A case study in Roles > Tasks
Hazeltine National Golf Club is a golf club in the truest sense. People become members because they love golf. The club has no pool, no tennis courts, no amenities not related to the game of golf. The food is wonderful, the atmosphere better, but when you join Hazeltine, you join because you’re an avid golfer.
Avid golfers love playing the golf, but they also love to work on their game. Our club has many single digit handicaps, and one doesn’t become a single digit without practice. The level of golf played by Hazeltine members is supported by a fantastic practice facility. Two acres of bentgrass tees, two putting greens, four chipping greens and a large number targets. All of which carry the same conditioning expectations as the golf course.
If you’ve ever worked on a golf course grounds crew, then you’ve more than likely worked somewhere in which the practice facility is treated as a second-class citizen. I certainly have been, both as a crew member and a superintendent. When the chips are down, and you’re in a pinch its quite easy to give the practice area the “we’ll get it tomorrow” treatment. I’m guilty as charged when it comes to the practice facility at Hazeltine. In my first three seasons the practice area got better each year, but it still suffered second-class status.
Right from the beginning of my time at Hazeltine, the intent of our team was to identify a person who would oversee the practice area on a daily basis. A couple of attempts were made, but we never quite committed to the idea 100%; that is until Peter Braun came along.
Peter came to Hazeltine as an Ohio State turf program graduate in 2015. His previous summer had been spent working at a course in Ireland. While there, Peter was put in charge of a small pitch and putt course; one which it seemed never quite got the attention it deserved. Our crop of interns in 2015 was fantastic; Peter was joined by Steve Miller, Zach Plum, Mitch Ronning and Joey Brettingen. During the 2015 season, these individuals rotated, on a weekly basis, overseeing care of the practice area. It worked out well, but we knew there was still another level to achieve.
Prior to 2016, all five of the 2015 interns (minus Zach, who had a chance to spend the summer at Cypress Point) expressed a desire to come back for 2016. During winter discussions, it was decided the next level on the practice area would come from having one individual care for it each and every day. Peter, with this prior experience got the nod.
Each day, Peter’s role was to make sure the practice area got the same amount of attention as the golf course. At the end of each day, he would let the assistants know how many people he needed the next morning, and for what tasks. Peter determined mowing schedules, raked bunkers and offered his assessment on watering needs and schedules. He also made most of the necessary chemical and nutrient applications. Suddenly the maintenance mentality on the practice area became “a little bit everyday”, rather than trying to binge on it all at once. The binge approach never works and leads to the second class status so often seen on a practice facility.
The advantage of having one person oversee the practice area was immediately evident. Someone always had eyes on the surfaces and they were getting daily attention. The implementation of this role also proved a huge win when it came to employee engagement. Peter’s brain was completely engaged in the day to day operation of the practice area. For this reason, he was seeing the practice area as a superintendent must see the course. In 2017, Peter moved on to a full-time position at the Minikahda Club in Minneapolis. Having witnessed the success of establishing this role, we knew a replacement would be necessary.
Maxton Kelly came to us from the TPC Twin Cities. He was immediately identified as Peter’s replacement on the practice area. Maxton filled this role perfectly during the 2017 season, and in the interest of alway improving, we hired an employee who’s specific role was to assist Maxton in his daily practice area work. Once again, the definition of a role provided tremendous value. Suddenly two brains were thinking about how to make the practice area better each day. More tasks were completed in the effective “all bit everyday” manner and the quality of the practice facility once again improved.
My latest read is a book titled Essentialism by Greg McKeown. The sub-title of the book is “The Disciplined Pursuit of Less”. In chapter 10, titled “Clarify”, the author writes of how providing clarity of roles allows people to thrive. “When there is a lack of clarity, time and energy are wasted on the trivial many.” The author also provides a quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson-“The crime which bankrupts men and states is that of job-work; -declining from your main design to serve a turn here or there.”
Assigning your staff members with roles, rather than constantly dictating tasks provides them with clarity and focus to their work, and the more your team works with clarity and focus, the more they’ll be engaged in coming up with ways to increase the success of the operation.
