Page 46 - GBC spring 2015

hire The Right people!
The most important aspect of hiring and training new staff is to hire the right people. Extra due diligence during this time will save many headaches during the hectic golf season.
The first thing I look for when hiring students is fall availability. I make sure any new student employees are attending local Universities or Colleges. It is also one of the first questions I ask prospective employees. I make sure there is some availability and commitment to help us out in the fall. We mostly hire University or College students because they are available around the first of May and they have that extra maturity level especially with operating equipment. We hire a few high school students. One thing about them is they are around in the fall, but if they are very involved with sports or other activities their availability can be a challenge as well.
For years, our club has offered a year-end bonus to seasonal employees who stay with us until the end of the season. This seemed to help and was often used as an incentive to make sure students honoured their commitments.
When sorting through the resumes (for turf maintenance) I also look for experience in the golf industry or any related experience which may include landscaping, farming, forestry, construction etc. I also read the cover letter and try to select people that I feel would really enjoy the job. When a resume and cover letter has everything I am looking for, I send them an email with a brief job description with expectations, time
commitments, rate of pay, etc. I ask that they read the job description thoroughly and if they feel they would enjoy and be able to commit to the job, they can let me know and then we can set up an interview.
During the interview I go over the job description again and make sure they understand what is expected of them. I emphasize the golf industry is not a 9-to-5 job with weekends off. What I look for is work ethic, honesty, time commitment, and getting along with people. I make sure they understand a team environment and everyone will be asked to do every job. I discuss having a positive attitude and customer service. I spend some time on past experience but not much. I would much rather hire someone with a good attitude and no experience than a lot of experience and a bad attitude.
The most important thing for me is to be honest. I hold nothing back. I tell them everything about the job, the good and the bad. We talk about pay, ask them what summer vacations they have planned, etc.
46Golf Business Canada