We all have heard it and said it numerous times, but now it seems club managers are living this trite saying more than ever, “Good people are hard to find!” And, good people are also hard to keep! The latest statistics on engagement are alarming. According to Harvard Business Review, 83 percent of our team members are not engaged, and many will leave their current employment before their two-year anniversary. For private clubs who still experience employees with 30+ and even 40-year tenures, the stats reported in the last four-to-five years present quite a culture change to our industry.
Although private clubs reflect multiple categories with unique facets, there are more shared hurdles than not. A recent membership survey conducted by the National Club Association identified recruiting and retaining staff as one of the top three club challenges (see Trending, page 36). A country club in Florida with a distinctly busy four-month season may be successful with seasonal and temporary worker visa programs while a yacht club in San Francisco is bustling year-round except for two weeks in December/January. The conundrum of recruiting remains, but in a different shape.
As a busy yacht club with a city clubhouse in San Francisco and an island satellite location in the Sacramento Delta—both require staffing year-around—the St. Francis Yacht Club has been quite creative over the years in addressing its employment needs. At one point, four San Francisco clubs, including city clubs and
a country club, shared 10–15 employees. The concept took shape and worked well for a while to support what was referred to as “on call” employees; however, members of the group eventually preferred one club as home and the participants dwindled. Like many clubs in the area, we utilize temporary agencies and have been successful in consistent requests for specific staff, who are assigned regularly.
Employee Referrals, Incentives
One of the club’s most effective programs is the Starfinder Referral Program. Current employees offer referrals to their supervisor, and after onboarding and completion of 90 days of service, the employee who referred the new team member is awarded $250. After the completion of one year, a second $250 reward is given. Both parties must be in good standing for the rewards to be issued. The idea is that superstars refer superstars, and employees will refer their friends, who they typically value as a colleague.
Most club human resources professionals attend an annual HR Symposium hosted by Club Benchmarking, which is a great source for shared ideas. The conversations during the conference confirm that clubs offer more reward and benefit features than most industries to retain team members. Employee scholarship programs, on-the-spot gift card rewards, rich health care plans including pet insurance, 3 to 10 holidays per year and numerous leave days, financial planning assistance and 401(k) plans are available to motivate and retain teams at almost all clubs. We do a good job in this area, yet retention is still concerning.
For clubs located in Seattle, Raleigh, Austin, San Francisco and San Jose, competition with the technology industry is a challenge due to high salaries and unique perks: employee-designed vacation plans, six-month sabbaticals, free beer, assistance on “green” purchases such as electric cars with charging stations on campus.
Club managers understand the undertaking at hand—and communicating the rewarding experience of working in private club hospitality remains a priority, especially to students who participate in hospitality programs. As hard-working and effective as the student development committees are within club associations, the private club industry does not receive its fair share of those seeking a rewarding career in hospitality. This may be the largest area of opportunity; however, it takes time.
St. Francis Yacht Club GM/COO Paul Koojoolian, CCM, offered his thoughts on the challenge of recruiting and retaining staff, “There is always a concern with finding and keeping good people. Hire slowly and take your time to vet each candidate. Hire the candidate who will fit in with the team, not necessarily the one with the best experience or resume.
“Once you do find them, the way I try to keep them is to pay them well, treat them fairly and have some fun every once and awhile. If you do happen to lose a good employee, try to promote from within. This means that you should have a strong bench and be grooming people to step up when called upon. We lost two great employees in 2018 but promoted two individuals who were already working for us and have had great results.”
Pam Brewer is director of human resources at St. Francis Yacht Club in San Francisco. She can be reached at 415-820-3728 or [email protected].