Inspired Governance - A Way Forward For Sport Leaders

Published July 15, 2019

I have been writing about governance gremlins and outdated sport systems over the past year and my hope with this blog is to share some of the highlights from an inspiring conversation with the CEO of the National Golf Owners Association Canada (NGCOA) Jeff Calderwood. Jeff was kind enough to share lessons learned over the past 25 years and it was one of the more enjoyable two and half hours I have spent in a long time on a topic near and dear to my heart. Jeff offers practical, reasonable and inspired solutions to the threats of outdated governance structures.

Jeff, can you share why you decided to modernize your governance back in 1999, when no one else was even thinking about this?

“Although we were successful and growing, I saw the writing on the wall with our governance structure. The various national and provincial associations within our industry were operating so independently that there was an incredible amount of unnecessary duplication and even competition between them at times. When I looked at our intended vision of always doing ‘what is in the long-term best interest of golf course operators throughout Canada’, it was clear to me that our structure was often counterproductive to that mantra, therefore hurting the very stakeholders that we all existed to serve.  We knew that our memberships understood business and would likely be open to listening to a better way of governing their industry if we could show them the benefits of a different model. Once we did our research, talked to a few key change agents, and clearly articulated the benefits of working better, together, the majority started listening. It really didn’t take that long – from beginning to end, we had changed over to a more centralized structure with shared resources across the country within two years. And we haven’t looked back since.”

Can you share what your current model looks like now?

“It’s really quite simple. We are operating a lot more like a national or multi-national corporate business model. We still have regional offices providing services directly to the membership, but they all deliver a combination of regional and national services that are clearly defined in the NGCOA’s overall strategic plan. Centralized administrative support and systems save everyone a lot of expense. And the whole business operates with consistent branding, policies, staff training, and budgets. That drives substantially more value to the membership than we could ever have accomplished under the old model, not to mention the Association’s financial sustainability. The NGCOA Canada board of directors includes the presidents of all 8 regional advisory boards, so it is neither ‘national’ nor ‘provincial’, it is both simultaneously. That board sets the strategic plan which consists of all regional and national programs, approves those budgets, and manages the CEO. All staff across the country are then hired and managed by the CEO to execute all elements of the strategic plan within those budgets. The regional advisory board presidents become the local champions for the overall vision and really help keep everything well-connected, as do the regional staff positions. So, it really does create one united team executing a common mission to serve the long-term best interests of golf course operators throughout Canada as effectively as possible.”

What are the biggest benefits of having shifted to a national Board with regional offices and volunteer advisory boards?

“Ultimately, it’s about delivering a better value proposition to the membership. But within that, the cost savings allowing us to do so are a huge benefit. Instead of 10 sets of by-laws, polices, strategic plans, accounting departments, yearend audits, websites, CRM systems, graphic designers, communications directors, big office spaces, etc., we have one of each. Another hidden gem of a benefit is on the HR side. I can hire complimentary skill sets across the country that combine into the strongest possible staff team. And that often includes me creating job descriptions where one staff position can manage a combination of regional and national initiatives from anywhere in the country. That leads to better service, but also higher job satisfaction, more opportunities for career advancement within the Association, and much lower turnover. I would also note that managing one centralized strategic plan avoids any competition between provinces or national departments, in addition to eliminating the redundancy. It’s all by design now, mutually agreed upon by all parties, which is a very big benefit. Honestly, it’s allowed us to better, more adaptable, and responsive to any changes in the marketplace, limiting our risks and better leveraging our opportunities.”

What was the biggest stumbling block?

“Initially, it’s like any change initiative, there’s some natural resistance. You need to get people to listen. And to listen, you need high trust. And in order to build trust, you have to invest in relationships. So I spent a lot of time having conversations with people, building those relationships, understanding any of their pain points, and positioning the advantages of this better model. It also allowed me to align the champions we needed across Canada such that they could speak with authority and credibility on this important shift. They became the most vocal supporters and as key influencers they made the rest of the messaging so much easier.”

Any last words of wisdom to other sport leaders looking to explore a different governance model?

“It takes some time and effort to make the shift, but it can certainly be done and it’s definitely a more effective governance model. Eventually, I believe there will be an imposed innovation of this type of model across many sectors due to economic realities or other external factors, with some variations as needed. It is a lot smarter to be proactive and control that destiny than to wait for it to be imposed. I really believe that it’s a question of when, not if, most associations should re-imagine a new governance system. As long as it is done by properly positioning the answer to ‘what’s in it for me’ across your range of stakeholders, it will succeed. And once in place, you’ll be able to aim higher on every aspect of your strategic plan. Replace those ‘Us and Them’ moments with ‘Us and Us’ connectivity on your common purpose, while still respecting Canada’s wonderful regional diversity, and you’ve got the winning combination for a sustainable organization that can truly deliver.”

If you are interested in learning more about good governance and modern systems that will help you improve your organization’s effectiveness, please contact us at DBL@sportlaw.ca or SJI@sportlaw.ca.