Club Management - May/June 2008 - (Page 19)

Feature Tennis Pro Education Increases Your Bottom Line By J. Lee Stall, CCM P Private clubs and other similar facilities that don’t provide a continuing education budget for their department heads are doing themselves a great disservice. For the purposes of this article, let’s focus on the professional tennis staff. Paying association dues alone is not the same as providing a continuing education allowance. In the case of USPTA professionals, $9 million of liability insurance is a beneﬁt of membership in the association. Some clubs will pay for the professional to be a member of the association simply to get the additional insurance coverage. If that’s all the club is investing in its professional, it is falling far short of its responsibility – to the professional, management staff and membership. Providing a continuing education allowance for the professional staff is typically a small portion of a club’s annual operating budget, but it can pay huge dividends for the tennis program. The return on the club’s investment in its professional can be seen through new programming, tennis drills, socials, pro shop displays, marketing ideas, court maintenance routines and customer service tools. Some clubs will provide a continuing education allowance for the tennis director, but not for assistant professionals. If the club cannot or will not provide a continuing education budget for all of the professional staff, at the very least, it should pay the dues expense for membership in their certifying association. Membership provides credibility for the professional and allows him or her to attend local chapter meetings where outof-pocket expenses would be minimal. A good tennis director will share his or her allowance with assistants should they not be able to attend a meeting or convention. This indicates a caring and committed relationship among the staff. A mutually beneﬁcial arrangement between the club and the assistant professional would be to offer a continuing education allowance in lieu of an annual salary increase. This would give the assistant an opportunity to better themselves in the tennis business, which also would beneﬁt the club and its membership. Assistants should take every opportunity to continue education and involvement in the USPTA. Convention networking is just as valuable as formal education. Most professionals beneﬁt from making contacts for sharing ideas and possibly needing references. The more you learn, the more you’ll earn is an old saying, but it’s true. An educated professional staff will offer better programming, happier membership and ultimately garner more success for the club. It all trickles down to a healthier bottom line. A naïve young manager once asked, “What if we train them, and they leave?” My response to that is, “What if we don’t, and they stay?” ❚❘ About the author J. Lee Stall, CCM, is general manager of New Orleans Lawn Tennis Club. Stall is president of the CMAA Pelican Chapter. His director of tennis is USPTA member Brett Schwartz. Schwartz is the treasurer of the Louisiana Tennis Association and president of the Northshore Community Tennis Association. MAY/JUNE 2008 • 19

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Club Management - May/June 2008

Club Management - May/June 2008 Contents President’s Message Accounting & Financial Management Board Governance Wine Society Quenches Thirst for Knowledge, Camaraderie Building & Facilities Management Tennis Pro Education Increases Your Bottom Line Cover Story: BMI Golf Management Golf/Sports & Recreation Management Human & Professional Resources Relationship Building in the Internet Era The Ultimate Cellar Raid Products and Services Marketplace External & Government Influences HFTP Insight: HITEC 2008 Features Latest in Club Technology New Directions Global Outreach Advertiser Index/Advertisers.com Club Wrap

Club Management - May/June 2008

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