This summer, the members of Merion Golf Club gathered to celebrate the grand opening of the Hugh Wilson Pavilion, our newest space.
A large, light-filled room, with a soaring ceiling and expansive views of the East Course, the pavilion appears as a natural extension of our clubhouse, which is an elegant, Pennsylvania farmhouse. As noted by our president, this space will be the scene of many member memories for decades to come. Its completion and grand opening were the result of a plan that had been set in motion eight years earlier.
Incredible as it seems, our last major clubhouse addition took place in 1948. Fifty-eight years later, in 2006, our board made a decision to create a long range plan that would look forward two decades, providing a strategic and financial roadmap by which to steer the club. This plan covers infrastructure projects and a wish list. The board was guided by the belief that it was their responsibility to leave the club better than they had found it. The plan was to be a “living document,” one that could be updated as the club’s needs and priorities shifted.
Strategic Plan Implementation
The strategic plan has guided everything our club has done over the past eight years, including supporting us through a large number of projects that were planned, executed, and funded through the plan. These were not capital projects—they were in addition to ongoing projects that are funded through our capital fund—and included:
East Course Halfway House
- Learning Center
- Driving Range and Short Game Area
- New Maintenance Facility
- Restoration of Grille Room
- Generator
- Covered Porch
- Hugh Wilson Pavilion Addition
We’ve done so much over the past eight years—and while it might seem impossible, it’s my point of view that you can achieve anything if you have a strong team and a strategic plan.
Here is how we did it. Keep in mind that what works for our club, might not work for yours. All clubs are unique and your strategic plan and project list will vary from ours.
What do you consider when creating a strategic plan? In our case, we were looking to enhance our members’ experiences. You may be looking to attract new members or a combination of the two. Keeping in mind your end goal (i.e., enhancing member experiences), it is critical that your board and management pay particular attention to the club’s culture and to how your members use the club. Is your view of the club’s culture the same as that of your members? Do you really know how they use the club or how they would like to use the club?
To ensure that you have the proper information to use as a foundation for your strategic plan, begin with a member survey that asks questions aimed at distilling the information you will need to create your plan.
Once you have this information, turn it over to a committee charged with creating a comprehensive strategic plan. The committee should be comprised of individuals from various areas of your organization. Our Strategic Planning Committee was made up of board and staff members and tasked with:
- creating a strategic statement;
- working with standing committees to create a list of strategic projects that covered all areas of the club;
- establishing criteria for prioritizing projects;
- identifying the funding sources; and
- presenting these projects to the board for approval.
Whatever tasks you set forth for your committee, whatever projects they develop, your plan and list of projects should be updated annually—or sooner if needed. This is a living document.
In implementing the plan, it is critical that the board and club management share the same vision that is laid out by the plan. It is also critical that each project meet the criteria set forth by the plan. To ensure this, develop a document for each project that includes a project description, justification, timing, budget and economic impact. But, just as important, this document, which we call an “appropriations request form,” is then updated at the beginning of each project.
This process is not always speedy, but it does guarantee that all projects are aligned with the strategic plan and fit with a club’s culture. Almost six years passed from the time our board began considering a new pavilion addition to its completion this summer. Before any monies were spent, our board considered the following questions:
- How do we utilize our current space?
- Why should we do this project?
- What is the scope of this project— what physical areas will be affected and who will perform the work?
- How will membership services be improved by this project?
- How much will it cost? Is the cost reasonable?
- How do we pay for it? Can we make it pay for itself—and do we want to?
In considering funding questions, a planning model is useful to test various scenarios for financing projects within the timelines you desire and tells you what level of debt, if any, will be required. For instance, you can look at the impact of operating results, a dues increase, an on-going or short-term assessment— and consider the implications of today’s decisions on future opportunities.
Any project undertaken impacts more than the members. Another critical step in successfully completing a project is to bring in staff to help strategize and execute the plan. In the case of our pavilion, key food and beverage staff were instrumental in making many decisions regarding the space. They would be using it and their feedback was crucial in creating an efficient and beautiful space for our members.
Communications
We do not require member approval before we proceed with any of the projects laid out in our strategic plan. Your club may differ. In either scenario, it is important that the membership understand why a project is being undertaken.
In order to present our membership with a full understanding of the pavilion project, we held two town hall meetings to inform and educate them, to share the confidence the board had for the project, and to listen and solicit feedback. Several good suggestions came out of these meetings, and we modified the pavilion plan to incorporate them.
In addition to meetings, you can share information with your membership using tools such as newsletters, club e-mails, your website and social media.
Communication is also key as projects get underway. No matter how careful your plans, you cannot prevent disruptions to the club and inconveniences to your members. If you are transparent, understanding, and patient, you can get through anything. The construction started on our new space right before the worst winter we have had in decades— so we had a lot to communicate to our members. We had snow delays, ice delays, rain delays, and every week we sent out photos and a brief description of the work so that our members knew where the project stood.
Post-Construction
You might believe that all this planning and work stops once you’ve cut the ribbon on the new space, but it isn’t that easy. Remember what I said about ensuring that projects fit the culture of the club and meet your stated goal? In the case of our pavilion, we have to “fold it into the mix,” and learn how to use it so that it delivers what our members want and does not change the culture of our club.
How will our members want to use this beautiful space going forward? Certainly for member events such as our grand opening, special club events and holiday celebrations. Certainly to celebrate weddings and family milestones. As a large space, it is more than a place to celebrate; it can be a tool our club uses to generate revenue.
However we use it, paramount in our use of the space will be our strategic plan’s guiding directive to respect the club’s culture by enhancing our members’ experiences.
As you manage your daily walkthroughs in your facility, think about the opportunities that could exist for you to provide more for your members and employees. These ideas can form the blueprint of a strategic plan that will carry the club forward for years to come.
Christine R. Pooler, CCM, is the GM of Merion Golf Club in Ardmore, Pa. Christine also serves as a director of NCA and the NCA Foundation and is co-chair of NCA’s membership committee.