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A Division of Edwin-T Golf Inc.
Last Week's Featured Article
Kelley’s 10 Faces to Innovation: A new way to address innovation within organizations
This is an insight into author Tim Kelley’s approach to innovation. In his book 10 faces of innovation, he gives an explanation of how organizations can successfully innovate and implement or bring new ideas to market. In order for innovation to occur, there need to be ten different personas throughout the process. As I read the article chronicling the book, I immediately realized that many smaller organizations such as golf courses and golf course management companies may not have as many individuals on their management teams. None the less, I still thought that having this information will compliment every leader’s approach to successful innovation. The 10 personalities are as follows:
1.The Anthropologist- This is the individual who observes people in an effort to find opportunities for innovation. Whether one believes in Charles Darwin’s theories or not, most would agree that he was an anthropologist who saw a chance to introduce a new way of thinking, and successfully converted his ideas into widely accepted theories to this day. The article stresses that successful anthropologists have the ability to almost think like a child, with no inhibitions set by norms and conformity. As adults, experience, tradition, and circumstances mould us to always “push back” innovation, and in many cases, rightfully so. Successful innovators examine both ends of the spectrum, determining why the innovation will work vs. why it won’t.
2.The Experimenter- This is the person who makes ideas tangible and in most cases, has to try several times before getting it right.
3.The Cross Pollinator- This is the person who is able to find all the possible functions of the innovation.
4.The Hurdler- This is someone who enjoys trying things that have never been done before. Hurdlers are typically able to do “more with less”. They like the challenge of having little or no resources to make the idea successful and will not be easily discouraged if they believe in the project.
5.The Collaborator- This is the person who initiates interaction outside of normal boundaries. We’ve often heard of collaborations between different firms, but hardly ever between people. Kelly says that the people who make collaboration possible are often neglected and should get as much notoriety as the major event itself.
6.Director-The director’s job is to inspire and direct people by showing a clear vision and strategy for the innovation. Traditional leadership theory might call this person a transformational leader.
7.The experience architect- This is the person who relentlessly strives to create the “remarkable customer experience” by creating unique environment for both staff and customers.
8.The set designer- The set designer is portrayed as a persona, but is actually the environment in which people work. A company that allows staff to alter the environment in which they work creates a fun atmosphere. I’ll go off on a tangent here because I have a great example of how successful this can be. Zappos.com is a billion dollar company that mainly sells shoes online. They have seen unparalleled growth in the last few years. Management encourages individuality and comfort at work. As a result, their employees enjoy coming to work and are not afraid to contribute new ideas that make the workplace more desirable. This policy might not work for every kind of business, as dress codes and other policies have to be met to meet customer expectations, but Zappos illustrates how creating an employee friendly atmosphere can lead to innovation success.
9.The caregiver- These are people who work to ensure that they understand each individual customer, or group of customers. Caregivers are all about being customer focused and are always striving to meet and exceed customer expectations.
10.The Storyteller- This is the person able to break down barriers by telling stories which people can relate to. Authentic stories can help explain the value of the innovation. Although not necessary in the process of innovation itself, the story teller can be a great asset in conveying the innovation to others.
This Week's Article 5/14/2010 - 5/20/2010
WE ARE GOLF.
I just came across an article which chronicled the We Are Golf organization. This is a group organized to represent 4 major golf industry associations, including the PGA of America, National Golf Course Owners Association, Golf Course Superintendent’s Association of America and the Club Managers Association of America. The organization’s role is to present the economic, social, health and environmental impact of golf to policy makers in Washington D.C. This is in an effort to make sure lawmakers understand this impact in future decision making.
The article also provided some interesting facts about golf. The golf industry is responsible for 2 million U.S. Jobs and also generates billions of dollars in revenues annually. For many, its really not just a game...
To see what this organization is about and to tell your story, go to www.wearegolf.org
This Week's Article 5/21/2010 - 5/28/2010
Golf Courses: An asset to the community.
The golf course industry is increasingly becoming environmentally friendly. Some reports indicate that superintendents in some parts of the country only depend on rain water collected in ponds to irrigate their facilities. One superintendent went as far as never using pesticides with a “Dangerous” warning. Although this is one of the extreme cases, there is a growing movement across private and public institutions to find scientific methods to make golf courses “greener”.
Recent reports from the National Recreation and Park Association indicate that in golf courses provide recreation to over 28 million participants, while generating over $76 billion per year in revenues. Evidence has shown that golf facilities are responsible users of water, and have preserved thousands of acres of natural habitat and wildlife sanctuary. In 2009, the New York Times praised golf course superintendents for their management of water resources and even suggested that water providers could learn a thing or two from golf course superintendents.
In another report, the CEO of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America, Mark Woodward praised public golf courses as the “the setting where the vast majority of golfers get their first exposure to the game”. In that same report, he mentions that there well run municipal golf courses focus on providing a good product at a fair price, and typically reinvest profits into the future success of the facility.
“We lose affordable and accessible golf for the masses and great opportunities to grow the game. With the economy the way it is today, people need an outlet to spend family time in a safe environment that they can afford,” he said in the report.
Another report shows that one 18 hole golf course provides enough oxygen for a town of 7000 people, showing further how valuable these living, breathing entities are to communities around the world. More and more organizations, including universities, private and public associations, are conducting research to determine just how valuable golf courses are and also determining how much more environmentally friendly golf courses can become.
Thanks to all the managers, superintendents, owners and staff members that provide us with these invaluable assets.
Credits:
Pam Sherman , Jeff Bollig . Parks & Recreation . Arlington: Jan 2010 . Vol. 45, Iss. 1; pg. 45, 1 pg
Richard Singer >, Forrest Richardson <. Parks & Recreation . Vol. 44, Iss. 1; pg. 23, 6 pgs
This week's Article: 05/28/2010-06/03/2010
Last Friday, we asked readers to ask questions regarding what we do. Below is a list of the 7 most asked questions, with answers just below each respective question. I tried to summarize each question as best as I could to maintain the general context.
1.How will your services add to my facility’s bottom line?
Answer: By maintaining high quality standards, you are assuring that you keep your current clients happy, and increasing the potential of recommendations that would get new players to your facility. These techniques have yielded an increase of 5-15% in annual sales in other industries. Furthermore, results may be used as training tool, for planning, and to identify potential problems before they occur.
2.How do you make sure that the information you provide is accurate?
Answer: We take an internal approach to quality and put every evaluation through an internal quality control test we call the P.A.R.R™. Test. This test measures the integrity, consistency, accuracy, and precision of the evaluator and the survey or evaluation itself. In order for an evaluation to move to the next step in report preparation, it has to score the required minimum for the P.A.R.R™. Test. To see details, go to http:edwintgolf.com/PARR.html
3.Is it possible to try this out without a long term commitment?
Answer: Yes, we can provide service for one month, free of all our fees. The facility will just be responsible for the greens only.
4.How much does it cost for your standard service?
Answer: Standard service is about $400 per month/facility. However, volume discounts are available for management companies with a large number of facilities.
5.Can the evaluations be customized?
Answer: Yes, using our evaluation template, we will work with each facility to create a list of questions that measures the required categories. It is a very simple process, there is no need for complex programming, and it is at no additional charge.
6.How are we billed?
Answer: Our billing model is designed to bill clients after every month of service. However, we understand that different clients have different accounting systems, so we are willing to negotiate a suitable billing cycle if needed. Some qualification requirements may apply.
7.Since you are using anonymous evaluators, how can we verify that these evaluations are legitimate?
Answer: We only reimburse the evaluator’s green fees after they have submitted satisfactory surveys. This means that they have to pay for the round of golf initially, then provide a copy of a receipt either through fax or email. The reports will also show the date and time on which the round occurred, as well as other questions designed to verify that the evaluation actually occurred. Once received, clients can compare their records with what we provide to assure validity.
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