that require permission from
members to set a fee increase
over and above an approved
threshold (sometimes as little
as five percent) is a restriction
that many could do without.
Uncapped long-term discounts
for length of membership
and age are another example
of democracy at work in
constitution drafting, obviously
conceived as a reward for
service, but which have now
become or are fast becoming a
real liability.
As many of you know, pushing
through changes in constitutions
in these emotive areas can be
a real battle, further challenged
if the said constitution provides
for annual elections of directors.
Putting up an un-popular (but
right) resolution can stretch
friendships, can be a board
career limiting move, and can
certainly reduce enjoyment
levels of said directors trying
to improve club performance
and long-term sustainability.
In defence of the original law
makers and constitution writers,
perhaps they thought that sanity
would always prevail and that
obvious needs would always
be met with
full member
approval.
interest grows. With structural
challenges to already deal with,
this increasing self-interest even
further constricts the likelihood
of beneficial long-term decisions
being made and approved,
particularly those that involve
any major playing disruptions or
spending on infrastructure that
members can’t derive immediate
direct benefit or value from.
Is the messaging right? Each
year we conduct a number of
member surveys for our clients
and what is apparent in the
open commentary received is
that the message of what the
club needs to be isn’t always
well communicated down to
the membership. Short-term
thinking is often evident in
comments similar to “this place
is being run like a business”, “the
bar prices are too high”, “food
and beverage shouldn’t make
a profit”, “long-term members
should get a discount”.
Further evidencing the short-
term thinking that seems to be
prevailing, we recently went
out to our committed golfer
panel, a panel of approximately
1,000 golfers, mainly golf club
members, and asked them to
what extent they cared about
club outcomes beyond their time
at the club.
Our research found that concern
beyond the likely term of their
involvement with their current
club fell in the middle of ‘not
at all concerned’ and ‘highly
concerned’. Not apathy by any
means but certainly not worried
to bits about future generations
possibly not being able to enjoy
the club once their time is past.
Our profile suggests if anyone
is going to be more loyal or care
more it is these people. If they
actually don’t, with others likely
caring way less than them, then
only by having a committed, well
thought out, and consistently
executed plan will long-term
success be achieved. Without a
plan, only short-term thinking
will prevail, and the proverbial
can will just be kicked a bit
further down the road.
If we could start over with a new
message we’d encourage overall
performance thinking to be
“certainly not for loss, with profit
at a level that allows for material
Back in the day
they perhaps
could not have
seen society
evolving to a
point where the
“club” wasn’t
also the focal
point and source
of one’s social
activity, the
intangible part of
the value derived
from club
membership.
We’ve observed
that as this
intangible value
diminishes, self-
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