managers to commence in, running from February to December.

Exclusive member rates are available to GMA Members. All students are eligible to apply for RPL as part of their studies, based on current skills they undertake in their roles within their current positions.

For further information regarding the PGA IGI Advanced Club Management Program, please visit www.pgaigi.com or contact Luke Bryden on (07) 5657 6109 or lbryden@ pga.org.au.

PGA International Golf Institute delivers nationally recognised qualifications for the golf industry. RTO Number 31270.

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PGA IGI ADOLM Brendon Kop General Manager Penrith Golf Club It is now some months since I was fortunate to be awarded the GMA bursary to complete the PGA IGI Advance Diploma of Leadership and Management (ADOLM).

Although busy in my role as GM of Penrith Golf Club, I have managed to invest time into my studies thus far. I am very fortunate to have been given the opportunity to be able to study ‘at leisure’ whether that is some time during work hours or more often in my own time after hours.

The modules thus far have been completely relatable to my role and have provided both myself (and my Board of Directors) with greater insight into our forward planning and marketing of our business.

The confidence that I have gained through a formal educational experience that I can complete at my pace, is almost immeasurable.

The most valuable part of the training is that the modules tie in with our business and is something that once complete, I can take straight to the Board Room for discussion and immediate implementation.

The nature of the online format is that you can complete small parts at a time and your work is saved for the next time that you login (although early on I did suffer a time-out in one session and lost some of my work, which I relate to as a rookie error).

The PGA staff regularly makes contact to ascertain how I am going and whether or not there is anything that they need to do to assist. To be honest, the stricture of the online format is very easy to navigate and I have not had to contact anyone for any assistance.

What is nice to see, is that I have been to a few GMA events now and have met other managers and support staff that have either completed the same course, or are well on their way through their study journey. The feedback from everyone is the same, in that, the course is very well put together and of a very high standard.

A few of my Club Directors (and some members) regularly ask me questions to see how I am going with the study, which is great that they are so supportive and interested in the course.

For any club managers and/or support staff that are interested in the ADOLM, I can only suggest that you contact the PGA and enquire about committing to the course. It is an investment in the future for both yourself and your club.

Brendon Kop

WWW.GMA.ORG.AU

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QUEENSLAND QLD INDUSTRY AWARDS The Queensland Golf Industry Awards Night is fast approaching and all the nominations have been received. This year has been extremely well supported with nominations and we would like to congratulate all the nominees as all are very worthy winners.

The selection panel consists of GMAQ Life Members Ted Coker, Max Mason and Don Gregory in which they had the very difficult task of choosing the winners. The awards night is to acknowledge the achievements the finalists have accomplished throughout 2016 and will be held at Jupiters Gold Coast on Tuesday 21st March 2017, and there will be representation by the PGA (QLD/NT Division), Golf Queensland, Golf Course Superintendents Association of QLD and Golf Management Australia – Qld Division.

The GMAQ finalists for their respective awards are:

MANAGER OF THE YEAR AWARD CLUB OF THE YEAR AWARD

Ben Dobson

- Headland Golf Club

Ballina Golf & Sports Club

Geoff Kuehner

- Brisbane Golf Club

Carbrook Golf Club

Jason Looker

- Caloundra Golf Club

City Golf Club

Mark Whiting

- Ballina Golf & Sports Club

Paul Fitzpatrick

- Redland Bay Golf Club

Stephen Hutchison

- Twin Waters Golf Club

Tracey Lea Tiley

- Links Hope Island

Keperra Golf Club Links Hope Island Redcliffe Golf Club Redland Bay Golf Club Victoria Park Golf Complex Windaroo Lakes Golf Club

STAFF MEMBER OF THE YEAR AWARD Jeff James

BOARD MEMBER OF THE YEAR AWARD John Alsbury

- Headland Golf Club

Owen Ed Britnell

- City Golf Club

Peter Barney

- Windaroo Lakes Golf Club

- Victoria Park Golf Club

Tim Lynch

- Victoria Park Golf Club

Ivan Nott

- Links Hope Island

Janet Dinnes - Middleridge Golf Club Kate Ross

- Emerald Lakes Golf Club

GOOD LUCK TO ALL NOMINEES!

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QUEENSLAND GMAQ SCHEDULE 2017 GMAQ has lined up some of the finest Clubs in Queensland for our schedule this year and a big thanks to those managers that have accepted an invite to host a GMAQ event. We have a focus on each day having a meaning and purpose, and over the next few months we will see our Executive Day with a focus on sharing information with our Boards, our GM and Staff Member Day with a focus on sharing the GMAQ network with a valued staff member or manager, and then our GM invitational day in May where we encourage each manager to bring a GM that is not a member.

EXECUTIVE DAY – ROYAL QUEENSLAND One of the highlights on our golfing calendar is the Executive Day as we play for the prestigious EC Coker Shield. I am personally very thankful to General Manager Tim Gahan and his Board for accepting our invitation to host this event, and especially with Mr Coker’s history at Royal Queensland it is a fitting venue.

UPCOMING EVENTS

You are invited to bring your President and two other Board members so that they can engage with GMAQ and get an insight into what we are about. It’s a fantastic day with dinner to follow and we look forward to hearing from GMA Executive Officer John Stamp at the dinner who will present to the group. It’s likely to be a sold out event so don’t leave it too late to book your team in.

HOPE ISLAND – TUESDAY 11 APRIL Each event will also have a purpose in 2017 and I encourage you to bring a staff member along on Tuesday 11 April to Hope Island.

As General Managers we have a great network and I believe we can assist our Assistant Managers, Administration Managers and Golf Managers by introducing them to people in similar roles at other Clubs so they can share information as we do.

So put in your diary and start thinking about which manager might benefit the most from developing a network themselves.

Tracey-Lea Tiley and her team have been extremely helpful in hosting this event and if you are like me, I am keen to see one of my favourite golf courses again as it’s been a few years since my last game there.

GMAQ EDUCATION DAYS As a new initiative in 2017 GMAQ will be holding two stand-alone education days, over and above our usual meetings. The motivation of this initiative is to deliver further education to our members on current advancements and topical issues that affect our industry.

The first of these days will be held at Nudgee Golf Club on 27th April 2017. Guest speakers for the day will be Paul McLean, Superintendent from Sanctuary Cove, who will talk on the importance of Super/GM relationships and also around course maintenance expectations on our busy courses.

The second presenter will be David Webber from Golf Queensland who will be informing attendees about what is available to affiliated clubs through the Club Support & Development Program being offered by GQ and how this has helped many clubs since its inception.

Mike Orloff from Golf Industry Central will round out the day with two sessions. The first being a look at new and innovative sales & marketing strategies for your club and how you can track the success of these campaigns. The second session will be on what Mike calls ‘The Experience’, which is centred on delivering service levels above member/guest expectation and how this will greatly benefit your club.

The days will run from 9.00am until around 2.30pm. The second of the days will be held in September, with an exact date and list of presenters to be confirmed in the coming weeks.

The good news is that due to the ongoing support of our sponsors, these days will be free of charge to GMAQ members and their senior staff.

I would strongly encourage all members to attend these days, as I’m sure everyone will gain some valuable knowledge and information to take back to their respective clubs.

Monday 6th March – Royal Queensland - Executive Day Tuesday 21 March – Queensland Golf Industry Awards Tuesday 11 April – Hope Island – GM & Staff Member Day Monday 15 May - Mt Coolum - GM Invitational Day

WWW.GMA.ORG.AU

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Mike’s Space CLUBS NOT ‘LIKING’ FACEBOOK AS MUCH ANYMORE

There is a common misconception about Facebook among people I talk to in golf clubs. Many think when they publish a post on their business Facebook page that everyone who has liked their page will see it. This is, in fact, far from the truth!

A few years ago the percentage of your Facebook fans that actually saw your posts was, on average, 27 percent. In 2012 this number dropped to around 16 percent, according to Facebook. Now it has dropped to about 6.5 percent. So if 1,500 people like your page, you can expect an average of about 100 people to be shown each post you publish.

Mike Orloff is an Operations and Marketing Specialist for Golf Industry Central and a PGA Member in the USA and Australia. Originally from Southern California, Mike has permanently resided on the Gold Coast for the past 10 years. He has over 20 years of commercial golf experience in various senior management roles and currently provides operational and marketing solutions to the golf industry in the region.

Currently, Mike also lectures part-time for the PGA International Golf Institute and runs the industry based website www.golfindustrycentral.com.au.

The bad news is Facebook is also saying we ‘should assume a day will come when the organic reach is zero’!

PAY TO PLAY FACEBOOK Last year, the total number of pages ‘liked’ by Facebook users grew by more than 50 percent on average. However, the same users aren’t spending more time reading their Facebook News Feeds. To accommodate this, Facebook has changed its EdgeRank algorithm that determines which posts their users see and which ones they don’t. That’s why your organic reach is declining. Consequently, brands need to ‘pay to play’ if they want to stay relevant on the platform.

Golf clubs and golf-related businesses already optimising their Facebook post reach with paid promotions are ahead of the game. If you have not set a Facebook advertising budget or your business cannot afford a regular spend on Facebook, then it will be tougher to get noticed on this important social media network. However, there are some low-cost and nocost opportunities you can still consider.

TOP 5 LOW-COST FACEBOOK MARKETING STRATEGIES 1. Improve your content - use remarkable photos and eye-catching images in your posts.

2. Aim to engage – ask questions to encourage more comments and create posts your fans will want to share.

3. Run competitions – recently Facebook relaxed its rules about how you can run contests on your page but it’s still important to adhere to their promotional guidelines.

4. Ask your database of customers, friends and employees to like your page and your posts to continue seeing you in their News Feeds.

5. Make sure your website is social media friendly and visitors to your website can share or 24

like the content on Facebook directly from your website.

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MEASURING YOUR SUCCESS You can monitor how well you are engaging your audience on Facebook by calculating your page’s engagement rate. First, find the number of people ‘talking about this’ which is located next to your number of page ‘likes’ under your cover photo, then multiply by 100 to get a percentage.

Checking your engagement rate is a good way to gauge and review the level of activity on your page because it summarises the past seven day count of your total likes, posts, comments, tags and shares. If you’re looking for an industry benchmark, an engagement rate of around 1 percent is about average.

OTHER ONLINE MARKETING TOOLS To get the best coverage and results, (And without having to pay – yet!) spread your social media marketing across a few platforms.

Other popular social networks to consider include LinkedIn, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, TripAdvisor, Pinterest and Google+. Find out which ones are popular among your target market.

Don’t overlook the value of the old-fashioned e-newsletter as a core part of your marketing

strategies. You can add an email option on your Facebook page tabs and use a Facebook app like ShortStack to ask for people to join your email list on Facebook. You could also build your email list on Facebook by running a competition, offering a free coupon or a giveaway as an incentive.

Sending a regular newsletter to your email list is one of the simplest, low-cost forms of marketing available to every business, regardless of budget.

And it’s also the easiest to control!

Click here to contact Mike Orloff for all your marketing needs.

Mike Orloff is a US and Australian PGA Member with more than 25 years of industry-wide experience, including 18 years working for two of the biggest international golf management companies in Australia and the USA – American Golf Corporation and Clubcorp.

Now based on the Gold Coast, Australia, Mike consults to clients directly as well as via workshops and conferences in New Zealand, Australia and South East Asia.

THE MASTER PLAN -

T

he master plan process is often seen as a daunting prospect for many Clubs prior to entering these unchartered waters. This doesn’t need to be the case, but Clubs must be mindful that the devil is in the detail when it comes to getting it right in preparing a considered and achievable master plan for any sporting / hospitality business (achievable is the key word here, more about that later).

There are many reasons that a Club may want to prepare a master plan for the future of the site, buildings and business. From our experience in the golf industry, the primary reasons may include: •

To increase membership

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To improve existing member experience and services offered

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To encourage more member use of the facilities (specially for non-golf related activities)

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To introduce new and/or boost existing revenue streams to the business

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To improve dated facilities and often associated operational problems

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To improve operational efficiencies

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Secondary reasons may also include:

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To replace dated building services (such as air conditioning) that may be causing escalating maintenance costs and impacting member comfort

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To rectify current non-conformances with Australian building and access codes

In its most elementary form, a master plan should answer the question of what to do to end up where you want to be, but it will not happen overnight. The master plan should be seen as a series of steps that are achievable to reach a realistic goal within the constraints of the considered outcomes of each step.

For the purposes of this commentary, the master plan is defined within the Architectural realm. That is, concerning the site (all Club land holdings), buildings on the site and all operations of the business but not the course master plan which it is related to, but is a separate exercise.

As Architects, we look at the master plan design process equating to a jigsaw puzzle, within a relatively structured framework. Our system commences with building up as much information as possible about where the business is now and what its aspiration is for the future in order to formulate an educated brief to drive the outcomes of the master plan.

It is usually the case (but not always), that Architects are engaged to provide such services following the development of a strategic plan for the business. This document is important for the Architect to gain an understanding of where the Club sees itself in years to come and is often informed by member surveys, operational review and the like.

Our process is extremely collaborative with our clients to develop a comprehensive brief that informs the actual ‘pen to paper’ work of developing the master plan. Along with any documents prepared by the Club, the master plan brief is further progressed by asking a series of questions which fall into 3 categories:

WHO ARE YOU?

Where is your business now and where do you see yourself in 2, 5 and 10 years’ time?

What are the strengths and weaknesses of your current business?

How does your facility operate and what improvements can be made?

What are the constraints & opportunities of your building and site?

WHO IS YOUR MARKET?

What is your current member cross section and what are they looking for their membership to provide?

Who are you missing out on?

WHAT SHOULD YOU DO?

How do we achieve your long and short term goals over time?

What are other successful Clubs doing and what will work for you?

How do you cater for what members are looking for?

How do you maximise growth and financial performance of all of the parts of our business to ensure a sustainable future?

- GETTING IT RIGHT

These questions above of course need to be answered within the context and desired outcomes of the strategic plan.

The answers to these (and other more specific questions) are then collated to formulate the master plan brief. This should be considered as a live document that may change during the design phase of the process.

Prior to the commencement of the actual ‘pen to paper’ design work, it is imperative to review the existing operations and how they work within the existing buildings. There is no point in not fixing current problems when considering future development of any business.

It is our experience that this is best done by an outsider to the day to day operations of the business. It is easy not to see some things that are not done as well as they could be when you are entrenched in the business. You may also not have the knowledge of new ways to do things that an experienced Club Architect may have.

Other important matters that need to be considered in the master plan brief are the condition of the existing building structure and services.

A common example of this is an existing air conditioning service that is incurring increasing maintenance

costs and replacement costs may be very expensive. In this case, such works need to be considered in the context of the master plan so as to inform what the extent of replacement plant should be considered and when (… now or later in association with a construction stage of the master plan).

Our process from here sees many ideas tested through a series of less formal master plan concept sketches.

Workshop sessions are held with management, staff and then usually presented to a Board working committee. This process continues until a final best fit design is agreed and then the final master plan is confirmed.

It should be noted that there is always a level of compromise to reach the final design. If money were no object, this would not be the case, but the reality of the situation is that we are always endeavouring to produce an achievable design solution.

There is cost associated with every new line drawn on a master plan drawing and we are very mindful of that. If it costs $500K to move a kitchen because it works better with the loading dock and cool rooms, but the advantages are minimal in comparison to capex to build the new kitchen, then it just simply does not

stack up. This is an example of the decision process that may trigger a new question, ‘how about moving the loading dock instead?’ It also can lead to master plans never being realised due to construction costs that cannot be supported by the business.

Alternatively, if the kitchen is in a poor location and in need of refurbishment and this is having an impact on the food revenue, then there is a stronger argument for a new kitchen.

The next step once the master plan is locked in is to formalise a structure about how best to stage the master plan for delivery over the next however many years. Things that need to be considered when formulating master plan staging are: Priority of works as laid out in the strategic plan Budget of each stage and the business plan to service the debt over time for the delivery of the master plan Financial benefits that may result from the works Priority of building structure and services rectification or replacement (… is there anything that needs urgent attention?)

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Considered order of construction in terms of minimising avoidable additional building costs (that is work that may be required to be ‘un-done’ for future stages to be realised) Minimising impact during construction to the ongoing trade of the Club Once there is some clarity of the proposed staging for delivery of the master plan, we are then able to put together estimated costs for each stage of the works.

It is not only construction costs that are considered at this point, but all project costs. These include allowing adequate contingency sums, new furniture costs, professional and authority fees. Whilst the scope of future stages may be refined down the track, it is important that budgets for all future works are as realistic as they can be, especially at this early stage.

The completed master plan then provides a clear path forward for future development so that the objectives of the strategic plan can be realised. It is important to remember that we are talking macro scale with the master

plan, not how many power points are at the reception desk. It is easy to get caught up in micro detail during the master plan process, but that level of detail should be left to the next step, design development and delivery of staged projects that result from the master plan.

At Abeo Architects, we strive to create achievable solutions. We are in the business of realising our client’s aspirations for the future in the context of the current economic climate and encapsulating all that people are looking for when they decide where to spend their leisure time. The drivers are changing, food is becoming increasingly important across the board.

We live in a world where the most prevalent constant is change. No matter who we are, we are exposed to so much of what the world has to offer, which in turn informs what we want to experience. For Clubs to prosper these days, they need to stay relevant, which means change. We believe change and clever design are essential to business growth. A well-structured master plan can provide a pathway to creating better business choices, prosperity and maybe most importantly, longevity.

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COMMUNITY GOLF INSTRUCTOR

ABOUT ABEO ARCHITECTS Abeo Architects is an integrated Architecture, Interior Design and Project Management firm specialise in sporting / gaming / hospitality projects and has a solid understanding of all aspects of club operations and current industry trends.

We work with registered clubs throughout Australia and have a proven track record in delivering projects that truly perform.

We provide comprehensive services on varying scales of projects including: Feasibility studies Strategic master planning Architecture and interior design Furniture selection, lighting and bespoke artwork design Gaming layout design Total project management for complete project delivery www.abeoarchitects.com

REGISTER today

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A GAME CHANGER IN CLUB LAND PREMIER LEAGUE GOES NATIONA Golf Premier League, currently played at many clubs in Victoria and a handful of clubs elsewhere around Australia, has officially gone national.

Golf Australia has recently endorsed Golf Premier League, and GMA also encourages clubs to get on board.

Golf Premier League teams play in a league-style competition (such as the AFL or NRL) at their clubs, within their normal competition routine. Players book, pay and play in their club competitions and team members don’t need to play in the same group, so there is no disruption to member play.

There’s also very little additional administration for club staff.

Clubs already engaged in Golf Premier League have shown that it increases member engagement, frequency of play and retention, whilst generating additional food and beverage revenue for the club.

Golf Premier League Director Tony Craswell said: “Golf Premier League has grown from a small product at Latrobe Golf Club in Melbourne to a product which is strengthening the health of clubs around the country.

For participants, Golf Premier League helps: •

Ensure players are more motivated and have more fun on the golf course

“The success we have had at Latrobe, and at other Golf Premier League clubs, has been wonderful.”

•

Discover a new ‘team spirit’ dimension within their golf experiences – players no longer play only for themselves

•

Keep golfers engaged in their rounds right up until their last putts of the day, because every point they score could be the one that gets their team over the line on the day, or even the season

•

Give club members the chance to experience ‘pride in the jumper’ and establish new bonds, friendships and rivalries

The benefits of Golf Premier League for clubs include: •

Increasing profitability, with members playing more regularly and socialising after rounds

•

Reducing membership attrition and attracting new members

•

Creating a club atmosphere characterised by camaraderie and enjoyment

•

Transcending friendship groups and bridging age, gender and ability gaps across club membership bases

Since its inception in 2008 from one club and 96 players, there are now 57 competing clubs and over 4,100 players.

CASE STUDY: MT LAWLEY GOLF CLUB, WA What were your objectives with GPL? We already had a lively club atmosphere, in particular with the Wednesday afternoon players, however we wanted to add a new dimension to this existing camaraderie. We wanted to increase interaction between members and increase participation.

What did you do to achieve your objectives?

We initially promoted the competition with an entry form.

We established teams and collated competition fees and email addresses.

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D, GOLF AL We provided a weekly re-cap of each round via email, with an updates of fixtures and the ladder on promotional channels within the club eg: social media, LCD screens and the website.

We had an end of season dinner paired with a fairest and best count, and there was ongoing promotion of competition sponsors.

What were the outcomes?

There was an improvement in club atmosphere, and the engagement and interaction of members also increased.

In terms of the sponsorship commitment over the previous two seasons, the club has received approximately $3,850 each year in prize money which has gone back into the competition in the form of gift vouchers to be spent on food and beverage in the bar or within the golf shop. This is tracking to be the same for 2017 too!

We have been lucky with this generosity as we have not actively sought this sponsorship but would be confident that more sponsors would be secured based on the success of the competition. Members like to be affiliated with something they can partake in and also be well received by their peers.

GMA encourages golf clubs to look at Golf Premier League and consider whether it would strengthen your club and add another benefit to your members.

For further information about Golf Premier League, or to get your club involved, visit www.golfpl.com.au

Community GOLF Instructor The Community Golf Instructor Program is Golf Australia’s new online, program-focused approach to golf instruction and accreditation. You can now recieve tailored training that is specific to the relevant national participation program.

The modules include:

Cost:

• MyGolf Club

The cost to gain an initial accreditation is $99, and then will be $49 for every additional accreditation thereafter.

• MyGolf Schools • MyGolf Schools Teacher • Swing Fit

Why Community Golf Instructor Program?

• Only golf accreditation program nationally recognised by Golf Australia and the PGA of Australia • Endorsed by the Australian Sports Commission • Fully online training and assessment • Easy to complete in your own time and at your own pace • Interactive and engaging content

What Community Golf Instructors receive • Four years of nationally recognised accreditation • Insurance coverage under Golf Australia’s National Policy • Accreditation card and certificate Community Instructor Hat

REGISTER today

communitygolfinstructor.com.au

GA’S PLAYER’S PERSONAL LIABILITY INSURANCE AND CARTS

SCENARIO 2

SCENARIO 1

AS PART OF CLUB SUPPORT WE GET DAILY CALLS ABOUT THE GA PLAYER’S PERSONAL LIABILITY INSURANCE AND MANY CALLS RELATE TO CART USAGE. HERE ARE A FEW SCENARIOS TO THAT WERE PUT TO HDL BROKERS. A member of the club has a motorised golf cart and they cause an injury to another member, or visitor, with their motorised golf cart whilst playing or practicing golf.

Does the Player’s Personal Liability Insurance cover the public liability issue here? Does the member need to have public liability insurance on their golf cart as well? Can the club be sued in this situation? {HDL Response} If the owner of the cart is a financial member of a golf club who pays their affiliation fees, then yes they will have the coverage via the Player Personal Liability Policy for Property Damage and Personal Injury caused to a third party. Provided that there is no negligence by the club in the incident, I don’t see how they could be sued.

A member of the club has a motorised golf cart and they cause an injury to another member, or visitor, with their motorised golf cart whilst driving from their home in a nearby housing estate to the club for a casual dinner and drinks. Does the Golfer Insurance cover the public liability issue here? Does the member need to have public liability insurance on their golf cart as well? Can the club be sued in this situation? {HDL Response} The policy refers to a Golfing Event as follows; “means whilst playing and/or practicing golf or attending a golf activity and/or venue as a spectator or guest” {Page 6 of wording).

Based on the scenario given I would say that if it was for social means then the cover would not be extended to those members, unless it was an AGM or a club function.

SCENARIO 4

SCENARIO 3

There is an exposure for the club in this regard as there are no lights fitted to golf carts and the course may not have the required lighting to the residence, and therefore a claim could be made against the club if found to be negligent. It is also an exposure for the club, especially if the member has been drinking.

A visitor (member of another club) to the club has a motorised golf cart and they cause an injury to another member, or visitor, with their motorised golf cart. Does the Player’s Personal Liability Insurance cover the public liability issue here for the visitor?

Does the member need to have public liability insurance on their golf cart as well? Can the club be sued in this situation? {HDL Response} Refer to Scenario 1, the coverage via the Player liability policy follows the member wherever they travel, provided that they are participating in a golfing activity.

If the member is transporting their golf cart to another golf course and they injure a third party in the process, does the Golfer Insurance cover this scenario? {HDL Response} This would fall under the Motor Vehicle and CTP insurance.

For information on GA Personal Liability Insurance see: http://www.golf.org.au/insurance or call GA Club Support on 03 9626 5000

GOLF MONTH 2016: A WRAP-UP Golf Month is a national campaign to drive golf participation around Australia, focusing on re-engaging lapsed golfers and connecting with those interested in trying golf. Although still in its infancy, the 2016 edition demonstrated that the Australian golf industry is capable of aligning around national initiatives.

Throughout the month of October 2016, golf clubs and facilities conducted a variety of activities to encourage golfers – both new and returning – to play golf. The only requirement for clubs and facilities to participate was to run at least one activity or offer during October.

These activities included MyGolf and Swing Fit, ‘come and try’ clinics, open days and family days, which were complemented by innovative ideas, opportunities to experience new formats of the game (e.g. footgolf) and inclusive golf programs (delivered in partnership with Empower Golf).

The national media campaign was developed based on insights from media partner Nunn Media and ran across regional television, metro (ATN) radio, paid search, Facebook and Yahoo Native.

Golf Month received good support from the Australian golf industry in 2016 and Golf Australia is especially grateful to Brianna Earle and Greg Oakford from Golf Victoria, whose involvement was significant and extremely valuable.

Despite a poor month of weather, the 2016 campaign saw a 64% increase in active Golf Month facilities across Australia to 435 and a 51% increase in activities and offers – to a total of 1,357. NSW, QLD and TAS delivered well in excess of 100% (year on year) growth in the number of active facilities, whilst VIC also performed strongly.

The appointment of Caddie to create a TVC and video content for digital and social media was a huge success – the content was praised within the industry and resonated strongly with consumers.

The 2016 campaign received positive feedback from clubs and facilities and drove significantly more website traffic than its 2015 counterpart. In fact, we had more than two and a half times as many users of the Golf Month website in 2016, with more than a third of tracked visitors defining themselves as new to golf.

Clubs and facilities generally felt well supported, but gathering important data from them is becoming a significant issue as Golf Month grows,

making it exceptionally hard to build an accurate picture of the program’s successes and challenges (only 21% of clubs and facilities completed the survey and less than 15% submitted their competition forms).

Significant opportunities exist to improve Golf Month in 2017, which the team is looking at closely. For example, we hope to: •

Enable online registration for events and activities

•

Share the campaign’s creative assets directly with clubs and facilities to post on their own channels; and

•

Further facilitate the sharing of best practice

Where national efforts were supplemented by local energy, enthusiasm, marketing and communications capability and a proactive approach, great things happened in 2016. In particular, kudos goes to Bairnsdale, Rich River and Bayview golf clubs, whose initiatives attracted new members and truly engaged their local communities.

GOLF MONTH WINNERS 2016: Club or facility of the year, which won a $5,000 grant to spend on further growing membership and participation: Bairnsdale Golf Club for achieving the highest number of new club members (27) Randomly selected Golf Month 2016 participant, who won a once-in-a-lifetime 2017 ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open experience in Adelaide: John Hanson from Burnie Golf Club in Tasmania.

Club member who introduced a new member to their club, who won the same prize: Anne Falkner from Kew Country Club in NSW Innovation awards: Tura Beach Country Club (NSW) Gracemere Lake Golf Club (QLD) Waroona Golf Club (WA) Iron Pot Golf Club (TAS) Mt Beauty Golf Club (VIC); and Robe Golf Club (SA)

WWW.GMA.ORG.AU

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GIVE UP THE NEED TO BE RIGHT

by Martin Grunstein The need to be right is a basic psychological human need and it is the catalyst for destruction of relationships, both personal and business.

How innate is it? See whether you relate to this as a parent.

You catch your toddler drawing with crayons on the wall. They have the crayons in their hand and a guilty smile on their face.

You say to your little angel “Who did that?” and what does your child reply? “Not me, mummy!”

I have given this scenario to audiences at many conferences and the response is almost universal that they can relate to the above example.

Why? Because our need to be right, or more correctly, our need not to be proved wrong, is fundamental and psychologists say that the younger your child is when he/she starts to lie, the more intelligent he/she is.

How does that apply to customer service? Very directly.

Say, you are the owner of a restaurant and a customer says the food is terrible. Your first instinct as a human being is to defend yourself from the heinous accusation. You may tell the customer that the chef is world renowned or that you have won awards for your food AND THAT IS THE WRONG THING TO DO and is more likely to lead to you losing that customer than the quality of the food itself.

Our need to prove ourselves right at the expense of the customer is the single major obstacle to becoming a business with a reputation for outstanding customer service.

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The adage “the customer is always right” is definitely not true. Many times the customer is wrong and sometimes they are a pain in the neck. But the customer must walk away THINKING they are right if you want them to come back.

And if there is a complaint, the customer must be able to save face as well as have the complaint resolved if they are to be a customer again in future.

When customers are spending their money in any situation, fundamental to the relationship is that their ego is preserved during the experience by everyone they come in contact with.

If we stick with the restaurant theme, my wife and I were out at a restaurant with another couple and the waiter was taking our drinks order. I ordered a Coke and the waiter said they didn’t have Coke, they had Pepsi. I said that’s fine. I then said to my friends that I remember from my old marketing days that Pepsi used to beat Coke in blind product tests and most people couldn’t tell the difference anyway.

The waiter corrected me. He said that he had also studied marketing and the recent evidence is that Coke beats Pepsi and people CAN tell the difference.

I wanted to tell the waiter to piss off!!!!!

It’s not his job to correct my errors. But his need to be right was greater than his need to have a satisfied customer. We laughed about the incident at the table but I was embarrassed and my wife and I have never

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returned to the restaurant and I have told many people about the experience and the restaurant in question.

The best story I heard of a customer being humiliated by a service professional came when I was doing work in the golf club industry. One of the lady members complained that she was a vegan and there wasn’t sufficient variety in the club’s menu to keep her happy and she suggested that the club change its menu to accommodate her. The staff member (who was having a bad day – but that shouldn’t be the customer’s problem) told her “There’s plenty of grass out there. Why don’t you just have a munch on some of it while you are playing?”

Am I saying that we need to suppress a basic human need to be right to be providers of good customer service? Yes, that’s exactly what I am saying!

So what do we replace our first instinct of defence and justification with when we receive a complaint or hear something we don’t agree with?

EMPATHY! When you are kept waiting by a dentist or an accountant or anyone in business for that matter, the first thing they should say is “I am terribly sorry for keeping you waiting.

I appreciate your time is valuable”.

AND VALIDATION! The last few weeks of my father’s life were very traumatic for me. I was at the hospital every day and I was becoming quite a pain in the neck to the staff when I couldn’t get answers to questions or talk to his doctor when I needed to.

One day his doctor took me aside one day and said “I need to speak to you”. I thought he was going to reprimand me for my poor behavior but he did exactly the opposite. He said “I appreciate your frustration but we are doing everything we can for your father. I also want to tell you that you are a very good son. You are here every day and many other patients don’t have a loved one who cares for them like you. I hope when my time comes, my son will be there for me like you are for your father”.

And I felt an overwhelming sense of relief and ceased to be a pain in the neck to the staff.

Sometimes when customers act poorly, there are other issues in their life that are causing that.

A little empathy and validation that they are a good person can make them much easier to deal with.

I have taught the use of validation with great success in the child care and aged care industry. But it applies much wider than that.

When most businesspeople receive a complaint or hear something that makes them feel uncomfortable, their first response is to protest

their innocence. The first step SHOULD be to acknowledge the concern of the customer.

And this applies importantly to social media.

If you receive criticism on Facebook, don’t fight with the customer online. When people complain on social media they are angry and often will embellish the story for increased effect. If you try to prove their accusation false or ridiculously exaggerated you can come across as unconcerned at best and a bully at worst. People reading the communication will often relate to the customer rather than the service provider and may decide not to do business with you purely based on the way you communicate with the complaining customer.

When you receive criticism the first thing you should do is acknowledge the customer’s inconvenience and say how sorry you are that they feel the way they do. Don’t try to work out who’s right and wrong online. The best thing to do is to try and resolve the issue offline.

Tell them you’d like to buy them a cup of coffee and listen to them in more detail and help resolve the issue.

Even if they don’t turn up for the coffee, the fact that you acknowledged them and offered goodwill to resolve the issue may stop them taking more revenge upon you by badmouthing your business AND people reading the

communication see you as a business responsive to the needs of your customers rather than someone who abuses those who complain.

If we can change our instinctive response of defensiveness and justification (the adult version of “not me, mummy”) to empathy and a desire to make the customer happy, we can massively enhance the perception of our business in the minds of customers and those who they communicate with.

I remember many years ago hearing Oprah Winfrey say on her show when talking about relationships “You can go through life being right or being successful and happy – but you can’t have both!”

I am happy to give up the need to be right for a little bit more success and happiness. What about you?

Martin Grunstein’s outstanding results with over 500 Australian companies across over 100 industries have made him this country’s most in-demand speaker on customer service.

He is contactable on 0414933249 or through his website www.martingrunstein.com.au

WWW.GMA.ORG.AU

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T

he work of professionals in the golf course industry is reflected by the high quality results we see being achieved in both the management and maintenance of their facilities. It is surprising that this degree of professionalism occasionally is not extended into some of the noncore issues of an operating golf course.

While one would never under estimate the importance of club and community it is the golf course that forms the basis of the facility, its’ routing and condition is at the core of a successful facility.

It is also most likely that the golf courses’ infancy involved a golf course architect before any other golf related professionals.

Be it golf course master planning, redesigns, reconstructions, restorations or remodeling, creating a project team that ensures an outcome that benefits the ongoing sustainable operations of the golf course is imperative. While many clubs have in-house expertise in areas of club management, golf course maintenance and agronomy the role of design is sometimes left to committees and / or well-meaning individuals.

understand the issues and produce a solution that is most satisfactory.

Having made the decision to utilise the services of a Golf Course Architect, the golf club should ensure a procedure that makes the designer aware of the needs and constraints of the golf club and that the club reviews and understands the recommendations of the architect. Don’t be hesitant to question or challenge the design recommendations; it is imperative that all involved understand, embrace and support the changes.

Once the facilities’ management understand and accept the plans, the club can use the Golf Course Architect to explain the plans to the membership, answer the questions, be the ‘sales person’ and be seen as the independent expert that only wants the best for the golf course and its users.

In summary utilising the services of a Golf Course Architect; •

Ensure modern safety standards are observed

•

Provide clinical unbiased appraisals of the situation

Seeking the assistance of an outside professional may be the best investment of the whole project. The professional training and experience of a Golf Course Architect provides a new level of expertise to the project.

The breadth of knowledge and experience available from the Golf Architecture profession ensures that golf clubs can find a designer or design group that best meets their specific needs. Finding a designer that best reflects the needs of the golf club is often a matter of investigation and interviewing.

Golf Architects do add money to the cost of a project or master plan but poorly planned projects can end up costing the golf club a lot more with the worst case scenario being possible reconstruction costs and / or litigation.

•

Ensure matters of original design and course integrity are observed

•

Limit the liability of the golf club, its’ staff and directors

•

Unnecessary course maintenance obligations are avoided

•

Provides specifications and documentation that reflect the current standards and technologies and assist with accurate and competitive pricing.

•

Assists with technical issues in areas such as agronomy, environmental, engineering, construction, permit applications and documentation

•

Provides the working group with an independent professional for the presentation of ideas, plans and programmes

The right Golf Architect will work with the golf club management, committees and course maintenance staff to

•

Can generate plans and images that assist with interpretation to the greater membership

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GOLF MANAGEMENT AUSTRALIA

AUTUMN EDITION 2017

The

value of a golf course

ARCHITECT

Most golf clubs in Australia at some stage in their history will undergo some course renovations or upgrades. These can be small or extensive, and sometimes carried out in a short period or cash flowed over a decade.

Works may be simply one new green, through to the replacement of all greens be it for agronomic reasons, more fun or strategic reasons. It may also be a new set of tees or rebunkering to make the course more relevant for the modern game. New paths to better service wear and tear or even a new spare hole to allow for renovation works.

With course safety more at the forefront of operations clubs are having to deal with both player and adjoining property safety matters. Reasons are many and varied but it is a certainty that issues involving the design of the golf course will confront course management sooner rather than later. The inclusion of outside professional design advice such as that from an SAGCA member should always be considered as a means to ensuring results that satisfy the playing golfers, the safety of all, sound maintenance practices, course financial constraints and the overall integrity of the golf course.

About The Society of Australian Golf Course Architects The Society of Australian Golf Course Architects (SAGCA) was formed in 1989 by a group of Australian golf course architects with the like-minded purpose of forming a society of fellow professionals, with the intent to meet regularly to exchange ideas and experiences, encourage the highest standard of golf course design and construction, and further advancing the status of their golf course architecture.

Duly formed, constituted and recognised by Golf Australia (formerly Australian Golf Union) and the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews, the Society of Australian Golf Course Architects flourishes today with 30 members working throughout the world.

Information on SAGCA and its members can be found at sagca.org.au

By Harley Kruse, Ted Parslow, Paul Reeves

WWW.GMA.ORG.AU

37

WHAT MAKES FOR A SUCCESSFUL PRIVATE CLUB CHIEF EXECUTIVE/GM;

THE 12 “SECRETS” TO SUCCESS

BY MICHAEL LEEMHUIS

OCEAN REEF CLUB PRESIDENT Successful private club executives are made not born! It takes years to become a successful executive in what I believe is the most difficult of all of the hospitality disciplines … private, member-owned clubs.

So how do you define success? What does success look like? When can you pronounce yourself successful? When do I get to scream it from the rooftops …

All good questions, but first things first! Success is not a thing or a destination … success is not the same for everyone … success is measured differently, depending on whom you ask and who is evaluating. I believe success is a state-of-mind … it’s a lifetime journey … it’s a feeling that you have achieved (or are achieving) the best you can, at any given time using what resources you have at your disposal. It’s that simple! Will doing all the things listed below make you successful? I don’t know … what I do know is that if I have had any success in my private club management life (according to MY definition of success), it’s because I have tried to adhere to the 12 concepts listed below: So here goes … below are my 12 concepts that I believe make for a successful executive in a private, member-owned club (other hospitality disciplines I believe carryover as well); 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

Knowing when to be seen … personal time management at your club is all important!

A sense of humor … the ability to laugh/smile with members and associates, and also at yourself.

An understanding of true quality … in all products and service.

The ability and awareness to manage your club as a business while understanding that in the eyes of your members it’s not.

The ability to surround yourself with quality and qualified staff members, that complement your management style and know more about their specific areas of expertise that you do … you are after all called a “General Manager” for a reason!

Having a great work ethic is very important (actually in our business it’s a MUST) … but you need to understand the importance of “balance” in your life. Have your own personal and family SMART goals… health, fitness, family time, fishing, wine, reading, movies, etc.

Ability to see the BIG PICTURE at all times … become the club’s “historian” or “keeper of secrets” … but at the same time be a forward and strategic thinker.

An appreciation for your club’s history and traditions … be it founding members, golf championships or special club events that make your club unique.

Be the EXPERT on all club and “people” related matters … more specifically finances, HR, leadership and governance. Fully understand and engage in understanding why your club exists … for dining, golf, yachting, fitness or tennis.

Understanding the importance of “giving back” to charity and the association(s) you belong to that have allowed you to achieve what you have in your career.

Be a LEADER* and all that it encompasses. Fill your career quiver with accomplishment arrows! If you want to be successful, study others that you admire that are successful.

Finally … use common sense … be decisive (ultimately you are paid to take action and make decisions) … be fair (treat others as you would want to be treated) …have a positive attitude (it’s contagious) … be confident and finally inspire others around you to reach their personal potential.

Success in life is never guaranteed … but adhering to and working on these concepts should take you a long way toward being the best that you can be.

Finally, in the words of Kiana Tom … “When I meet successful people I ask 100 questions as to what they attribute their success to. It is usually the same: persistence, hard work and hiring good people.”

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GOLF MANAGEMENT AUSTRALIA

BEING A LEADER* IN PRIVATE CLUBS L E A D E R S H I P

Listen/Communicate Empathy Adaptable Determined Example, Lead by Reliable Self-Discipline… Work Ethic Humble Integrity & Inspiration Passionate & Positive Attitude

AUTUMN EDITION 2017

Your GMA Membership is an invaluable investment. Part of our promise is to enhance your success by offering professional leadership development, ethical standards and responsive services.

BENEFITS INCLUDE: • Access to GMA members online services including bookings and forums • Access to state GMA calendar of events • Business Management Program • Career Services • Invitation to attend the biennial conferences • Global Networking Opportunities • Industry Best Practices • Newsletters • Research and Publications • State Education Programmes • Information on industry issues such as working conditions and salary standards HOW TO JOIN GMA WWW.GMA.ORG.AU

39

Lifestyle Membership adds up for Gosnells Golf Club When Gosnells Golf Club introduced Lifestyle Membership as a new category last year, the decision was not made lightly. The club was facing a probable drop in membership but was limited in options to retain resigning members. The club’s General Manager James Wilkinson spent many months crunching the numbers before the June launch.

The initial prompt to consider a different approach to membership came from two requests that James specifically recalled.

“We had a couple of members come to us saying they could only play once a month. Both were in the 45-50 year old bracket,” James explained.

Gosnells had no flexibility to try to hang on to these members.

Over the next few months, James started to hear from other members considering resignation because they were not able to use their full membership.

James began a review of the rounds being played by the club’s full membership. He noted there were players that just hadn’t played enough, so it was likely the club may lose those members too.

Doing the numbers With his background in accounting James began some financial modelling, with a number of ‘what if’ scenarios.

“The number of members who don’t get to play at least once a month is actually quite low. Factoring in the pricing for peak times, Lifestyle Membership will only be cost effective for members who don’t get to play very often.

James also did calculations for the worst-case scenario and came up with a cap on the number of members allowed into the category.

James Wilkinson, General Manager, Gosnells Golf Club

Lifestyle Membership. It may be that they would be better off keeping the membership they have.”

This consultative approach also worked in approaching resigning members, offering Lifestyle Membership as an alternative to resignation.

“We’ve had some members that found Lifestyle more suitable for them, but we’ve also fifteen members who have resigned, written their letter of resignation, and we have managed to bring them back into the club. We automatically offer Lifestyle Membership to resigning members now.

“Interestingly, two of the Lifestyle Members, on completion of their credits, have rejoined the club as full members.”

“The net effect works in your favour.”

“That relieved any anxiety from the board.”

Read the full James Wilkinson article.

The club uses a consultative approach with Lifestyle Membership.

Find out more about Lifestyle Membership. Contact MiClub via sales@miclub.com.au or visit the MiClub website www.miclub.com.au.

“I meet with any interested member ask how often they were playing and go through the conditions of

Need new ways to attract and retain members?

MiClub’s Lifestyle Membership is a flexible approach to the future of club memberships.

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AUTUMN EDITION 2017