Hello CMAA!
As 2022 nears an end, I want to share some of our accomplishments from the past year. You will receive a more thorough update in CMAA’s Annual Report, released near the World Conference. I will also be sharing more in my State of the Association live at Conference. Next month, I will share our areas of focus for 2023.
In the meantime, below are several of our 2022 operational highlights:
- The lifeblood of any member organization is its members, and we are pleased that over the past year, we welcomed 900-plus members and now have more than 7,300 CMAA members. These numbers are both significant and record highs. My thanks to CMAA Chapters and the online member joining process that debuted on September 1, 2021.
- One of the CMAA educational programs members continue to find valuable are our Summits. We now offer several distinct Summits and continue to look to develop a new one about every two years. After various discussions, next up will be an HR and culture-focused Summit to be offered in the second half of 2023. Development of this program will focus on clubs but will differ from what might already exist in the market.
- After the successful completion of a Key Club Performance Indicators Task force and white paper, we turn our focus to development of a capital funding white paper to be a complementary piece to the Capital Improvements Summit. The white paper will be ready to go when the corresponding Summit is conducted again in 2023.
- Development of a standardized club internship program to benefit student members and others interested in pursuing a career in club management is nearing completion and will be launched in 2023. Clubs will have the opportunity to offer a CMAA-verified club internship program. The member work group and all involved are expecting that this program will create better consistency among internship programs, create a framework for those who wish to develop sustainable programs, and create more retention for students interested in club careers.
- We continue to create alignment across CMAA on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) efforts via the Diversity & Equity in Leadership Task Force and National Committees in 2022, according to the Board’s directive. The Task Force completed its initial DEI work, and a proposed CMAA bylaw change looks to incorporate DEI efforts into the Strategic Planning Committee’s responsibilities. In addition, a DEI Benchmarking tool was launched in October to help a club assess where it is on its own DEI journey. This three-year project will also provide CMAA with some aggregate data to help us in our efforts to determine the next steps in supporting clubs.
- While CMAA has offered a 401k club retirement program for some time, we have now leveraged the expertise of those that support this program to help members with their own basic retirement needs. Financial planning has been integrated into the Business Management Institutes (BMI), shared in Conference sessions and webinars, and offered as one-on-one assistance.
- As our current mortgage note nears its end in the fourth quarter 2023, including a significant balloon payment requirement, a decision was made to refinance immediately. With interest rates rising in 2022, the Board and staff acted quickly to complete the endorsement of a new loan to lock in more reasonable rates for the next decade.
- Strategic plans were a focus this past year. In the area of CMAA and The Club Foundation, it was about execution. For our Wine Society and Club Spa & Fitness Association, it was about taking a strategic dive into reviewing everything done, including legal and growth challenges, and charting new paths forward. The plan for the Wine Society going forward is completed and being executed. The Annual Wine Auction benefitting The Club Foundation has been retired, but plans are in place to leverage auction packages to support the Wine Dinner at World Conference. More news on plans for the Club Spa & Fitness Association and the launch of a Club Wellness Community is exciting year-end news with more details forthcoming shortly.
Beyond our strategic goals for 2022, we also focused on the further development and execution of many BMI programs, summits, and conferences.
Students were a big focus this past year as our team pushed to increase the interest in clubs with more emphasis on this vital demographic to come in 2023. Job postings on CMAA’s Club Careers were also up, reflecting the movement of professionals to different clubs or retiring, which I don’t think is surprising after everyone weathered the storm of a pandemic.
Like clubs, CMAA’s costs rose for everything this past year, including goods and labor, but I am pleased to report we continue our eight-year streak of ending with a positive bottom line. I must add a big thanks to the CMAA National Headquarters team for being such great stewards of the association and having largely stayed intact through COVID. I am thankful for a seasoned group of professionals that is dedicated to the members and the positive growth of CMAA on your behalf.
That gets you up to speed on this past year. Look for more thorough reviews in the next few months, but I end this year pleased with where we are as an organization. Thanks for your continuous support and Happy Holidays!
Jeff Morgan, FASAE, CAE
CMAA President & CEO