New exam can be a qualified success

The golf club industry is a rich and diverse business and in times of economic uncertainty, facilities require their managers to possess all the tools in the bag, in order to lead their operation to a safe haven of security.

It’s thanks to the global efforts of the Club Managers’ Association of America (CMAA) and more recently, the Club Managers’ Association of Europe (CMAE), that club managers around the world will soon be better placed and prepared to do so. For decades associations such as the PGA (Professional Golfers’ Association) and various national Golf Course Superintendents Associations, have led the drive for improved and ongoing education within their memberships. However the story of the club manager has been very different.

Ultimately we are in an industry with forever changing benchmarks and new challenges that require the 21st century manager to keep up to speed with the evolution of the business and technology.

Benchmark

Outside of America there has, up until recently, been no official benchmark or qualification on which a manager of golf or golf and country clubs can be assessed. Just one week ago the CMAE launched the European version of the only certified club managers’ qualification exam (called the CCM) in London, which was a milestone in the evolution of the role of a club manager.

The CCM exam tests hopeful candidates on the 10 defined core competencies of general management, which have been developed and refined by the CMAA over the last 50 years.

The CCM qualification will enable stakeholders within clubs to recruit the very best management staff to run their clubs without relying on previous experience and references alone. The aim of the CMAA and CMAE is to create a truly global benchmark qualification and supporting ongoing educational process to enable golf and club businesses to thrive and individuals to develop.

Adaptation

Having been at an educational conference held in London this week, I was astounded at just how much progress has been made by the board of the CMAE, ably led by CEO Jerry Kilby, in order to take the American version of the exam and adapt it to the European market.

I believe that this is a crucial step forward for the industry and it is great to see visionary associations matching the likes of the long founded PGA, in enabling their members to better themselves for the betterment of the industry.

I for one will be pursuing this qualification over the coming years and I’m glad to say that at a point in the not too distant future, budding and existing local club managers will be able to take the exam in the UAE.

I’ve mentioned before the need to capture local talent straight from college and university education here in the UAE, and let’s hope this is the first step in realising this goal.