We were delighted to learn of our recognition, yet again, by Board Room Magazine who awarded us with two Excellence in Achievement Awards for 2019. One for Consulting Company of the Year and other as Staff Training Company of the Year. Thank you to BoardRoom Magazine for the recognition of our efforts, ideas, and educational offerings. Training has always been my greatest passion, so I am thrilled to receive Staff Training Company for the third year in a row. We wish to congratulate all the award recipients for their contributions and hard work – well done!
Last year at conference, we introduced Rachel Carter as our go-to RCSU guru, and this year we were thrilled to be approached by a number of busy club managers who, upon introducing themselves divulged that they felt as though they had "spent a lot of time together with me, personally." I got a good laugh, when I learned they were referring to the fact they had spent hours on our Virtual Training, RCSU, and felt as though I had been training them personally. What a great testament to the power of Virtual Training! RCSU is thriving with a rapidly growing user base and new course content now available and many RCSU courses now accredited by the PGA of America for MSR Credits.
Joyce and I were able to stop by quickly to congratulate Tony D’Errico for being honored as Club Management Executive of the Year. Such a well-deserved honor! And it was so nice to catch up with my friend and mentor, Matt Guzik, from Tara Iti in New Zealand.
RCS has grown beyond my wildest dreams and taken turns that I never could have expected. When people ask how I am doing, I often answer, “I’m living the dream!” – and it’s true – every.single.day. I’m so proud of the RCS team and the contributions we can make to the club industry. Thank you for allowing us to be part of what you do and for continuing to provide feedback and ideas that keep us innovative and ever evolving with your changing needs.
We have had time to reflect on the state of the industry and we had a few takeaways from our time in Dallas that are worth sharing:
The Face of Club Management is Changing
More Millennials moving into management roles and Baby Boomers working longer than expected. Millennials are bringing new expectations of what modern day management means for them: leveraging technology, collaborative work environment, opportunities for growth and development, and innovative ways to tackle traditionally long management schedules.
Women in club management is becoming more mainstream. We heard from many young women managers looking for ways to connect and bring their ideas into the forefront of club management. Stay tuned…. we’re working on that this year. :)
Training is a Hot Topic
I commend CMAA for the educational content. It is not easy to provide new ideas, basic skills and traditional education needs in a short amount of time. Even the basic educational sessions were well-received because even the most seasoned manager needs a refresher every now and then.
More emphasis is being placed on the onboarding experience—an employee’s first 90 days on the job can make or break their experience within your organization. FINALLY, others are talking about it. New employees want to jump in with both feet and hit the ground running. Onboarding can be as simple or in-depth as an employer wants to make it, but those with in-depth onboarding programs are the employers with the highest employee satisfaction .
Inclusion is Key to Member Retention
Inclusion refers to ensuring that the club experience is family friendly, that there are a variety of dining options and activities. Members are seeking out clubs that can become a home away from home and to become a one-stop shop for their activities both on site and in the community. Example: a private club offering discounted rates to its members at local performance venues.
Cheers to another fantastic conference—it was a fantastic job well done by the entire CMAA Staff! We’ll see you in Tampa…
