Switch it up! – Golf Inc Magazine

Every so often, a friend of mine sends the vital business facts for his area of North Dakota. This week, he sent me the latest unemployment rate for the area: It is an amazing 1.3%! It seems as if people are working and working steadily in that part of the country. While that is an abnormally low number, it appears that outside the tech industry, those who want to work are working. It is a rare time in this nation. Talent is thin everywhere it seems, as I notice the “Help Wanted” signs on just about every corner here where I live. It is certainly tough to operate a business, especially a service business when the starting lineup is shorter and likely not all that deep. What can leaders do to build offsets when team members decide they are going to move on?

Although this idea will probably take several conversations with staff and a great understanding of the skill of negotiating, the idea of exchanging roles with members of different departments several times each quarter can help the property and the team in many ways. With a less-than-full lineup, a small group should be able to step into areas beyond those of their job descriptions. Since the start of the pandemic golf explosion, many days have felt like a surprise package of who will and won’t show up. Maybe this is an idea your club can swallow whole or simply grab a few bite-sized bits. Either way, it may help take away some of the daily angst, approaching the lineup card stressed out over who is on the no-show list. Here are my thoughts on periodically switching out roles to enhance skills and strengthen the overall operation:

Switch out to teach: Once you convince team members to exchange roles a few times each quarter, you can begin the task of training up. Certainly, you shouldn’t be expecting team members to become experts in new areas, but when they have enough of an understanding to perform the other role without micro-supervision, you are on your way to a strong plan B. Create a program of teaching and coaching with ongoing mentoring to help make this new plan stick.

Switch to build empathy: There is no doubt that all will see things differently once they step into other shoes. Empathy is a valuable asset. Once people live a time doing other work, they will appreciate the stresses as seen through another set of eyes. In addition to teaching new skills, developing empathy in the workplace will provide a layer of understanding never appreciated before the plan was set in motion….