Building on a Firm Foundation

The King Ranch

The King Ranch in South Texas is arguably the most famous cattle ranch in the world. It is the largest ranch in Texas with over 825,000 acres under management and spans 6 counties. The sheer size is impressive enough but the King Ranch is recognized in the industry for their success through foundational breeding programs. The Santa Gertrudis breed of cattle originated on the King Ranch. And Old Sorrell, a Quarter Horse stallion born in 1915 and sold to the King Ranch that year, was the foundation stud for every horse on the ranch and almost every quarter horse registered by the King Ranch from 1940 to 1960. The success of the King Ranch was built upon a firm foundation of good breeding followed by great management.

At Paisano we adhere to a similar foundational breeding philosophy. Our ponies come predominantly from the Fitzgerald line going back to Jean Chance, a World Champion Quarter Horse. Our horses carry all of her good traits including athleticism, a good work ethic and a trainable attitude. Irish, our “problem child” that you may remember from a previous post, is a fourth generation Fitz horse descending from Jean Chance.
In the club business, like the horse business, we benefit from good family lines on our team. I think I employed the entire Avila family, three generations, at Prestonwood! They were hard working, attentive and understood how to treat our members. But the best of the bunch was not born knowing how to take a food order, carry a tray or deliver a drink. They ALL had to be trained to deliver excellent service to our members. Good genes provide the potential but good training produces results. This is true in horse blood lines and it is true in people.

Generational Staffing in Clubs

Times have changed since my hey-day at PCC and multi-generational staffing has waned with each subsequent generation. And where we once relied upon family referrals to fill our staffing needs and family pressure to ensure longevity, we are now competing with a variety of industries for new team members with a whole new set of rules. To do this successfully, we better be stepping up our game because the old ways of attracting and retaining good staff are gone! Your success will be determined by the foundation you are building upon.
How Firm is YOUR Staffing Foundation
For a quick check of your staffing foundation answer YES or NO to the following:

1. Your Human Resources Director is a line level position answering directly to the General Manager.
2. You develop a profile of opportunity for your new positions to sell the sizzle to aid in recruiting.
3. Your on-boarding process places more emphasis on the culture of the club and clearly outlines the expectations AND opportunity of the position.
4. Training programs are developed, scheduled, delivered AND documented for all positions.
5. Team member evaluations emphasize coaching  over lecturing and goal setting over ultimatums on an On-going basis.

If you answered No or “Not Really” to any of these you have some work to do and we can help. Very few clubs can answer yes to all of the above and most lack the staff and resources to do this alone.  In the horse business we can buy talent or grow our own. Neither option is viable in club management. Frankly, neither is necessary! When it comes to recruiting and building a winning team, success begets success but it all starts with a firm foundation.

We Build Firm Foundations
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Whether starting from scratch or somewhere in the middle, we can help you with your foundation needs from job descriptions and opportunity profiles to on-boarding and performance management. Our client list continues to grow as clubs recognize the need to strengthen their HR process. Paisano Performance Partners is ready to help you make 2017 a Successful Year from the ground up!