Letter.

Dear Editor:

I am writing concerning the article "Will outsourcing work for your club?" written by Frank McAlonan for the October issue of Club Management. I found the article extremely weak. It appeared the writer interviewed two managers and three or four vendors and that was supposed to help the club manager and board make a decision on outsourcing.

I would strongly suggest that every club manager and board member visit the Outsourcing Institute's webpage and read the "Top Ten Outsourcing Survey." This will give them more information on which to make an educated decision about outsourcing.

I started outsourcing in 1991 when we had a golf management company called Golf Resources. We saved $42,000 the first year at Hidden Hills Country Club in Jacksonville, FL by outsourcing our payroll and HR services. As a new employer in Florida, the decision became a "no-brainer."

I have been a proponent of outsourcing club services ever since. I even wrote an article for your magazine in the mid-'90s about it becoming the next trend in our industry. Since I wrote the article, clubs have moved from outsourcing physical labor services activities like maintenance and landscaping to intellectually based services; activities like master planning, membership sales, human resources, accounting, legal work, etc. The concept of outsourcing has become reality in the club industry.

In response to this article, I would say to the managers and board members, "If you do not perceive your club to be the best in world in doing something, and you are doing it in-house, you are giving up competitive edge. You could outsource to the best in the world, up the value, and lower the cost."

I would make an analogy between the club manager and a scientist. Scientists know they can't be at the frontier of everything in their field. They use a network of resources outside of their office to make sure they are staying ahead of the curve. That sort of mental approach is what makes outsourcing work. If club managers take the same approach, they will learn a great deal more from their new outsourcing partner than they would ever learn from having a sole source internally, unless the club is best in the world at that activity.

The bottom line is that clubs can downsize through intelligent outsourcing. In fact, it is only the middle managers and managers who have been promoted internally who hate it. Outsourcing eliminates activities they weren't good at and people who were not doing much value-added work. They can then focus on improving the quality and level of member services, lower their costs, and put capital to work where it provides the best return in satisfying member expectations.

Sincerely,

Dennis Shirley