Treat them as owners

One of the many suggestions we hear over and over on how to help build kinship with team members is to move them to act as owners. That sounds great, right? It even feels great. I suggest, however, that something is missing from this concept. That missing piece is to also pay them as owners! If they can be more productive, acting and executing like ownership, why not take this as the next step for 2024? OK, let’s first get real: I am not recommending that every member of the full-time staff be paid a hefty salary, with added perks and benefits. The idea is about a bonus, paid on production, on real vibrant meaningful results. The opportunity is about creating a win-win. The concept: carve out profits to share with every manager and full-time staff member, the people who have skin in the game. If this works, especially over consecutive years, production and loyalty may each move to new levels. At a time when passion and enthusiasm for work are scarce, providing significant bonus dollars based on business results and contribution is a very real way to build a championship team for years to come.

The last three years have been a genuine roller coaster ride. The game experienced unprecedented growth, while at the same time, employees wanted to avoid any human contact, wanting desperately to remain at home. That meant people were coming to play while staffing was scarce, scheduling erratic. All the while, the traditional hours stretched out during this most frantic period.  Every operator had to do more — a lot more with less. Now that the economy is slowing, affecting even golf rounds, it’s time to rethink the model. Time to plan beyond the bloated numbers of the pandemic and set a path based on the changes — with the added uptick of several million more golfers joining the tee sheets all across the landscape. There is also a very different attitude in the workplace. The feeling that people would much rather work from home while saving money and time without the daily commute. With up to 15% or more of the workforce performing from home at least part of the week, leadership concerns are valid. This is where a new plan, with a money kicker, will speak loud and clear. In this In My Opinion post, I  offer three reasons to consider this change. The idea of sharing success. It is about building production and loyalty. Here are my three thoughts:

People will have skin in the game: When people see a real opportunity to earn serious, real dollars by staying a part of your team, investing in greater sweat equity, both sides come up winners. Imagine a staff member able to earn a bonus of several hundred or even a few thousand dollars. Providing a specific, easy-to-understand plan that renews every year, without the goalposts moving, can have the team working together, working with purpose, while remaining a part of the team.

Digging deeper could become the norm: Once there has been a history, with a positive outcome, team members will realize the reality of this new program. They will see that their investment paid off and going the extra mile is a bankable idea. When people see the opportunity to build and earn a significant annual bonus, they will dig deeper, searching for new ways to add sales and effort to each day.

Spouses/significant others love the idea of extra cash: When the spouse or life partner sees the results of your program, they will not only become a fan, they will become your advocate, working to keep their partner on the team. They love the idea of extra dollars, even if it is once a year.

This plan certainly costs money. But what are the invisible costs of poor service, of stress on the team for doing more with less help? What is the cost of turnover? This idea turns costs into a long-term investment. An investment in keeping talent, establishing consistency with a group of people working together, while you and your managers spend less time recruiting and training new people throughout the year. There is always a cost to doing business. It depends on how you want to slice it. Over my career, I have learned that paying people more when excellence is part of the report card comes back to help the organization. Isn’t it time this industry moved to taking care of those who provide consistency and excellence? I vote yes.

Jack Dillon writes the In My Opinion blog. Jack is a speaker, consultant, and writer. Reach out to Jack as you prepare for 2024. Schedule a FREE Zoom meeting to find out how Jack can help build a better team for the new year. He has space in Q1 remaining. Reach out to Jack at 407-973-6136 or pull up his website (www.youdontknowjackd.com) to set up that FREE Zoom.