As the executive director of the Indiana Section of the PGA he assists the professionals in the state with handling many of their day to day affairs of membership, growing the game and administration as the professionals all have daily jobs running the individual courses around the state.  Part of his role is also to serve as a liaison between the PGA and the IGA and IWGA helping the amateur golfers tap into the knowledge and expertise of the professionals to run effective programs to grow the game and increase enjoyment from playing golf.  As leader and lead fundraiser for the Indiana Golf Foundation he oversees a diverse program that uses golf to teach many life lessons to Indiana juniors and operates the Gongaware Junior Golf Academy, The Pepsi Indiana Junior Golf Program and awards college scholarships to Indiana students.

As a PGA golf professional looking to change gears in my career away from operating a golf course I recently sat down to chat with Mike David to learn more about the current state of the golf business in Indiana and for the purposes of this class learn about his thoughts on leadership.  The following transcript details his thoughts on his style and the importance of leadership.

Me: How did you get into the leadership position which you now have

Mike David: Well you know it’s funny, as we were talking, I’ve mentioned the right place at the right time a couple of times, and that’s exactly what happened with me.  It’s a combination of being networked with the right people and being in the right place at the right time.  I knew several golf pros from growing up playing in tournaments and playing collegiate golf and they knew me well enough to know that what I was doing at the time I wasn’t overly thrilled with.  They knew I was looking for something so they let me know about a potential opening with the golf office.  This was 20 years ago.  So I made contact with a staff member at the golf office.  There was an opening.  I got my foot in the door as assistant tournament director.  One thing led to another in a short period of time.  The person who hired me was leaving and I kind of fell into the position.  They didn’t have anybody else at the time; I had a little bit of experience.  So I was given the opportunity and fortunately I did o.k. with the opportunity and I’ve been here ever since.  It was a combination of the right people knowing I was looking for something and giving me some information on what might be available.  The timing was the key.

Me: Our book talks about 4 communication styles used to motivate followers.  They are Directive Leadership – procedure related communication behavior that includes planning, organizing and task coordination.  There is Supportive Leadership – interpersonal communication focusing on the concerns and needs and the well being of followers.  There’s Participative Leadership – communication designed to solicit ideas from followers for the purpose of involving followers in decision making and there is Achievement Oriented Leadership which obviously focused on goal attainment.  Does one of those leadership styles particularly fit you?

MD: I don’t know that any of them….I guess maybe supportive would describe it more than anything. I’m not a big rah, rah motivational type person.  My theory is you hire qualified people and then I’m there if they need me; I think my staff knows that.  My door is always open.  They’re free to come and talk and get my input at any time they need it but my thought is they are all qualified and I hired them for that reason.  I try to stay out of their way and let them all do their jobs.  We kind of have an interesting set-up I guess in that each person is their own department here.  We really don’t have a team of people working together on one thing.  Lisa does communication, Matt Brookshire does development, Joan does handicapping, Judy’s doing accounting, Ryan’s doing juniors.  Yes, we all interact certainly, but really everybody is doing their own thing to a degree and I do my best to oversee all of those areas obviously.

Me: So you direct a lot of their activities and set their goals for things they need to do?

MD: Not really, they participate in the goal setting and I have them tell me what they want to accomplish.  Now certainly there are some things that will come up from time to time that I will see and say, “hey we need to improve in this area” or “I heard that Texas is doing this new program and I think it would work here and let’s work on implementing it.”  There are times when I will have input obviously with the goals that they are coming up with.  But generally I will let them come up with whatever goals they want for their individual areas.  I would say that my personal involvement is probably focused more in the fund raising area.   So I’m a little more involved with Matt Brookshire who does development and since I started as assistant tournament director I’ll always have a tie to the tournament side of it.  Even though from an importance standpoint I’m not sure tournaments ranks #1 in what we do, in fact I know it doesn’t.  But from a visibility standpoint I think our tournament programs are certainly #1 or #2 on what we do.  I am still active in those areas and I a still for public relations reasons attend tournaments and I think it’s important that we are running quality events.  I stay as involved in those areas probably as any.  I like to, I certainly want to know what is going on in every area, but I don’t try to dictate what every area is accomplishing on an annual basis.

Me: As I’ve spent 10 years in the golf business and seen organizations operate, I’ve only heard that you’re doing good things and have had success here in the Indiana section managing your role here.  What would you say are the keys to your success in being a leader of the section and the amateur body?

MD: I would say without a doubt it goes back to what I’ve already talked about and that’s putting the right people in the right positions.  If I didn’t have the staffs that I’ve had over the years that were as dedicated as I am to doing really good work then there’s no way we could have been successful.  But as I said, I just try to get the right people in the right positions and then get out of their way.  I think it has worked for me but I don’t know if that’s the textbook way to do it.  I mean certainly I think they know again that I’m here to help them if they need it and I think that I have enough understanding about what is going on in every area; it’s not like I don’t know what they’re doing.  I certainly know what they’re doing, I trust them that they’re doing a good job and I leave it up to each person in their area to do what they do.  If was trying to micromanage every area having multiple associations, I mean it would be impossible, there’s no way to do it.

Me:  Current leadership models say there are five traits that successful leaders have.  Those traits are being creative, being interactive which is being involved with followers in order to be aware of their needs and motivations.  There is being visionary – a concise statement or description of the direction in which an individual, group or organization in heading.  There is empowering which you have talked about here and is involving and encouraging others and there is being passionate.  Has your leadership position required you to have or to develop all of those traits?  And also are any of those traits not important in your leadership position?

MD: I would agree that all five are important.  As a leader you use different ones of those five at different times.  I think that there are times you try to be visionary and once you come up with a vision then you focus on accomplishing the goals to get there.  I think that if your just sitting back thinking about what the future holds all the time then you’re not going to get very far.  You’ve got to accomplish some things.  So yes, I think all five of those are logical traits and I think that certainly they all come into play at some point in time or another without a doubt.

Me:  Have there been any that you think are more indicative of who you are or that you’ve had to work on to develop?

MD: Read them to me again

Me: They are being creative, being interactive, being visionary, being empowering and being passionate.

MD: Certainly empowering is my number 1.  I think that being interactive would rank high with me and I would think passion would rank high as far as thoroughly enjoying what I do and focusing 100% on what we do in this office and what we can do to get better and how we can achieve our goals.  We try to be creative, but I think what happens in this business more often than not is we steal as many good ideas as you can.  I mean they are out there and it’s just a matter of implementing them to here. So in 20 years, I don’t know if I’ve had a unique idea at all.  We certainly have grown and we’re doing things that a lot of other associations are but I think a vast majority us are stealing ideas so we can do it here.   You find what works and what doesn’t work.  But then I think even when it comes to vision you can talk about what we’ve accomplished here with the academy and the golf office with the multiple organizations working together, the academy and the building we have was kind of copied off of Tennessee, so yes we had the vision to say we can do that here and it can work but it still goes back to looking out there and seeing what’s working and then doing it.  I think when you look at our junior tour programs that’s where the vision has probably come in because I think we’ve been a leader, and I think we’ve been a leader in a lot of areas, but I think we have set the course for how we have run our junior program and it’s been fun to be a part of that.  But I think all five of those play a role in how I work.

Me: How important is credibility in your position?

MD: I think credibility is extremely important. I think that dealing with the different groups that we deal with especially the golf professionals I need to know what I’m talking about when it comes to PGA matters. I need to have proven some of the things that I have predicted or some of the positions that I have taken in the past are correct.  I think credibility with the pros means that I am a decent player and I think that earns me some credibility with pros that they know I’m not a thirty handicapper or I can’t play the game.  I think from a tournament standpoint that helps in course set-up, I think they have trust in me when it comes to golf course set-up.  I think from an amateur standpoint I think credibility means knowing how to run quality events knowing what programs are going to work and knowing what programs aren’t.  I think from a donor standpoint which is a big part of what we do anymore is fund raise for the foundation I think credibility is vital for donors to know that we’re going to be responsible with the money they give us.  We’re going to put it towards programs that they want to support.  Mainly junior focused obviously.  I think credibility is huge no matter what you are doing or who you are, I think it is vital.  I don’t know who I would work with if they didn’t have credibility

Me: How do you develop that credibility?  Does it come quickly?  Does it take a lot of time?

MD:  I think it depends on what area you’re talking about as to how quickly you develop it.  Credibility is based on how well you follow through with things you say you’re going to do.  How honest you are. The sincerity you have.  I think you have to develop it over time obviously.  I think you have to be careful that it’s an ongoing thing to achieve that credibility too.  I mean the first time I don’t do something I say I’m going to do then your credibility takes a hit.  It’s a never ending thing to establish it and then to continue it going. I don’t think it ever ends.

Me:  Power, in our textbook, has been defined as the ability to influence others and comes in five forms.  Coercive – the ability to make threats and things of that nature.  You can reward people.  You have legitimate power which comes with your position or your title.  We’ve got expert power which obviously golf professionals have with their knowledge of the game and you have referent power which comes from others looking up to you or is a result of being a role model.  Credibility is the foundation for successful influence and is made up of the three dynamics of competence, trustworthiness and dynamism which is defined as confidence or assertiveness.  Which factor, power or credibility has been more useful in times when you’ve had to influence others?

MD: I think credibility.  I think that when you try to use power to influence I think more often than not that you may push people in the opposite direction in my experiences.  I think that the credibility goes back to your past history, your dependability.  I think that if your trying to influence someone, showing them that I know what I’m doing and if you make sure it gets done correctly that that is the best way to influence.  I’m in a position where I’ve got five boards of directors that I report to since we’ve got five organizations here and its tough to use power to influence a board because ultimately that’s who you report to, they’re your superiors .  But I’m still in a position where I still try to influence them towards which direction to take, which direction I think is the best route and I think the only way I have been able to do that is my credibility.  I think they trust me in knowing what needs to be done with the separate organizations is what we need to do and which direction we should take and that’s all from credibility. I certainly don’t feel like I wield any power over my board members because I don’t.  It’s the opposite.  I think you have to rely on credibility to get anything done.

Me: What about those who are subordinate to you?  Is it the same case or is there a different dynamic?

MD: I think so.  It’s a slightly different dynamic obviously, they do answer to me ultimately.  The bottom line is if I want something to happen they don’t have a lot of choice but to do it.  But if you want people to perform at their highest level and you want them to buy into whatever you’re trying to convince them to do its still goes back to credibility.  I’ll say, “Trust me on this; this is why we’re doing this and this is why I want you to do it.”  That’s going to go a lot further than do this or you’re out the door.  I don’t think that’s healthy for an organization.  Especially when, as I said, it’s not like we have a lot of front line, labor intensive workers here.  We’ve got educated people here who are all really in charge of their areas and I don’t think people are going to respond very well to, “o.k. do it this way or you’re out of here.”  That doesn’t make any sense to me for our particular industry.   So I would say credibility.

Me: Mike I want to thank you for your time, I really appreciate you taking the time to sit down with me.

MD: No problem, it’s my pleasure.  If there’s anything else I can help you out with please let me know.

Having earned membership into the PGA of America (the world’s largest working professional sports association) and having worked for 10 years as a golf professional at several private country clubs in Arizona and Indiana I echo many of Mike’s feelings towards leadership.  I feel strongly that the key to success is to hire and surround yourself with quality people.  Once you have those people in place your goal as a leader is to support them and give them the resources they need to succeed.  Also as a golf professional it has been one of my priorities to build the highest level of credibility possible.  Being a PGA professional I am labeled as an expert in the game and business in golf.  I am looked up to by amateurs golfers as having a high level of integrity and looked to for my expertise in the game.  Even though Mike is not a PGA member, he certainly is a leader and business professional working in the golf industry and he is highly respected by most if not all of the PGA members in the Indiana Section.  His expertise, knowledge of the current state of the business, and his credibility in fact are why I sought him out in the first place in which to talk about leadership.

1. Which type of leader are you between authoritarian, democratic, and laissez-faire? And why do you think so?

=> It is hard to distinguish myself. I was an authoritarian leader when I made an effort to globalize Taekwondo, while I was a democratic leader when I worked for the International Olympic Committee and international relations. On the other hand, I was a laissez-faire type of leader in order to manage several domestic organizations. In other words, I applied different leadership types in order to do a lot of work at the same time.

2. You were a president of the World Taekwondo Federation, a vice president of the International Olympic Committee, and a president of the Korea Olympic Committee. Do you have special know-how for each organization?

=>  I had to be authoritative, because promoting Taekwondo as the national sport of Korea and as a global sport was like making something out of nothing (He is a founder and the first president of the World Taekwondo Headquarters). And I had to do so in accordance with the conservative culture of the organization. While I applied democratic leadership for IOC, I applied all three of the leadership types for the Korea Olympic Committee. Sometimes I was being authoritarian, while at other times I was being democratic or laissez-faire.

3. You have met a large number of IOC members. Can you explain your know-how that lead to their agreement or to persuade them?

=> The most important thing is keeping a good interpersonal relationship with them. I always tried considering other members based on the spirit of mutual help. Furthermore, I tried to convince them that the relationship with me would always be beneficial to them. The key point in attracting other IOC members was understood the other country’s culture and overcoming the culture gap.

4. Have you ever faced ethical dilemma when you make decision as a leader? What was that?

=>In 2003, Pyeong-Chang focused on the pretense of hosting the winter Olympic Games. It was an ethical dilemma to me, deciding whether I should advise them correctly even if I were going to be criticized by the public.

(Pyeong-Chang has been soliciting to host winter Olympic Games since 2001. They failed two challenges, 2010 Vancouver and 2014 Sochi. Nevertheless, their unlimited challenge is still going for the 2018 winter Olympic Games.)

5. What was the most hard or difficult thing as a leader?

=>It was the most hard and difficult when I had to say, “No” for the development of sports and for all.

6. Finally, what do you think is essential for a leader? Please tell me, as an expert of sports diplomacy.

=> To be a good leader, an individual should have a fine personality and have various abilities including foreign language. In addition, a leader ought to have an open mind apropos of various cultures even though they are unfamiliar to him/her. Leaders should not have fault in financial ability and personality, and should have a moral influence that knows how to be considerate of others.

According to his response, there is no answer to which leadership style is the best. It can be applied in accordance with the characteristics of an organization. Moreover, a leader should be an open-minded person, and have a fine personality. Those are the most necessary skills to be a leader over any other abilities.

Nowadays, he devotes his energy to gathering data regarding the development of Korean sports within global sports through his website (www.kimunyong.com). He has given his whole life for sports. He is almost 80 years old. I would like to applaud his untiring efforts and will for the development of sports. He is not only a living legend in the global sport field, but also a first generation expert of global sports diplomacy. It was very meaningful to me to be able to communicate with him.

But what makes Mr. Schmitt a good interviewee? I think he was a great subject for this project for a few reasons. First off, he represents a very unique education populous, as boarding schools are not as popular due to price and students having to live away from home. Furthermore, because of the unique environment that boarding school students and teachers live in and the academic requirement to participate in athletics (intramural to varsity options), make being an athletic director a very different process in comparison to other high school counterparts. Lastly, Mr. Schmitt’s successes as WRA’s athletic director cannot be denied as the department as a whole has touted a top fifteen nationally ranked boys lacrosse program for the past twenty years, won a conference championship in each sport at least ten times, and has produced a plethora of Division 1 athletes—as well as three Olympians. Therefore, without further ado I would like to shed some light on our conversation, so that we all can get to know Mr. Chuck Schmitt.

RL: What do you think were the positives of being the AD of a boarding school that required athletic participation?

CS: I thought it was overall a positive. Many schools have gotten away from physical education, but more importantly they have gotten away from lifelong lessons like leadership, team work, and building friendships that all can be made on the court or field. Sports are just great in that sense, you can learn so much about yourself and others due to the interactions you have every day at practice. Obviously, there were some negatives, as some kids did not want to participate, but by adding curriculum such as intramurals as well as aerobic, running, weight-lifting, and yoga classes, I think we did a good job of trying to cater to everyone’s interests. 

RL: Obviously you were greatly involved within WRA’s community, but how did you try to serve the community at large in the sense of public leadership?

CS: Well I have to admit that I wasn’t always the best outside of WRA because I became so involved, but I did try to hold free clinics and invite local youth coaches to meet with our coaches. Public leadership is important but I have to admit I was lacking in this area.

RL: What type of communication methods did you use with other coaches and staff within the athletic department?

CS: I held meetings with the entire athletic department every month to ensure that we were all on the same page in terms of our mission and goals for the students. You have to understand in an environment like WRA’s it was essential that athletics were academic as you had to be teaching the same things in terms of philosophy. With this in mind I always had an agenda and led the meetings, but I always wanted to have others in the department give feedback, so I wouldn’t say that I had a sign on my desk that said: “The buck stops here.”

RL: Did you think it was a positive or negative to have all of your coaches also be involved in some other aspect of WRA, whether it is teaching or administrative? Or do you think bringing people from the outside would have been better?

CS: What I loved so much about WRA was the community. I encouraged the fact that all of our coaches were also teachers or administrators because I wanted them to know every aspect of our players lives. There was a time that the school considered changing its policy and allowing outsiders to come in a coach, but luckily it was turned down as, myself, the Head of the School, and the Dean of Students were all against it. Lastly, I think people do not realize that having such a tight nit community made being in a leadership role easier as everyone knew the expectations that the school held in the classroom and on the athletic fields.

RL: What do you think is the biggest reason why sports at WRA have been so successive, even though the academic requirements are so rigorous?

CS: I think it is the kids and the way we operate as an entire school. First off, our kids were driven to be the best they can be in the classroom, in the arts, or in athletics (it really does make the job easier). But most importantly I think that the relationship I had with the Head of the School was important as we both had great passion for both athletics and academics, being on the same page was essential to our success, and I enjoyed talking about all aspects of WRA with him.

RL: In terms of your leadership skills and practices, if you could go back what would you have done differently and why?

CS: Honestly, I do think I would have changed anything. I spent twenty of the best years of my life at WRA and knew when I retired that those twenty would get my through the next twenty of my life. But if I had to change one thing, I would have tried to get out of coaching basketball earlier and settled into the athletic director spot only. I think that might have helped me last longer as the basketball season was long and really took a toll on me physically. Maybe I would have been a better athletic director if I wasn’t always worrying about how to beat the 1-2-2 full court press.

Overall, I learned a lot from Mr. Schmitt during my time at WRA, as I was lucky enough to not only learn from him on the basketball court, but also observed him in his administrative role. Leadership has to change due to its environment, and in Mr. Schmitt’s case, rather than just adapt I think he embraced and thrived as he utilized the atmosphere to get students involved in athletics in a positive sense. In conclusion, I hope that someday I will be able to lead like Mr. Schmitt did, as his attitude, desire, and successes speak for themselves.

The subject I interviewed is Mr. Jeff Hsu. He is the CEO of Integration Sports. He worked as compute engineer in a big organization before he decided to open a sport organization focuses on marketing for tennis and being agents for talented tennis players. His job is to manage employees in Integration Sports, dealing with players, helping our tennis players getting sponsorship deals, and organizing major tennis events.

I choose to interview Mr. Hsu because of his special experience. He used to be a good tennis player when he was young, but his father told him to stop because he think playing professional tennis is not a promising career. Mr. Hsu listened to his father, he stopped playing tennis and dreaming to be a professional tennis player, and became a computer engineer. After several years of working as a computer engineer, he was able to save some money; therefore he decided to open his own company to help talented tennis players in Taiwan.

Below is my transcript for this interview.

Question 1: Why would you want to open a tennis related company and give up the high salary you can earn as a computer engineer?

I wanted to open a company that can help the tennis players in Taiwan. As you know, when I was a child, I was a tennis player. My father wouldn’t let me keep playing, because being athletes in Taiwan was really difficult, and athletes didn’t really have a high social prestige then. Since I was a tennis player, I really want to use my experience and the resources I have to help Taiwan’s tennis players. Maybe I can get them some sponsorship deals that can support them to keep playing tennis.

Question 2: Please tell us some problems you faced while you just opened Integration Sports.

Sport industry is not really developed in Taiwan. When I tell people I am a sport company focusing on tennis, people may have the impression I was not really dependable, and I had difficulties with funding and recruiting. There was even one employee’s mother asked to meet me before she would agree to let her daughter work for me.

Question 3: Do you find group decision-making an effective approach?

Yes, I think especially in small sport organization like Integration Sport, group decision-making is inevitable and critical. Although sometimes group decision-making leads us to blind decision-making, I think most of the time group decision-making is still an effective approach. If employees do not have a trusting relationship, I believe the possibility for blind decision-making is greater.

Question 4: What are your company’s strategies for maintaining the relationship between sponsors and Integration Sports?

I contact with the sponsors of Integration Sport often, and I ask my secretary to remind me every 3 months that I should keep in touch with them. Recently I called one of our sponsors, we had lunch and I listen to his opinions about our sponsorship deal. I think organizations have to communicate with its sponsors, and make sure sponsors are satisfied. If sponsors are satisfied, they’ll keep sponsoring.

Question 5: What will you say to possible sponsors when you want them to sponsor not so famous players?

I will focus on the possible brand image increase this sponsorship deal could offer for their company. And if players are really talented, I will focus on the future developments of the players. When I recommend Jimmy Wang to Lott, I told them he was really talented, although he is injured now, I believe he has the ability to play good again.

Question 6: What is the most difficult aspect for being a leader in Integration Sport?

I think there should be a line to differentiate employees from leaders. It is important for leaders to be respected. But in Integration Sport, perhaps because my age is too close with other managers, sometimes I feel it is difficult to let them listen to me. I think it is hard to be a leader. Leaders can’t be too cold or too considerate, and it takes time to learn how to be a good leader, I am still learning.

I think to open a new sport organization is difficult, and it takes time to build a trusting relationship between employees and leaders, and organizations needs to be patient to develop its loyal customers. Also, I think leaders and employees have totally different views because of their position, they have to communicate with each other to reach the most effective decisions for organizations.

Bolingbrook High School

            I was introduced to Mr. Bernard through a mutual friend and could not think of a better person to interview.  With personal aspirations of becoming a high school athletic director, I knew I could greatly benefit from hearing his life experiences in the field.  He has inspired and provided vision for an endless amount of students and has developed countless lifelong friendships.  His profound knowledge and experience made him a very desirable person for me to interview.  I attempted to gain insight into his experiences and discover the leadership methods that he utilized.

Here is the transcript from our meeting…

Q:  Whether it be authoritarian, democratic, or laissez-faire, how would you best describe your leadership style?

A:  Basically, the way I ran my position in the office was that the door was always open and you are free to come on in whenever.  In fact, I would always have our coaches’ mailboxes in my office because that would draw them into the office and help us communicate on a daily basis.  You never needed to make an appointment to come see me, just come on in and let’s talk about it.  I always had the philosophy that my position was no more important than what you do as a coach.  You don’t work for me, we work for each other.  The other thing, I was going to work as hard for you as you’re willing to work for yourself.  That’s something I’ve always appreciated.   If you come in and you work hard in your program, I’m going to roll up my sleeves and work just as hard for you and we are going to come up with a solution and make it work. To go along with that, I never got into email, if I needed to talk to somebody I would take my wheelchair and go down the hallway and find them wherever they were to make sure that we had eyeball to eyeball contact. I always felt it was important that they could see my body language, hear my tone to help in terms of determining the importance of the communication we were having.  In my experience with athletics, it was always about having to act and react. So ultimately, if I had to pick a particular style to define my leadership I think democratic would probably be the one.

Q:  Briefly describe an ethical dilemma that you have experienced and explain how you went about handling the situation.

A:    Here’s one that’s kind of touchy.  We had an away football game and it was a very cold, rainy October night. Anyway, Monday morning one of our pom pom girls who was at the game comes in and says “Hey Mr. Bernard, one of my fellow pom pom girls was at the game Friday night and she was drunk.”  This girl wasn’t telling me to be a nark or to rat out the girl, but this was the type of girl who was concerned that she was there drinking and was coming to me in terms that we need to help this girl.  She was drunk and nobody in the stands could really identify it then.  Well as it turned out, the girl happened to be the superintendent’s daughter. Now wow, there is a little touchy situation.  So I decide I’m going to go ahead and let the situation play out and treat the girl like any other student.  I was going to write it up and take it to the dean.  Of course, when all the facts came out, they were putting the girl up for expulsion. Pretty tense situation then because the dad who was the superintendent was not appreciating that our principal, dean, and myself were putting his daughter up for expulsion.  I felt very confident that the right thing to do was to just let the process play out. I went to the administrative counsel, got the statements of this girl who witnessed the situation, got the boyfriend’s statement, and so on. Sure enough, when everything came down to it, the boyfriend finally admitted that they were drinking and told that directly to the superintendant. She was not expelled but she was given a ten day suspension as per the board of education.  Talk about getting the cold shoulder from the superintendent for a few weeks. It was a difficult situation but I felt we had one rule book and that one rule book applied to each and every student in the building. In the end, it was the right thing to do and I felt comfortable with our actions.

Q:  What type of emphasis did you place on creating diversity within your department?

A:  I always welcomed considering minorities to hire for teaching and coaching positions.  We had a diverse student body and I embraced diversity in our hiring practices.  I also had a favorable stance in hiring our past graduates from Bolingbrook. Some schools refrain from that because they don’t want to be in a position where they are inclined to hire all of their graduates.  But, I encouraged it because I always felt it helped when coaches approached a kid who doubted his ability to succeed, the coach can say “don’t tell me you cant, I used to be a student here and I thought the same thing and found out I could it, so you can do the same thing.” I though they had a real connection because they knew the community they grew up in and had the same experiences. I always tried creating diversity in terms of minorities and gender. For example, we’ve always kept our PE department diverse by having seven male teachers along with seven females. I tried to maintain that same approach in terms of our coaches. So I was always proud to say we kept a good balance. It was definitely a challenge at times but I always searched for individuals who could be a great inspiration for the students of Bolingbrook.

Q:  Name a person who has been a tremendous impact in your life.

A:  I honestly can’t really say there is one person. I think there have been many individuals you have been an impact because of the approach I took.  I kept my mouth shut, my ears open, my eyes open, and whenever I went to Athletic Director meetings, I was going to listen, learn, and ask a lot of questions.  Other leaders are who really impacted me because I found out the dos and don’ts of how to do the job.  So a lot of those guys were my mentors. I wasn’t afraid to pick up the phone and call them to ask a question.  They were very gracious in sharing advice and providing tips.  So, I can’t come up with one name or individual but I just was impacted by the people who had been doing it. 

Q:  What was your most rewarding experience in your time being an AD? Or what do you appreciate the most?

A: Relationships. Working side by side with different teachers, I associated socially and professionally over the years.  I’ve seen their kids born, their kids grow up, their kids graduate, been to their graduation parties, and then been invited to their weddings. All the relationships I’ve developed over those years with the kids of teachers, ex students, and athletes are the things I’m most proud of.  Even today, we still stay in contact and get together and that’s nice. In addition, the relationships with other athletic directors was really a beautiful thing. You get to know them, you get to know their family, and I still stay in touch with a lot of retired athletic directors.  I still cherish those relationships and really appreciate having had the opportunity to build those.

Q: How did you relay your most important core values or vision to the coaches or athletes?

A:  I prided myself on not breaking the rules. I was determined never to have someone say “you know Bolingbrook, they bend the rules, they break the rules, they recruit, they play ineligible players, or they have no discipline and bad kids,” because that’s a reflection of me. Whatever a gal or guy does it reflects on me, what kind of a person I am and so I always took that very, very seriously. I’m proud of the fact that in 27 years, anytime there was a problem I slapped my hand before someone could slap my hand. I went to bed at night and closed my eyes knowing I did the right thing.  Our coaches knew never to come into the office and ask for some type of bending of the rules.  My mom and dad raised me a certain way to become the type of person I am today, I would have been ashamed to ever bring negative associations to their name and I sure didn’t want to do anything like that.  We were going to win and do it the right way in everything we did and I made sure our coaches and players knew that.

Q: What advice would you give someone new to being an Athletic Director or holding any leadership role?

A:  For an AD, I would say this; you have to really love kids.  You have to really enjoy being in their company. It’s either a job or it’s a love affair.  Teaching or coaching has to be because it’s a love affair; it can’t be because of money. I enjoyed doing what I did, I enjoyed working and teaching kids and that was my life. So you got to enjoy being around kids and helping them improve, knowing that their going to make mistakes.  That’s how they learn.  You have to give them a chance to grow up and mature just like you had a chance.  Also, if you’re in a relationship with a girlfriend, spouse, wife or husband, they have to understand the amount of time that it’s going to take to be a coach or an AD.  You have to have a special person in your life that understands the time it is to do the job right and they can accept that. It is very time consuming and in order to do it right, you have to be there. You have to let all the kids know that you care about all the sports, whether its football and basketball or girls cross country.  Those two things are the most important things.  Not only do you have to enjoy the company of kids but you have to be able to work and get along with people whether it is secretaries, custodians, cafeteria staff, and bus drivers, anyone involved really.  You have to let everyone know that you appreciate them being here and what they are doing.  You have to enjoy working with other people who are doing their job and don’t belittle anyone. There’s no totem pole, everybody’s the same, we’re all trying to do something special and that’s work with kids.    

I am very grateful that I had the opportunity to meet Mr. Bernard and conduct this interview.  In my short time meeting with him, I learned a great deal and really enjoyed listening to him share his experiences. He was very knowledgeable and provided great insight into the world of an athletic director by providing both the good and bad aspects of the industry.  Some of the key points that I took away from our interview were the importance that should be placed on how to treat people, having integrity to do things the right way, working as hard as you can in your duties, and most importantly have fun in everything you do.  One of the main things I walked away knowing from this interview was that Mr. Bernard truly values the relationships he’s developed and has always had a burning desire to influence the lives of others.  I believe that all of his accomplishments are a direct reflection of his ability to lead others and shed light on the influence he has had within the community.  I have the utmost respect for Mr. Bernard and it was definitely my privilege to meet him.

Brian Gilbert is a certified PGA Professional and currently my boss at Dick’s Sporting Goods here in Indianapolis. Gilbert learned the game of golf from his dad at the age of five and has played the game for over 33 years now. Brian originally attended Ferris State University in hopes of pursuing a profession in graphic design, but soon realized that a career in the golf industry better suited him. In 1996, Brian Gilbert enrolled in the PGM (Professional Golf Management) program in Port St. Lucie, Florida. He was able to finish the course load and the playing ability test in six years graduating in 2002.

Brian Gilbert, soon after graduating from the PGM program, took a position as the head golf professional at an 18 hole course in Fort Wayne, Indiana named Donald Ross Golf Course. Gilbert managed 12 to 15 employees throughout the golf season. Some of Gilbert’s major responsibilities as head professional included managing the pro shop, coordination of outings and tournaments, and the management of food and beverage. For anyone interested in a potential career in the golf business, this interview with Brian Gilbert gives insight into the management style and the leadership tactics he used as the head golf professional of Donald Ross Golf Course.

Q1: When did you know you wanted to be in the golf business?

“After my first year as a graphics art major, it didn’t take me long to find out I wasn’t an artist.”

Q2: What interested you about the game of golf?

“Each and every time you go out to play there is always something different that happens. I stand on the first tee and ask myself; what is it going to be today?”

Q3: What motivated you to become a PGA Professional? Was it someone or something that inspired you?

“I love the game and like to help people improve their game.”

Q4: What was the biggest obstacle you had to overcome in becoming a PGA Professional?

“My biggest obstacle was the playing ability test. I think I took it six times. There is a target score for each course and I would miss the score by five or six shots. I finally was able to pass the P.A.T. and got my PGA card.”

Q5: Were the employees/members of the course you managed very diverse in regards to race, ethnicity, etc.? Why do you think this was?

“Yes to all the above. The course I managed was inexpensive to play. Memberships were reasonable too. Anyone looking for a deal could find one at our course.”

Q6: As your first position as a head professional at a golf course, what methods did you use to over the perceived lack of credibility among employees and members?

“During the first few months, I booked an outing on a Saturday morning. The members were upset because they thought they couldn’t play. We did a modified shotgun start so the members could play and the course had more revenue due to the outing playing at the same time.”

Q7: Name a leader in the public eye or in your personal experience that had a special effect on you. What qualities did they possess that made you think they were a great leader?

“My father got me started playing at a young age. He was also my high school golf coach. Later he became the athletic director. He ran the athletic department by the book. If kids got in trouble, he would pull them from their team no matter how unpopular the decision was.”

Q8: Would you consider yourself an authoritarian, democratic, or Laissez Faire type of leader. Why?

“Democratic. I have my opinions, but I am not afraid to listen to other’s ideas and will choose what works best for the group.”

Q9: Have you ever supervised an irresponsible or lazy employee? What challenges did you face? How were you able to overcome them?

“I have. The employee kept showing up late for work and goofing off a lot. I had numerous meetings and conversations with him.”

Q10: Explain a crisis you have faced as the head professional at a golf course. What plan of action did you take to overcome this crisis?

“During my first summer, the front nine flooded and we were unable to play that side until September. For four months, we had to revise the league schedules and modify the outings.”

Q11: Recall a situation where you had to take the lead even though you weren’t originally appointed the leader. How were you able to do this and was it successful?

“At Fox Run Golf Club, the head professional was unable to make it into work on a day we had a tournament. I was thrown in the fire. I had to take the lead and delegate duties form making score cards and cart signs to scoring the event at the end of the day. Things turned out okay. It didn’t run the smoothest, but the members had a great time and all duties were completed.”

The interview with Brian Gilbert ended up running very smoothly and was an overall success. It was very interesting to hear Brian speak of the day-to-day operations associated with running a golf course. Some of the situations he faced as head professional were extremely unpleasant. Understanding how he was able to overcome those situations was very interesting and beneficial. I would like to thank Brian Gilbert for his participation in this interview. His experiences and viewpoints were much appreciated.

During his years in Bloomington, Donovan was an assistant coach at Bloomington South High School, helping them win the Class 4A State Championship in 2009.  He was also an intern at IU’s athletic department and an assistant coach for Indiana Elite AAU basketball team.  I felt Donovan is important enough to interview because immediately graduating college he was put into a very stressful and high demanding job at Marquette High School where his leadership traits are going to be the reason he is so successful in life.

The phone interview went as follows:

Gaddy: Donovan, can you tell me what leadership philosophy you use most often as head coach?  What about as assistant athletic director?

Garletts: Well, the most important philosophy I have on leadership in this program goes for both jobs as head coach and assistant athletic director.  On a daily basis I have to stress to everyone the importance of effective communication.  Without effective communication there are too many mistakes that happen internally; that goes for a small high school all the way up to Big Ten Football.  It’s all the same in that matter.

Gaddy:  How does your leadership philosophy differ from what you might call your “leadership style”?

Garletts:  My philosophy of stressing strong and effective communication ties directly into my leadership style.  Without effective communication from everyone involved in our program, we wouldn’t be able to get anything accomplished.  I guess this turns into my leadership style on and off the court with my athletes, as well.  Effectively communicating to them certain ethics or standards off the court or certain plays during a game with only 5 seconds left when we have the ball.  Effective communication can be the difference maker between who wins and who loses that game.

Gaddy: What do you consider to be the primary ethical and moral considerations you face in your role as head coach and assistant athletic director?

Garletts:  Without a doubt it would be keeping the things that my players or students communicate to me to myself.  Just in the few weeks that I’ve been here at Marquette, I’ve had players tell me things that have been hard to keep to myself but I just have to keep saying to myself that I have to keep them inside for the betterment of the team and the individual student, as well.

Gaddy: Out of Covey’s seven habits of highly effective people, which one do you feel to be the most important in your role as head coach? As assistant athletic director?

Gaddy: His seven habits are: 1) Be proactive 2) Begin with the end in mind 3) Put first things first 4) Think win/win 5) Seek first to understand, then to be understood 6) Synergize 7) Sharpen the saw (renewal of physical, social/emotional, spiritual, and mental dimensions of the self)

Garletts: I think the first one is most important.  Being proactive.  You know, while they are all excellent habits to have, being proactive can put you in a better situation more times than the other habits, I think.  When a person is proactive, that means they are ready for anything.

Gaddy:  Why do you believe that public leadership is one of the most visible and dynamic forms of social influence?  In what ways do you use public leadership in your job as head coach?

Garletts: A: As head coach, you are in the spotlight.  With that being said, you must be a positive leader and know that people are always watching what you do.  What you say, also.

Gaddy:  What do you think is the single most important trait to becoming a good leader?  How have you used this trait in your position as assistant athletic director?

Garletts:  I am clear in my goals.  Easy and effective communication.  I have been able to communicate to players or parents the goals of our program for the upcoming year.

This interview with Donovan Garletts was easy to see what he valued most in terms of qualities in a leader.  The point he kept stressing over the entire interview was easy and effective communication.  He spoke about this on numerous occasions mentioning that it was necessary from the people he worked with professionally all the way to communicating to the parents and athletes.

Trudy Norton has been the assistant athletic director of Gary Community Schools for the past five years. She oversees several athletic directors at schools all over the city of Gary. She attends state meetings where she has the opportunity to learn from top-level athletic officials and expand her knowledge as an athletic administrator, and use that knowledge to enhance athletics in Gary. These meetings involve tournament scheduling, eligibility, and official rules and regulations.

                Trudy is significant to me because she has played an instrumental role in my present and future career endeavors. Networking with her and other athletic administrators all over the country has afforded me the opportunity to attend Indiana University and not only obtain a master’s degree and the opportunity to pursue my Ph.D. Her sincere efforts and advice has led me to the position I am currently striving to attain.

                Key points from interview….

• Tasks
  •  monitor student- athlete failure rates and promote a philosophy of academic achievement
  • Formulate policies to promote a healthy atmosphere for competitive athletics
  • Enforce rules and regulations pertaining to coaching ethics
  • Organize and implement in-service for district coaching staff
• Uses democratic leadership style
• Empowering others is central part of her leadership style because she benefited from those opportunities during job progression.
• Goal: To obtain the funding that will allow us to train and compete at the levels of regional schools such Valparaiso, Lake Central, and Portage.
• Assesses others’ performance based on team’s athletic AND academic productivity

    Coming from the same community and holding her position as an African-American female is very inspiring to me. She is proof that diversity is ever-present in the sport industry and that aspiring to attain administrative positions is not far from my reach. This interview has given me a lot of relevant information about the ins and outs of high school athletics and what it takes to obtain and maintain a high position in this particular field of sport.

“Plan your work and work your plan”- Vince Lombardi

Interview

Interviewee: Trudy Norton

Position: Assistant Athletic Director of Gary Community Schools

Question 1: What are your tasks and responsibilities as an assistant athletic director?

“I have a laundry list of duties as an assistant AD. Currently, my primary tasks include:

• Monitoring student- athlete failure rates and promoting a philosophy of academic achievement
• Formulate policies to promote a healthy atmosphere for competitive athletics
• Enforce rules and regulations pertaining to coaching ethics
• Organize and implement in-service for district coaching staff

Question 2:  Please describe your leadership philosophy.

“I am a huge of fan of Vince Lombardi’s quote, “Plan your work and work your plan.” I believe that mapping out a destination is important. You need to know where you’re going before you can pack.”

Question 3: What type of leadership style do you use primarily? (Authoritarian, Democratic, Laissez Faire) Why?

“I use a democratic leadership style because it allows my AD’s and I the opportunity to collaborate and collectively improve athletics in Gary. Providing them the opportunity to be innovative and self-confident has improved many areas in our district.”

Question 4: Do you feel that it is important to empower others? Why or why not?

“Empowering others is central part of my leadership style because I benefited from those opportunities during job progression. Without the empowerment of my previous supervisors, I would not be in the position I am in. People must be given the opportunity to display their best skills and develop skills that will advance them in their careers.”

Question 5: What is one of your main goals for Gary Community School athletics? Please explain

“To obtain the funding that will allow us to train and compete at the levels of regional schools such Valparaiso, Lake Central, and Portage.”

Question 6: How do you assess the work of athletic directors at individual schools?

“I like to focus on one assessment measure each term. Recently, I have been asking high school AD’s to increase their department’s fundraising efforts to enhance facilities. I usually measure this by the amount of fundraising dollars they accumulate annually and what that financing is used for.”

Often times I am intrigued by individuals who have assumed leadership roles at a young age.  Coach Haught is an extremely interesting person because he has been given high levels of responsibility at a very young age.  At age 17 he coached an 18U girl’s national team with Elite Sports Ohio.  Additionally, as an individual who held a number of high school and conference records as a high school basketball player, he chose to forgo scholarship offers from numerous colleges to instead focus on his coaching career. 

 Interview Questions and Responses

Q1: What set you on the path of coaching and taking a leadership role in sports?

A: “My interest in volleyball started when my dad was the head volleyball coach at Minerva.  He has been a varsity coach in basketball, volleyball, and softball for almost thirty years.  As I grew up it became clear that coaching was the career I wanted.”

 Q2: Tell me about a time where you had an ethical or moral dilemma.  How was it resolved?  Looking back would you handle it the same way?

A:  “Coaching high school and club I have often encountered parents who try to influence my decision making and coaching in order to benefit their daughters.  I have had individuals try to gain favor by offering to pay for items on trips or offer extra benefits.  I have always believed in maintaining the highest level of professional behavior and politely decline any offers to purchase my food or hotel rooms, etc. I make sure to leave no room for even the consideration of an impropriety. 

 Q3.    What are your goals? What past experiences have molded those goals?

This is a tough question.  As I prepared to enter the college coaching ranks I always thought my goal would be to coach a major program in the NCAA DI Final Four.  But after spending time here at the DIII level and working with my head coach and getting her perspective after playing and coaching at the DI level, I feel like I might be better suited for a smaller program.  My goal is to be named a head coach within the next three years and ideally stay in Ohio.

Q4. In regards to your leadership style do you rely on the functional or situational approach?

A.My leadership style relies on the situational approach.  I think that every situation is different and requires a different touch.  You cannot effectively communicate with every player, parent, or administrator in the same way.  You cannot solve every problem or issue in the same way. 

Q5. What makes you a good leader and good communicator?

A. “I would say the number one aid to my leadership skills is my confidence.  I grew up in a coach’s house and I’ve learned that you need to stick to your guns if you have been charged with leading a program and helping young athletes grow.  I have confidence in my decision making skills and my knowledge of the game.  I think that confidence comes across on the court.  As far as communication goes I am brutally honest.  At times I might be too abrupt, but individuals have always known they can come to me for the truth.  That trust has helped me to communicate openly and honestly with players, parents, and administrators.”

Q6. What would be some advice that you could offer to an individual looking to break into collegiate coaching or administration?

 A. First and foremost I would say do not be afraid to take risks.  I literally fell into this job after going up to my boss at a clinic and asking her how I could make the jump into the college ranks.  She told me her old assistant had just taken a job at Eastern Michigan and asked if I would be interested working with her.  Now, we are on a three year plan for her to move to have me ready to take over my own program.  I’ve made some sacrifices and it has been uncomfortable adjusting to things at once, but at the same time I’m being stretched and growing.

 After sitting down with Coach Haught it is clear that this is a young man with vision, goals, and a knack for leadership.  His confidence and ability to effectively communicate has allowed him to accomplish quite a bit in a short career.  It would seem to me that he will continue to grow as a coach and leader as he gets more experience.  It would not surprise me to see one of his teams playing in the NCAA DI Final Four if that is the path he chooses to go.  His leadership and communication style will be one of his biggest assets in continuing to progress on his career path.

Mark oversees all of the day to day operations of the facility and coordinates all of the events that take place at the facility. He is also the person in charge of the hiring and firing process at the facility.  He takes on a lot of responsibility when it comes to creating a strong work force and a group of individuals that he can trust.  He is someone who has put his time in within the sport industry to get to the position that he is currently at.

Overall, it seems that Mark really enjoys the position he is at right now.  He strongly believes that constant communication with employees and members of the facility is what makes him a good leader.  He feels strong communication between staff members is what makes a great work environment and that makes his role as a leader much easier because everyone trust him in his decision making skills.

Questions

1.  Have you ever had to make an ethical decision since you have been in your position?

Answer: Yes, I have been put in the position a couple of times were I had to terminate a couple employees even though I really liked having them on our staff.  They made decision that were bad in taste to some, but I had no choice in keeping them even though it did cross my mind just to try and resolve it within the staff.

2.    What do you enjoy most about being in your position?

Answer:  I enjoy the day to day interaction with our staff. It is an upbeat environment. There are also members of the facility that I enjoy speaking with everyday.

3.    What do you least enjoy about your job duties?

Answer: Dealing with the parents of basketball players during our weekend tournaments.  They all think their child is the next Michael Jordan and they expect special privileges from us.

4.    Are you looking to stay in your current position or make a move?

Answer:  I like where I am at right now and have no immediate plans of moving, but I could definitely see myself pursuing a different path sometime in the future.

5.    Do you think you take a traits, functional, or situational approach to leadership?

Answer:  I feel that situational approach is the best way to define my leadership because this job is full of constant situations that need solved were I am usually the one making the ultimate deciding factor for a solution.  I do feel though that I do take a functional approach as well because I am constantly communicating with my staff to develop a strong relationship with them.

6.    How do you create a work environment that all of your staff likes to work in?

Answer:  I make sure that I talk with all my staff everyday and ask them how there day is going or any plans they might have coming up.  I also try and set up weekly times were our staff can go out and put themselves in an environment outside of work so that we can understand each other a little better.