Traditionally, golf course superintendents have used the cover letter when applying for jobs in a very perfunctory manner; i.e.- to make search committees aware of their candidacies and to ask for an interview. This superficial use of the cover letter negates a candidate’s first and foremost opportunity to take the initiative, which is what job applications are all about. For example, following are sample profiles of the several key paragraphs within a cover letter that clearly demonstrate taking the initiative:

First Paragraph:
In about 75 words of your own choosing provide information relative to your present job, your career ambition and why you have a specific interest in applying for this job. Also, provide your personal career web site address because this is the single element that best demonstrates a candidate’s initiative. Remember that about half of job interviews are granted to candidates with quality career web sites. (See Step #1 within my earlier archived blog entitled, “Breaking Through The Glass Ceiling” for guidance in developing your own web site.)

Following Paragraphs: (Initially use the approximate italicized language below; then end with a traditional closing paragraph.)

Should I be granted the privilege of an interview, I respectfully request that the following documentation be made available to me before interviewing; i.e.- copies of:

* The current and recent years’ department operating/capital maintenance budgets.
* Recent years’ OSHA/safety records, labor records and department job descriptions.
* An aged maintenance equipment inventory with maintenance records.
* Recent years’ USGA Turf Advisory Service reports; irrigation system profile data; and listings of cultural practice concepts/schedules.

Finally, I would welcome the opportunity to tour the golf course property with members of the search committee before my formal interview. Having access to the above requested information, combined with a committee-guided interactive tour of the golf course and maintenance facility would equip me to submit a definitive multi-year “Plan Of Action” to the search committee prior to my interview.

(See my earlier archived blog entitled, “Stress Free Job Interviews” for further insight into the matter of committee guided pre-interview tours of the golf course.)

A cover letter containing the above initiatives (including a quality web site address) will virtually guarantee an interview. Conversely, passive cover letters fail to ignite candidacies.

Superintendents, want to help your assistant(s) on their career path? Print out these Career Corner posts and responses on an ongoing basis and assemble them in a hard copy binder for your assistants and crew.

April 15, 2009 marked the 62nd anniversary of the day Jackie Robinson played his first game as a Brooklyn Dodger… and by doing so broke the color barrier in professional baseball and made the sport, for the first time, truly America’s game.

Jackie Robinson lived by a set of values that guided his career and path through life. These nine values were:

Citizenship

Commitment

Courage

Determination

Excellence

Integrity

Justice

Persistence

Teamwork

Robinson also once said, “A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives.”  I believe this is the single most important concept we parents can pass down to our children. See the poll to the right to identify what value you feel will most effectively guide you through life.

Roughly 75% of PGA members and over 80% of CMAA members work with the protection of (multi-year) written employment contracts. Conversely, only 21% of golf course superintendents enjoy the protection of written contracts. The reality of the situation is that four of five GCSAA members face a double obstacle when looking to borrow money to buy a traditional home, or a family car –  i.e., lending institutions do not honor verbal contracts or “year-to-year” agreements, which all verbal contracts are by definition.

Then, do we have to remind ourselves of the devastation wrought when superintendents without written contract protection get summarily dismissed from their jobs (estimated @ 400-plus times each year country-wide) simply because they can be? As a consequence, families face the loss of primary income; mortgage payments and children’s college tuition fees are put in jeopardy; employer-provided housing is quickly term-limited virtually putting families out on the street; family health coverage fades; children will have to change school systems; anxiety mounts throughout the family; and finally, dismissed superintendents face the daunting task of seeking their next job without strong employer support. Can there be any greater trauma forced on good families? Not likely.

Of course, the present-day economy seriously aggravates all of the above. See my most recent blog, “Anticipating Austerity” (with comments) for guidelines to minimize job vulnerability in a bad economy.

What Steps Need To Be Taken?

Step #1: Read my October 2007 Golf Course Industry column to see how: (i) individual superintendents; (ii) GCSAA chapters; and (iii) GCSAA itself can effectively address this matter.

Step #2: Ask your Chapter to constructively lobby GCSAA to take the lead addressing this matter.

Step #3: Use button at the bottom of this page (you may have to hit the HOME tab on the menubar first) to e-mail this post to peer, chapter delegates and members of Chapter Boards across the country.

Step #4: Participate in the survey poll to the right because the greater the response the more weight behind this campaign.

The concept that every superintendent should have the right to earn a written contract is a realizable goal, but one that should be collectively pursued now because if this matter is allowed to stand in these continuing to decline economic times – thousands of superintendents’ jobs will be put unnecessarily in jeopardy in the coming years.

Superintendents, want to help your assistant(s) on their career path? Print out these Career Corner posts and responses on an ongoing basis and assemble them in a hard copy binder for your assistants and crew.