My first exposure to private club governance was as a board and committee member at my own club. I served for 10 years, the last three as president. That experience was the catalyst for launching Club Benchmarking, and it continues to inspire my work as
As an avid student of organizational leadership, I’ve spent considerable time contemplating what makes some boards so successful while others flounder. Over the last three decades, I’ve reported to boards of directors as CEO of three different nonprofit golf associations and I’ve served as a
Prior to joining Club Benchmarking as CEO in 2017, I enjoyed a wonderful career in club management that began in 1984. Along the way I had the benefit of many exceptional teachers, but when economic turmoil began to shake the club industry in 2007, I
“THOSE WHO CANNOT REMEMBER the past are doomed to repeat it.” Those words from philosopher and poet George Santayana should be top-of-mind as boards across the country prepare their clubs to withstand future economic uncertainties. While the U.S. is currently on a record-breaking streak of economic
“THOSE WHO CANNOT REMEMBER the past are doomed to repeat it.” Those words from philosopher and poet George Santayana should be top-of-mind as boards across the country prepare their clubs to withstand future economic uncertainties. While the U.S. is currently on a record-breaking streak of economic
In 2008, while serving on the board of my own club, I became aware of a disturbing information gap in the club industry that was affecting the way decisions were being made. The country was in the throes of an economic meltdown, yet the mindset
Experienced club managers are well acquainted with the metrics on their club’s income statement, and equally familiar with how intensely boards focus on those metrics in their monthly meetings. That focus on the income statement fuels frustrating debates about low-impact issues like the financial results
GOLF SEASON will kick into high gear soon for clubs north of the Sunbelt. Discussions about golf course maintenance budgets often involve factors such as cost per hole or per acre, and characteristics ranging from type of grass to geographic location. To understand how these
STAKEHOLDER GROUPS need specific information relative to their role in the organization. In a world drowning in data, businesses use dashboards to organize relevant sets of key performance indicators (KPIs), but all dashboards are not created equal. Think about a plant manager in the automotive industry.
A CLUB’S AMENITY MIX makes a difference. Clubs with expanded offerings command higher initiation fees and attract more members. The yellow slice in the pie charts below represent the percentage of fixed operating expense allocated to non-golf sports and recreation (i.e., racquet sports, fitness, aquatics).