Education

The EGCOA and the Club Managers Association of Europe (CMAE) have announced the first in a series of groundbreaking e-learning courses for club managers will begin in October 2010 entitled, ‘Membership, Marketing and Food & Beverage for Clubs'. Innovative online educational courses will allow participants from across Europe to gain a greater understanding of the key functions of successful club management.

First course to start in October 2010: sign up now!
The October course, ‘Membership, Marketing and Food & Beverage for Clubs', which runs over six-weeks, is broken down into a series of ‘modules', where the delegates will be guided through a range of reading and reference materials, and be subsequently asked to submit an assignment. Delegates will also be expected to participate in virtual discussion groups with the Tutor from Hotelschool The Hague and other learners from around Europe. The courses are designed to be highly interactive and part of their appeal is that delegates can share best practice, advice and issues without the need to leave their own places of work.

Areas being covered on the first course include:
• Strategic marketing for clubs, including market research, brand positioning and writing a marketing plan
• Membership models and options, products and services for customer groups, strategies for attracting visitors
• Communications techniques for clubs, including internal (newsletters) and external (website, advertising, PR and new media)
• Customer service standards, expectations and delivery
• Food and beverage concepts and strategies, for in-house F&B teams and clubs with out-sourced catering contractors
• Managing F&B operations (in-house and out-sourced), cost control and budgeting, functions and event management

Background
This is the first of four e-learning courses that are being developed by the CMAE, the EGCOA and Hotelschool The Hague, one of the world's top universities for hotel management, which already boasts Hilton, Starwood and Hotel Okura Company among its global clients. This is an important step in the development of the golf business, as the EGCOA has been trying to source a practical and affordable solution for club managers to gain the knowledge they need to educating golf managers in this ever-changing market. To be successful the EGCOA thinks members have to run their golf courses as professional companies, which these new e-learning programs will help to achieve. The CMAE and EGCOA have been working closely together with Hotelschool The Hague in the planning of this first e-learning course for current and potential club managers, ensuring the content is relevant and appropriate for the European market.

Certified Club Manager (CCM) exam
When combining all four e-learning courses with seminars, workshops and conferences being organised in each country by CMAE Regions and Affiliate Partners, this programme of professional development will give club managers all the tools they need to enable them to take the CCM exam. This modern ‘blended' approach to on-the-job training and professional development is both a practical and affordable solution to help club managers acquire the skills they need to do the job to the best of their ability. It will lead them through a wide-ranging programme to the CCM (Certified Club Manager) exam, and achievement of a globally-recognised status in the industry as a highly professional club manager.

Three other courses
The three other courses, which are expected to take place in 2011, are:

- Governance and Leadership for Clubs
- Golf, Sports and City Club Management
- Finance and Regulation for Clubs

Registration and more information
To register your interest and book your place on one of the courses, email Tibbe Bakker at the EGCOA.