GOLF ASSOCIATION OF MICHIGAN & GAM FOUNDATION
Position Title: Executive Director of the Golf Association of Michigan & GAM Foundation
Reports To: President, Executive Committee, Officers and Board of Governors
GOLF ASSOCIATION OF MICHIGAN
Founded in 1919, the mission of the GAM is to “Promote, Preserve and Serve Golf in Michigan. Specifically, the Association:
- Honors golf’s traditions and history;
- Preserves golf’s integrity and passion;
- Serves its membership to support the amateur game;
- Partners with the USGA as the authorized administrator of handicaps, course rating, local qualifiers, and amateur status;
- And provides leadership, guidance, and information to grow the game.”
On May 7, 1919 twenty-eight individuals attended the organizational meeting for the Detroit District Golf Association, the predecessor to the Golf Association of Michigan. 12 of the 14 original clubs represented at that meeting are current members of the Association. At the 1961 Annual Meeting in January, the Board of Governors approved a name change to the Golf Association of Michigan to better reflect the geographical area of its membership. The Association had grown to 66-member clubs, 41 of which were in the Detroit metropolitan area. In 1985, the GAM moved from an all private club organization by changing its by-laws to incorporate public golf clubs into the GAM family. At this point, there were 87-member clubs, with approximately 40,000 golfers comprising the Association’s membership. Today, the GAM serves men, women, junior and senior golfers of all skill levels. There are 60,000 individual members and 475-member clubs. In 2015, the GAM Foundation was established (501(c)(3) status) to support initiatives to grow the game with an emphasis on juniors. The Youth on Course program has been a focus of the Foundation over the past 2 years.
The Association is headquartered in Farmington Hills, Michigan, a northern suburb of the City of Detroit. It employs 9 full time professional staff, 2 part time staff and up to 3 USGA Boatwright interns each season. Currently, the positions that directly report to the Executive Director include Senior Director Competition & USGA Services, Director of Membership & Communications, Director of Finance/Controller and Sponsorship Coordinator.
Responsibilities of the Executive Director:
- Manages the day-to-day operations of the GAM office and staff
- Responsible for administering GAM programs and services, assuring adherence to the policies, procedures and by-laws of the GAM
- Responsible for hiring, firing, training, evaluating and developing all GAM employees
- Reports regularly to the President, Executive Committee, officers and GAM Committee Chairpersons
- Responsible for effective communications with the USGA and members of the Michigan Golf Alliance including MI Section PGA, MGCA, MiGCSA, MTF, GMCMA and MTESP
- Prepares the annual GAM budget and plan for presentation at the annual Executive Committee spring meeting and administers and monitors performance against budget and plan
- Responsible for planning and implementing the GAM marketing and public relations initiatives with a particular focus on expanded Member programs that enhance retention
- Monitor Membership satisfaction on a regular basis to insure high satisfaction and that issues of dissatisfaction are resolved in a timely manner
- Pursue Sponsorship relationships that deliver ongoing revenue sources for the GAM
- Oversees the administration and implementation of programs for the GAM Foundation
- Along with the GAM President, serves as spokesperson for the Association on matters of public interest
- Organizes and schedules Board of Governors meetings, the Annual GAM Meeting and oversees the development of all member training and educational seminars
- Oversees the production of all GAM publications including its website, gam.org
- Develops and implements new programs and services for Board of Governor approval that fulfill GAM’s Mission
Profile of the Desired candidate
Experience –
- Minimum of 8 to 10 plus years of progressively expanded management responsibilities.
Diverse successful experience in both smaller organizations with hands on situations as well as larger corporate settings. Ideally, started career in large corporate environment and moved to smaller setting that was appealing due to ability to own and take on the responsibility and comfortable being accountable for results
- Documented success stories in the past reflecting a results-driven professional – grew sales by X%, orchestrated a turnaround, developed a new marketing campaign that delivered such and such, etc.
- Sufficient experience to have endured some failures and able to share what was learned
- Past experience in the golf industry, preferably with another Regional Golf Association with an understanding of the base activities of tournament administration, Handicap administration, Course Rating, Membership development, Communications including website and social media, and familiarity with the USGA – its people and its approach
- Sales – preferably familiar with Sponsorship programs\
- Fund Raising – preferably familiar with Foundation needs and challenges
- Michigan orientation – grew up in Michigan. Understands the dynamics between Detroit and West Michigan and Northern Michigan and Upper Peninsula
- Familiar with the Michigan golf community – the players, the organizations, the leadership
Skills –
- Leadership – strong leadership skills to lead the staff, volunteers and organization, while working collaboratively with each of these groups
- General Manager focus and skills – able to move easily through a broad range of topics including marketing, technology including handicap systems, financial statement review and presentation, customer service including collections, tournament administration including amateur status claims and decisions
- Communications – must be able to confidently express ideas to both small and large groups; writing skills must be excellent – concise and to the point
- Work ethic – must enjoy long days and weeks, truly taking satisfaction from hard work
- Multi tasker – must be able to juggle multiple topics and switch gears on short notice; thrive in a fast-paced environment
- Politically savvy – dealing with staff and volunteer dynamics, must be able to manage sensitive topics without hurting feelings or causing larger divides
- Golf aptitude – while not required to be a championship caliber golfer, candidate must have a passion for the game and able to successfully host guests with an awareness of proper etiquette
- Detail oriented yet a strategic thinker
- Self-starter able to envision “what could be”
Academic –
- Undergraduate in Business, Sports Management or Kinesiology, Masters in Business Administration
Compensation
Commensurate with experience and qualifications. Salary, annual bonus plan and benefit program including Company automobile, medical, dental, 401-k retirement plan, country club membership and relocation package.
CONTACT INFORMATION:
Send Resumes and Cover Letter to [email protected]
DEADLINE FOR SUBMITTALS: October 15, 2018
Target Start date for new hire, April 1, 2019
Position will be open until filled
