When thinking about the ‘value proposition’ of sports clubs, it’s critical to strike a balance between keeping sport accessible, given that it is such a prominent part of Australian culture, and keeping clubs sustainable.
It’s not surprising that we have seen a rise in multi-user, shared or multi-purpose facilities. Multi-use facilities provide a feasible solution when the availability of greenspace is limited, when clubs have smaller membership numbers or distinct playing times, or when resources are limited. However, we have found that there is an expectation from some clubs that the Council will provide each club with their very own exclusive clubhouse and activity space. The dissonance between expectations and feasibility can stifle development of new facilities.
Towers Jockey Club has scored $944,960 from the federal government’s Building Better Regions Fund.
When matched with Racing Queensland funding for track work, this grant will deliver a community event centre worth $1,259,960 to benefit the club, the racing industry, the community and the local economy.
Whether it’s leaders in their early 20s in university clubs and societies, young parents at the community kindy, coaches at the local footy club or retirees running a golf club or craft society, all of these volunteers would be far better off if they had access to the best governance training; training to teach them things from how to run an effective meeting to preparing a club budget.
Michael Connelly, our Managing Director, has been focusing his sights on something a little different of late. The big question has been; “Is your Council's approach to managing community leasing as good as it should be?”
If you manage leasing, or know someone who does, contact us to take part in our research project and become involved in the ongoing development of an automated, tailored one-stop-shop for community lessees - clubTRAC.
Over the past 24 years, we have seen this happen to plenty of clubs; they start out as a volunteer-run organisation, then it gets harder and harder to recruit and keep volunteers. All the while, they’re attracting more members. The few volunteers they have start getting burnt out, so, without a formal process in place, they start to pay some people to do the work for which volunteers can’t be found.
If there are dodgy payments being made to individuals, there are real risks to clubs and their volunteer decision makers.
We understand every club is different, with volunteers that require different approaches and support to be inspired to achieve real, long-lasting results. We also understand that club budgets are finite, so we have developed the clubMENTOR+ package for peak bodies to provide high value support to their affiliates.
Clubs often invite too many people to their meetings for the wrong reasons, thereby creating large groups that make it challenging to work together. Smart clubs identify the purpose of each meeting and invite participants accordingly.
Here are some types of meetings and a suggested number of participants for each.
What does the future hold for the 280 or so bowls clubs currently operating in Queensland? Confronted by declining memberships, increasing maintenance costs and ageing volunteers, many face a perfect storm. Add in the impacts of coronavirus restrictions and it is easy to see that, for many bowls clubs, their very survival is at risk.
It’s not surprising that we have seen a rise in multi-user, shared or multi-purpose facilities. Multi-use facilities provide a feasible solution when the availability of greenspace is limited, when clubs have smaller membership numbers or distinct playing times, or when resources are limited. However, we have found that there is an expectation from some clubs that the Council will provide each club with their very own exclusive clubhouse and activity space. The dissonance between expectations and feasibility can stifle development of new facilities.
As the economy recovers over the coming seasons, start a journey to a new business model for sports clubs that accounts for the amazing value that these clubs contribute to your community, both economically and socially. Strategically setting your club’s value proposition is always a choice – your choice as a community leader in sport.
The highly anticipated meetingTRAC is now available! You can now go to meetingtrac.com.au to register for a FREE seven day trial.
This online meeting agenda and minute-keeping platform, developed by CPR Group from the ground-up, is a user friendly meeting management tool, which automates scheduling and agenda templates, allowing minutes and actions to be recorded and distributed electronically in real time.
Sport plays a pivotal role in the fabric of Australian society. The current global situation is forcing us to change our daily routines and for many this includes giving up organised sport. For club volunteers however, a new set of challenges have arisen. Keeping members engaged and clubs running and viable during this period of downtime has become the focus for many committees.
The evolving coronavirus pandemic and subsequent changes to the way clubs, associations and not-for-profits are operating mean organisations need to look at new ways to stay in touch. Committee meetings, members’ forums and other regular meetings can still happen using online platforms instead of traditional face-to-face meetings.
