Information technology has progressed at an exponential rate. Intelligence, in the form of miniature chips or integrated circuits, is now incorporated into devices, appliances, machines and systems—with more applications coming online each year. With computing power becoming so pervasive and integrated into the physical world, we are witnessing a blurring of the lines that once clearly demarcated the physical from the virtual, the analog from the digital. The Internet of Things (IoT) is showing how the world might run differently—more collaboratively, with greater efficiency and effectiveness, and higher levels of safety—as computing devices are embedded into more everyday objects.
Technology’s Enlarging Footprint
At the club level, that information and computing technology is getting integrated deeper into how the club operates. For example, clubs now rely on technology to manage human resource functions including scheduling, training and optimizing performance. Clubs increasingly incorporate technology that applies monitoring and predictive capabilities to the functions of procurement, inventory control and supply-chain management. Accounts payable are subject to trends in automation that eliminate manual processes, enhance financial control and generate new revenue.
Technology is also an increasingly important interface that facilitates a club member’s interaction with the club and its staff. Dining and tee time reservations, club/member communications, account management and bill payment systems, the tracking of movement in and around club facilities and grounds, as well as monitoring physical safety and security are all areas that are subject to significant technological enhancements. As club members engage in activities and utilize services, day-to-day club life is increasingly augmented by a digital component.
Fitness machines are providing more vivid experiences as they increase the capacity to customize exercise. Golf simulators are adept at delivering off-season activity, social engagement and a timesaving alternative to the traditional game. With virtual and augmented reality technology in the infancy stage, premium digital experiences are expected to become a mainstream complement to the many activities now supported in more traditional ways by clubs.
Building Tomorrow’s IT Infrastructure Today
Clearly technology can and will payoff for clubs in some very basic ways: By improving member satisfaction and streamlining management systems and processes. There is, however, an important bottleneck that may prevent many clubs from taking full advantage of the most promising applications and advances. Many clubs may find that their IT infrastructure is not up-to-date or properly configured to take maximal advantage as technology continues to progress.
As noted in the interview with IT System Architect Noel Wixsom, there are unique challenges and opportunities associated with clubs in the ways they use technology.
Today’s clubs apply technology to a wide range of functions: staff utilization, facilities management, membership services, and more. Thus, clubs can potentially stress the capacity and performance of their IT infrastructure and the platforms, systems and devices that sit on it precisely because their use patterns are extraordinarily broad (e.g., with many applications) and deep (e.g., with heavy use by both staff and members).
Clubs that are configured for the future will need to evaluate and monitor their IT investments and systems on a regular basis. IT’s rapid innovation will continue, affecting both clubs’ capital investments in IT systems and equipment, and also clubs’ operating budgets. Strategic IT investments can frequently cut operating expenses and offer better service levels with an impressive return on investment.
Internet access, increasingly important for both back office processes and membership utilization, is now available at much higher bandwidths and at a fraction of the cost. At the same time, the landscape for IT support services is similarly morphing so clubs need to ensure that their current support contracts provide value commensurate with the scope and service levels needed.
Wixsom observes that if IT support staff and services are not familiar with the private club industry’s unique requirements and expectations, then their service can skew more to requirements of day-to-day support and neglect issues of new technology adoption and IT leadership. This may put clubs at a decided disadvantage—namely paying above-market rates for support of yesterday’s technology and standards.
Falling behind established industry best practices can be especially costly—both in financial and reputational terms—in the area of security. In this respect, clubs need to stay abreast by deploying a range of policies, technologies and training. These potentially include the deployment of a strong firewall, state-of-the-art antivirus software and a tested backup strategy. Clubs also appear somewhat behind the adoption curve with respect to policies and safeguards that many organizations routinely take, such as attaching terms and conditions to member internet usage, internet monitoring and website blocking.
The Right Tool for the Right Job
Technology is, for all intents and purposes, a tool. But the right tool in the right hands will almost always yield good results than efforts that are not similarly enabled. New technologies are remarkable for their capacity to automate many tasks that were once assigned, at considerable expense, to humans.
Even with the possibility of machine learning and the advent of smart devices that imitate human intelligence, we should not expect that technology will fully replace the human touch with high tech. But clubs will be challenged to keep pace with an accelerated rate of change and the ways that machines will do more. Change remains the eternal constant.
Tech Trends
Research and advisory firm Gartner focuses on information technology issues. Its “Top 10 Strategic Technology Trends for 2018” are summarized with this phrase: The Intelligent Digital Mesh.
Intelligent: AI is seeping into virtually every technology accelerating the arrival of autonomous systems.
Digital: Blending the virtual and real worlds in an immersive and connected environment.
Mesh: The entwining of people, business, devices, content and services to deliver digital outcomes.
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FROM THE CLUB TRENDS ARCHIVES
Club Trends has reported on several technology applications in the club world in recent issues. Here’s a few you may want to review:
Facial Recognition Technology: “Members Only! Case Studies on Security and Control,” Volume 4, Issue 3, Summer 2017.
Golf Simulators: “What Golf Is: The Midland Country Club Golf Experience,” Volume 4, Issue 2, Spring 2017.
Humm Tablets: “The Polo Club of Boca Raton: High Tech Meets High Touch,” Volume 4, Issue 1, Winter 2017.
Energy Efficiency: “Resource Management with Scale and Scope: Army Navy Country Club,” Volume 3, Issue 3, Summer 2016.
Water Conservation: “Water Use: Private Clubs Take the Long View,” Volume 3, Issue 3, Summer 2016.
Social Media: “Social Media Communications: Baltimore Country Club,” Volume 3, Issue 2, Spring 2016.
Communications Technology: “Integrated Communications at The Country Club,” Volume 3, Issue 2, Spring 2016.
Geofencing: “The Internet of Club Members: The Union League of Philadelphia,” Volume 3, Issue 2, Spring 2016.
Club Trends Summer 2018