January 2004

Management By Playing Golf: The Consultant’s Guide to Becoming CEO

C2B is in 5 sections this month:

1. Introduction

2. Business and Sports Comparisons

3. Playing Golf

4. Climbing the Corporate Ladder

5. Conclusion

   For many years, business and sports have been
linked. Some people would say that business is like a
one run baseball game. One well-timed hit or ill
timed error would make the difference in the ballgame
(or landing a client). Business has also been equated
to war, especially football. Not only players but also
announcers refer to the term "going to war" during
telecasts, analysis and the playoffs. The sport that
may be best identified with business is golf.

   Business decisions are made on the golf course
(yes, it is true, someone named Scott can be the
Director of Finance because he can take a 7-iron from
172 yards out and stick it within three feet of the
cup!!). This does not mean that you have to play
well, only that you have to play. If you do not or
cannot play golf I suggest that you take it up.
Somewhere along your career you will be asked do you
play. One such instance happened to a friend of mine
who is presently a Superintendent at a manufacturing
company. He was being asked at work "do you play
golf?” He inquired to me why they keep asking him
does he play and I informed him to invest in a set of
golf clubs, go to the driving range that was located
behind our neighborhood and take up some lessons.
When he thought he was ready he played golf with his
co-workers. Suffice it to say, the CEO of the company
knows him by his first name now! (This all happened
before he became Superintendent).

   Good or bad, this practice is done more often
than you would think. Playing golf has replaced
taking a client to a strip club as the premier way to
do business. One highly successful computer salesman
in Atlanta, Georgia routinely plays golf with
potential clients to not only make contacts but to
garner business. Not only are ever day decisions
made on the golf course but also deals that range in the
millions of dollars are not only conceived but also born on
the course.

   The thing about golf and business is that there
are no age limits. Long after you have given up flag
football on the weekends or pickup basketball games at
the YMCA you still can play a round of golf. Their
are people in their 70's hitting holes in one and
their are people in their 70's running companies
across this nation. Whether you are just learning or
a professional for some unscientific reason people
relate more on the golf course than in an office. By
the way, I have a set of Pang’s.

   Using golf to make changes in the hierarchy at
work or deciding on launching a new product is more
commonplace than making the decisions at work. There
is also another avenue of how golf relates to
business.

   "The good old days". A time when businesses were
small and manageable and everyone in the company knew
everyone else. This is also the time that a golfing
legend by the name of Bobby Jones played
professionally. At the time when Bobby Jones was
playing the players only had 6-8 golf clubs. Just
like businesses at the time everything worked
smoothly. You would hit a wood off of the tee, an
iron in the fairway and use your putter to finish the
hole. The other clubs may have been duplicates of the
clubs you normally used. At the end of the round you
tallied your score and being completely honest
recorded a 67 or a 97. Businesses at the time ran
like this also. Today a professional, amateur, and
novice golfer would have at least 14 clubs in their
bag and believe me they look more confused than
knowledgeable. Should I use my driver or the 3 woods
off of the tee? Sand-wedge, lob-wedge, pitching
wedge, fairway irons in the fairway? Long putter,
belly putter, or plain putter on the greens?
Businesses have also taken a turn for the worse.
The IT department does not communicate with human
resources nor does it get along with Finance and the
CEO is overwhelmed (or embezzling, you make the
call) by it all.

   Recently in a club house an older gentleman
challenged a younger man to a round of golf. The
younger man had been bragging all day about how good
his game was. In challenging the younger man the
older gentleman stated that he would only use a
3-wood, 7-iron and a putter to play against the
younger man's 14-15 golf clubs. Not only would the
younger man not accept the challenge he left the
clubhouse. Bigger is not always better. Having more
does not make you superior.

   As you see golf and business goes hand in hand,
more than you think and a lot more than it should.

Thank you Dr. Rodger L. Smith Co-Author and Contributor.

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“C2B” Consulting-to-Business is a free, monthly, electronic newsletter written and published by Dwayne D. Jakes, D.B.A., Founder & Managing Director of Dwayne D. Jakes & Associates Management Systems, L.L.C. Past Columns are archived at

http://www.ddjakes.com

Copyright January 2004, Dwayne D. Jakes & Associates Management Systems, LLC. All rights reserved. Reproduction is prohibited. We encourage sharing “C2B” Consulting-to-Business in whole or in part if copyright and attribution are always included. Distribution and Reproduction without attribution prohibited.

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