5 ways to recognize leadership

“Never let a crisis go to waste.” This is a quote I have heard over and over again during the past several months. As the nation continues to be in at least a partial lockdown, waiting patiently for a vaccine, golf courses enjoy record daily rounds, busy practice ranges, and both new and old faces arriving on the first tee. ‘Tis the season to be busy! From the moment golf courses were the place to be while remaining safely distant: the tee sheets grew, parking lots filled, and people were playing as never before. Minus the pandemic, this was the scenario course operators have been dreaming of for decades. Golf is having a banner year for rounds, for rate, and for people just looking to be out of the house.

On the other side there is you, your facility, operations and your team. You required less staff (at least at the start) because of F & B restrictions, walking mandates, and the social distancing rules. Because you were short staffed, team members had to do more, maybe go out of their comfort zone to take care of members & guests each and every day. My guess is that many part time and full time staff were jumping in and out of responsibilities they never had to worry about prior to the arrival of Covid-19. Have you witnessed your own heroes go above & beyond to take care of business? These are the days you observe people step in and step up. They do things because they see the need or realize they have no choice. Just as Lou Gehrig and Tom Brady became stars because they were called upon and given a chance, you may have people who are ready to do the same, right under your nose. Here are my thoughts about emerging leaders, my highfives post:

1. Watch the team in action. Go around to all of those areas where work is being done, and take note of who is responding beyond the call
2. Recognize acts of service, acts of sacrifice, and acts of kindness, with one on one thank you’s, awards: providing things your staff can use during this time
3. Have a monthly recognition shout out for every great service act discovered. Have the entire management team involved by noting acts: above & beyond
4. At the end of the season provide cash awards to any part-timers, full-timers, and managers who have gone above their pay grade to take care of situations
5. As you think about the future, think about how you can promote these staff members who have done anything possible to serve, knowing it was important for the golfer, and for the facility. Think about what the future team could look like with these emerging leaders.

 Just as I began this post with a quote, I would also say: “never allow a good deed to go by without recognition.” For those people who are taking care of whatever is required during this busiest of seasons, remember them, their sacrifice, efforts, and hard work. Do the right things today, to insure a better team tomorrow.

Jack Dillon writes the highfives series. This month marks the 10th year of the highfives blog. Please leave a comment if you have enjoyed or used any of the thoughts over that time. Jack is a merchant, and an expert in operations, service, purchasing, and communications. Contact Jack at 407-973-6136 or dillonjack53@gmail.com. Jack lives in Orlando.