Communication is key

If communication is a valuable key to a superintendent’s success on the job, the “Administrative Management” seminar at the 2006 GCSAA education conference provided an important step.

Bill Maynard, certified golf course superintendent at Milburn Country Club in Overland Park, Kan., spoke to a group – stressing the importance of communication and the flow of information. Included in the seminar were tips about organizing and leading a management meeting, creating templates for organizing and recording information, managing an administrative system, and developing and implementing an effective performance evaluation system.

Communication process
Maynard points to three types of communicating – verbal, nonverbal and written. Whether dealing with the maintenance staff, peers or management, verbal is the most common form of communication and generally the easiest. He says superintendents must overcome any communication barriers to be successful at getting their point across.

Introverted or extroverted, shy or outgoing, quiet or loud, superintendents must make adjustments to be effective.

“Change your tactic of communication to hit each of these kinds of styles,” Maynard says. “Know your style and the person you’re talking to, and change it.”

When speaking to golfers or perhaps a member of the green committee, Maynard says to pick out key points and stress those, which then are easier to pass along through the membership or board.

Nonverbal communication is commonly thought of when dealing with employees who don’t speak English. By showing how a task is done, the employee doesn’t necessarily need to understand the language to be effective.
Superintendents also inadvertently pass nonverbal keys to everyone with whom they come in contact. It could be as simple as crossing their arms or not making eye contact, or as obvious as a furrowed brow or pursed lips. Knowing how to read these gestures is important.

Many superintendents exercise written communication while organizing their staff for the day. Dry erase boards are common in the maintenance building. Written communication also could be found in monthly updates to the board or membership, newsletters, e-mails or even on bulleting boards in the clubhouse or pro shop. When a superintendent wants to ensure carts are kept on the cart paths because of wet conditions, he can place signs on the first and tenth tees or post a message at check-in.

Maynard lists six keys to communication competence and says communicators must know how to:
· Start and end a conversation;
· Make themselves understood;
· Respond to the partner’s statements;
· Be sensitive to the partner’s concerns;
· Know how to take turns communicating; and
· Listen.

Managing a meeting
Meeting are another area in which clear communication is needed. Maynard asks what constitutes a good meeting. He says ideal meetings should start and end on time, stimulate thinking, generate new ideas and solve problems. Bad meetings generally start late or last longer than they should, involve personal agendas or go off topic, he says.

Before a meeting, a superintendent should:
· Ask himself if the meeting is necessary;
· Calculate the financial costs – will there be food and beverage? Will renting a conference room be needed?;
· Determine if he’s just providing information. In that case, e-mails, phone calls or memos might be all that’s required:
· Include participants who can achieve the meeting’s objective; and
· Create an agenda – stay organized.

Common mistakes made at meetings include trying to facilitate while participating, discussing multiple ideas at once and failure to reach an agreement on how a decision will be made.

Keeping the golf course green and healthy certainly isn’t the only issue a superintendent has to deal with. Politics and personal relationships are growing aspects of the job. Learning to communicate is a vital part of the career.

“A lot of people are good at growing grass,” Maynard says. “It’s the political stuff that’s hard.” GCN