Broadstone Golf Club’s General Manager Jon Dry shares his top five tips on making sure your facility is ready and raring to go at the start of a new season.
With spring here and hopes rising that a miserable winter will finally recede into the rearview mirror, many clubs are playing catch-up to get things in order for the new season.
The weather may be beyond our control, but there are plenty of other things that Golf Club Managers can be doing to make sure their facility is prepped and ready.
Here, GCMA member Jon Dry, General Manager at Broadstone Golf Club, offers his top five tips on how clubs can best prepare as things start to ramp up again.
Jon began his career as a PGA Professional and worked at the likes of Queenwood and Bearwood Lakes, where he also served as Director of Golf.
He then decided to follow his ambition of establishing a career in club management and secured the position of General Manager at Fulford in York in 2019, before making the move to the South Coast to join Broadstone in 2022.
1) Reflect and Review the previous year
Take some time to look back at the previous year and review what went well. Have an open mindset about how you can always look to improve. Engage with your teams to come up with ways you can build on what’s working well and develop a plan for how you can be even better for the year ahead. Involve your team in these discussions so they have ownership of the new ideas.
2) Communication
Ensure your entire team are aware of your values. It is crucial that all members of the team are well-versed in these as we too often fall into the trap of our managerial staff knowing, but not filtering it through to the staff who are looking after our membership on a daily basis.
3) Committee
You often find yourself entering the season with new members of the committee, which can result in people trying to make their mark in the committee room. Provide new committee members with a comprehensive and informative induction, bringing them up to speed with where the committee is on various aspects of the club. Don’t wait for them to find out in the committee room.
4) Training and education
Invest in yourself and your team to enter the new season stronger and better equipped than you have ever been. Investing in your staff will also make your staff feel valued focused for the year ahead.
5) Ensure all health and safety work is up to date
Anyone who has worked in the golf industry will appreciate how busy your days can get in the heat of the season. Make sure you have everything in place regarding health and safety ahead of the season so you can focus on delivering a great experience at the club.
