The Club Leaders Forum Podcast has officially launched! In this inaugural episode, host Dafne Canales interviews David V. Smith, President of Club Leaders Forum, to discuss the vision and goals for this exciting new venture. Here’s a look at the key highlights from their conversation.
Why a Podcast? Adapting to Changing Communication Trends
David V. Smith reflects on how communication in the club industry has evolved, acknowledging the rise of podcasts as a modern and engaging way to connect with industry professionals.
“Frankly, up until a month ago, I had never listened to a podcast,” Smith admits, highlighting his openness to adapting to new technologies. With younger professionals frequently tuning in to podcasts during their commutes, this medium provides an accessible and effective way to share insights and updates.
The podcast is designed to go beyond traditional communication tools like newsletters and reports, aiming to deliver content in a more creative, enjoyable, and practical format.
What to Expect from the Podcast
The Club Leaders Forum Podcast will cover a broad range of topics, all geared toward enhancing the club industry. Key themes will include the following:
Performance and longevity:Exploring strategies for sustained excellence in club operations.
The Platinum Club program:Insights into the Platinum Clubs of America and the Platinum Clubs of the World, including the latest rankings and benchmarks.
Creativity in strategic planning:Moving beyond traditional tools like SWOT analyses and member surveys to embrace more dynamic approaches.
Industry innovations: Sharing ideas and resources that challenge the status quo and inspire progress.
As Smith explains, the podcast aims to “bring things to the industry that don’t exist, that haven’t been around for years, in a more creative, enjoyable, and useful way.”
A Glimpse into Upcoming Episodes
Future episodes will delve deeper into the Platinum Club rankings, strategic planning techniques, and cultural shifts within clubs. Additionally, Smith hinted at discussions around the upcoming Mastermind event in London in April 2025, promising valuable insights on topics like staff culture and club structure.
Final Thoughts
The Club Leaders Forum Podcast is more than just a new communication tool; it’s a commitment to fostering innovation, collaboration, and growth in the club industry. With a clear focus on creativity and usefulness, this podcast is poised to become a vital resource for club leaders around the world.
Stay tuned for future episodes and join the conversation as the Club Leaders Forum Podcast redefines how industry insights are shared.
Full Transcript
00:01
Dafne Canales
Hello and welcome to the Club Leaders Forum podcast. I have the president of Club Leaders Forum, David V. Smith, joining us today. Can you tell us the vision for this podcast?
00:19
David V. Smith
Well, yeah, I should probably ask you that question as opposed to me, because as I sit here with my pencil and my piece of paper and, you know, and not too many, there's a computer screen behind me, but it's not switched on. So, yeah, I mean, you know, I also have to adapt to changing times. I mean, I can't talk about it and not do it. You know, you gotta walk and talk the talk, whatever that saying is. So, I mean, clearly communications in the club industry is changing. I, frankly, up until a month ago, had never listened to a podcast. I didn't even know what a podcast was. But, you know, we've got young people in the organization here working for us, and they sit in their car day after day, driving from one place to the other and listen to podcasts.
01:03
David V. Smith
And it could be about anything, whether it's clubs or wellness or fitness or politics or sport, whatever it might be. So, you know, just as we're now creating an app for Club News Forum, which is in creation now, which hopefully will be ready and up and running in the next six months, you know, podcasts are a. Almost not an obligation, but are an effective and responsible way to communicate. So, you know, so I talked to the team here and said if were to do a podcast, and again, we have to do things that continue, we can't say let's do a podcast and a month later and not do it anymore. So we made the commitment, we have a program.
01:44
David V. Smith
You know, the concept of the podcast is to communicate to the industry, not just platinum clubs to the industry, and hopefully a variety of things. I mean, obviously there's a big focus on performance, longevity, because that's such a huge change for us. We just, you know, we like to talk about the platinum program, America and the world. We like to talk about how to benchmark against the best of the best and the seven selection criteria. So we're very keen to bring things to the industry that don't exist, that haven't been around for years in a more creative way, frankly, a more enjoyable way and a more useful way. Because again, I do these assessments. I get strategic plans from clubs. 80% of them are the same. I mean, they're the same strategic plans for the last 10 years. Not the same.
02:36
David V. Smith
Not the same plan, but the same concept, the same format, the same direction. There's a SWOT analysis and there's a member survey. And I mean, all those things which are they're okay. You, you know, you need them. But that's to me, not the most effective way. So in our podcast, we'd like to talk about creativity and strategic planning. We obviously want to talk about performance and longevity. We want to talk about the Platinum Club program. The Platinum Clubs of America results have just been announced here, you know, right in the early middle part of October 2024, next year's platinum Clubs of the World. We have our mastermind coming up in London in April next year. And whether that's the culture of the staff or whether that's the structure of the club, whether it's strategic planning of the club.
03:27
Dafne Canales
Thank you. Well, thank you for starting off this podcast, David.
03:31
David V. Smith
Okay. Well, thank you. And we look forward to our next edition.
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