The Golf Professional Growth Project Dean Kandle, PGA Professional and Founder, Golf Professional Growth

We’ve been hearing so much about jobs, hiring, and the issues in the workforce today.  But the focus in this episode is on the candidates.  What can you do to try to stand out?  How about some tips on what the best resumes look like?  And what I believe is an underutilized resource, LinkedIn.  How can you optimize your profile and use the platform to help you land your next great job.  Believe me, LinkedIn can help.  
We discuss all this with Jeremy Nichols.  Jeremy is a recruiter for Gecko Hospitality focusing in Florida and specifically the Tampa area.  With Jeremy we get a little different perspective than the golf industry focused conversations we typically have.  Jeremy understands the hospitality industry and has been recruiting for a wide variety of positions for over 20 years.  He talks to tons of employers and candidates every day, and he knows what works and what doesn’t.  Speaking of LinkedIn, follow Jeremy for daily tips and insights into the hiring world and subscribe to his YouTube channel where he’s creating regular videos that can help you with anything from interviewing, negotiating, getting hired and more.  

Spend more than a few minutes in a room with a group of Golf Professionals these days and you're bound to start hearing about some level of "burnout".  The affect of the pandemic on golf and the labor shortage have come together to put even more pressure than normal on today's Professionals.  

In this episode, we cover the 5 reasons we can feel burned out and go over practical solutions to address this issue.

In this episode, we flip the script as Dean takes questions about his career, the development of Golf Professional Growth, how he actually left the golf industry while in college, and much more! 

Thanks to Ricky Potts, host of the Wednesday Match Play Podcast for the opportunity to share my story.  Be sure to check out Ricky's show and subscribe HERE

You likely know him now as the Secretary of the PGA of America, in line to be the President of the Association in just a few years.  Don Rea's background and his experience as an owner/operator of Augusta Ranch Golf Club have provided him with a unique perspective that we don’t often see in PGA leadership.  He’s a creative programmer, he knows how to build relationships, and he understands the importance of creating a winning culture on his team at Augusta Ranch.  Following from afar, I have been optimistic about what Don can bring to the PGA of America, and this conversation only reinforced that belief.  
What does Don think about one of the biggest challenges we face today as an Association, recruiting and retention?  Let’s find out.  

With the record numbers we're seeing at courses throughout the country, Golf Professional's are now faced with the challenge of often having to say no to their members and customers.  No there aren't any tee times, no there isn't any space in that event, no we can't host your outing...and so on.  This is new for many of us since we've been trained to say "Yes" and to constantly seek out ways to grow rounds and revenues.  

As I found out in a conversation a few years ago, knowing how to say no and tell someone something they don’t want to hear, is literally a science.  Experts in behavioral psychology have studied the tactics that are most effective at delivering your message in a way that diffuses angry situations and will limit the push-back you get from our now disgruntled members and customers.  
Our expert that we’re learning from is Richard S. Gallagher, author of “The Customer Service Survival Kit”.  Some of the critical lessons we’ll hear from him are: being nice and polite is great, but it doesn’t help an upset person feel better, leaning into criticism is much more effective than explaining “why” or playing defense, and the key to diffusing a difficult situation begins with acknowledgement.

Keith Stewart has spent over 25 years as a Golf Professional, working his way from an Assistant at clubs like Isleworth, home to countless tour pros and most famously at one point, Tiger Woods, to landing a Head Professional position at a unique club in Princeton, NJ, called Springdale Golf Club.  Along the way he’s been recognized 5 times as a New Jersey Section award winner, including the 2019 New Jersey PGA Golf Professional of the Year.
It was while at Springdale that Keith began to make a name for himself for the innovative ways he communicated with his membership.  We’ve all tried different avenues to get our message out to our members, but have you ever considered creating a radio show?  I bet not. But that’s what Keith did.  Every week he hit the airwaves at the local Fox Sports affiliate as the host of Springdale Golf Live. It was his chance to talk about the club and begin to develop his own voice which led him to where he is today.  
He’s now a full-time host and writer, where he’s using his abilities to tell stories about the game everywhere from the local level to the biggest happenings in golf.  
But in this conversation, we focus on how you can build your communication skills and how you can focus on the development of the people around you. 
www.golfprofessionalgrowth.com

Are you using Golf Genius Software in you Golf Shop and in your events?  www.golfgenius.com