By Gene Garner, February 8, 2021
What do we need in a General Manager?
It’s difficult to discuss the characteristics we want in a General Manager without sounding trite, hackneyed, or obligatory; you choose the adjective. But there are some traits I think are essential when dealing with our problems and the Property Owners. I’ll try to list the ones I believe are most important.
- Good Communication Skills—the ability to listen.
- Understanding Human Nature—the ability to see other points of view.
- Humility—willing to ask questions.
- Responsible—accepting ownership of successes and failures.
- Team Player—actively helping for a shared goal.
There are more I’m sure, but I’ve chosen these five because they were so lacking in our last four GM/CEOs. Every effective leader that I’ve worked with, in the military and civilian world, had these traits and I think that’s why they were successful.
The biggest problem with my list is there’s no reliable way to measure these qualities until you can observe the candidate for a reasonable length of time. Resumes have been overblown and unreliable for many years and talking with a potential candidate may showcase their technical abilities but not the leadership skills we need.
Perhaps at the end of the first year there could be a consensus of the BOD and Property Owners on how compatible the “fit” would be. Also stressing the qualities we need to potential candidates would give them a road map of where we want to go. The ability to keep their bosses (the POA & Owners) happy is more important than knowing how to repair a street or replace a culvert. There are Property Owners that were former HR specialists that could assist in the interviews, in my experience they have a better insight when hiring than most operational managers.
If we must have a GM we need to invest in the extra effort and planning because without it we’ll be back to where we are now—at a loss for what went wrong.
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We would love for you to chime in and let us know what you think would make a great General Manager for Hot Springs Village. When posting comments, please use your first and last name. Pseudonyms and anonymous posts are not being accepted.
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Linda Van Scotter
02/08/2021 — 11:52 am
Who picked the last one?
John Szczepaniak
02/08/2021 — 12:55 pm
Did we really gain anything substantial buying Lesley out? She must be laughing at us now.
jerry jay carroll
02/08/2021 — 3:43 pm
She was laughing all the time at how easy it was to fool the rubes.
Sam Taylor
02/08/2021 — 4:19 pm
YES, she was on a CMP high and there was no coming down from it. She was taking the anti-Trump route and was resisting everything the new board stood for. It would have just gotten more unpleasant with her remaining in that position.
Tom Blakeman
02/08/2021 — 1:52 pm
When major corporations make hiring decisions they usually follow the “best and brightest” rule. Best usually means any candidates considered have been notably successful for a lengthy amount of time in a responsible position. This tends to exclude the ‘job jumpers’ or those who might be ‘flash in the pan’ types. Brightest typically means the candidates have, at some point, obtained an advanced degree in something from a top tier university. The “something” usually doesn’t matter. It is the idea that they actually had the smarts and perseverance to get the degree in the first place that matters.
It is also a given that general officers in the military or general managers in corporations have previously had (or been given) a variety of responsible work experiences. These ‘generals’ have had exposure and experience in more than one discipline, e.g. sales, IT, marketing, procurement, engineering, etc. ‘One trick ponies’ usually don’t make it or, if they do, they run afoul of the “Peter Principal” in short order.
HSV, by contrast, does not seem to have followed the above principles in the past. There appears to have been a tendency to be swayed by fluff, bluster and window dressing (or the ‘good ole boy’ syndrome) rather than hard qualifications. There has also been a tendency to want to ‘promote from within’; altruistic maybe, but not necessarily a sound business decision. We need a “best and brightest” next time around.
Morris polston
02/09/2021 — 12:23 pm
Tom
Good observations.. I would like to see a Gm with turnaround experience . Like it or not we are in near receivership if we stay on current course. Most any Manager can manage an operations where an organization sop and best practices are in good order. We don’t have that in Current HSV organization. I had the opportunity to work with these types of Gm in the McKinsey consulting groups. It’s a speciality.
My opinion Mr. King used the hsv negative feedback as a red herring. He did a poor job in doing his due diligence on HSV before accepting the job. Once he saw the financial position of HSV he was in over his head.. He had no turnaround expertise.. Blaming HSV residents was a convenient
Excuse. Just my comments- I always enjoying reading your insights .
steve bylow
02/09/2021 — 6:58 pm
Morris – I agree prior “turnaround” experience is critical. I also agree with your “red herring” comment. I can’t recall any high potential executive resigning because they got complaints from the public, employees, union… Maybe King was not as high potential as I thought.
On the flip side, it would not be surprise me if he simply got a great offer from another organization and simply decided to “tap out” and blame past Board Members and a folks in the public. I may be wrong but it will be interesting to see.
Steve
Cami Dubbs
02/08/2021 — 2:03 pm
Have we ever considered to hire a property management firm? There are be plenty of property management firms out there, I am not sure is this community is too large for most firms, but I am curious if this was ever considered in the past.
We are new to the Village and moved here a year ago.
Ray Lehman
02/08/2021 — 2:04 pm
I agree with the 5 you listed. I 100% agree with communication being #1. I didn’t get the feeling Mr. King was a very good listener.
steve bylow
02/08/2021 — 3:45 pm
Linda – The Board interviewed the top candidates and made the decision. I am familiar with the process because I volunteered my time along with several folks with significant Executive Recruiting experience to support the Board due to the fact the HR Manager had resigned.
In regard to the question, “What’s needed in a GM?”; in my opinion the top 3 criteria needed for the GM position at this time are:
1. A Breadth of Relevant Experience – unfortunatly many of the problems we have today were created because well-intentioned folks without relevant experience were selected for critical POA positions. In addition, well intentioned Board members with limited business experience componded the problems.
2. Authenticity – you can B.S. folks for awhile but you can’t build trust and a high performing team without being authentic.
3. Composure/Self Awareness – Yes many folks in the Village have time on their hands and a lot of opinions. An effective GM recognizes it is their job to Lead, effectively communicate, and not get ruffled by naysayers.
Bottomline – to address the current challenges in the Village, I believe it is critical we recruit a seasoned GM with a breadth of relevant experience.
Thanks
Steve
steve bylow
02/08/2021 — 5:54 pm
OOPS – I forgot to mention; if the majority of Board Members (and/or new Board Members) feel they are qualfied to provide day to day oversight of the GM, the job description should be “watered-down” and just place an ad on Indeed or eliminate the position as others have mentioned. No need for an elaborate search, the last thing you want to do is hire a highly qualified candidate and then unintentionally undermine them from succeeding.
John Szczepaniak
02/08/2021 — 4:28 pm
I think Mr King’s failure was to focus on the food and recreation side of this place and made the resident side of it a lower priority to his demise. It will take a special person to handle both sides of the Village business. Just my guess and I’ll probably be told I’m wrong.
Walter Chance
02/08/2021 — 6:52 pm
Good communication skills, Multi-tasked, ability to take the lead with respect to the BODs objectives. This falls on the BODs who employ the GM, and not the GM to prioritize his or her priorities. Example. F&B during a pandemic was not a good business decision as a priority. Real Estate and the selling and marketing of lots. Promotion of golf. Maintenance. Maintenance. Maintenance. Listening to the recommendations of committees and acting on there top recommendations. Financial frugality and transparency.
Gene Garner
02/09/2021 — 9:49 am
It’s encouraging to see so many Property Owners are interested in the skills we want for our next GM. That being said I would like to expand on a statement I made;
“Resumes have been overblown and unreliable for many years and talking with a potential candidate may showcase their technical abilities but not the leadership skills we need.”
Below is the announcement by the HSV BOD in 2013 of the new GM with his qualifications;
http://insidehotspringsvillage.blogspot.com/2013/04/new-gm-for-village.html
His job experience, education and accolades tick off all the right boxes but his actual job performance left much to be desired. While these mile markers are important they don’t tell the whole story and have to be taken with a grain of salt. Do we want to make the same mistake again?
The point I’m trying to make is there’s no guarantee of success from the noteworthy resume and impressive interview. We need a “get acquainted” period where either party can opt out if they’re not satisfied. Perhaps a clause in the employment contract could offer a
no-fault cancellation.—Gene
Tom Blakeman
02/09/2021 — 5:06 pm
Gene – I totally agree with the “get acquainted” period concept. I totally disagree that the 2013 hire ticked off any of the right boxes. He was a BS artist though.
Gene Garner
02/10/2021 — 8:55 am
Tom, I agree with your description but here’s what POA Board President Jerry Kosoglow said, “Twiggs was one of several candidates all of whom had excellent credentials and experience. David was picked as clearly the top candidate after two lengthy interviews with Board members and extensive background and reference checks.”
In the BOD’s opinion he “ticked off all the right boxes”.—Gene
steve bylow
02/09/2021 — 7:24 pm
Gene – While creative, a “get acquainted” period would greatly reduce the probability of HSV getting a high quality candidate unless it also included a signficant severance. Most folks who are not retiree eligible would be leary of such an arrangement.
In my opinion; King had the turnaround experience the Board was looking for and was well vetted (e.g. pre screening, behavior interview questions, reference checks…). I believe things got sideways due to different expectations related to day to day oversight between the Board Chair and Mr. King.
For the salary HSV is offering, we can attract other quality candidates with turnaround experience. I hope the current and new Board Members agree turnaround experience is critical. If they don’t, then I’m afraid it will be a repeat of the past.
Steve
Gene Garner
02/10/2021 — 9:22 am
Steve, you’re right “Most folks who are not retiree eligible would be leary of such an arrangement.” Not being a lawyer I don’t know the proper wording for an employment contract allowing either side to gracefully cancel.
Perhaps a one year contract with “a review of performance and renegotiation” clause. There must be some boiler plate expression that protects the employer from legal jeopardy if an employee doesn’t meet expectations (we’ve been down that road before). I’m sure Rose Law knows how to phrase the caveat.—Gene
Morris polston
02/09/2021 — 11:10 am
Interesting GM comments . My take is a bit different. The humanistic skills are important but at this point in HSV we need an interim GM that has experience in streamline operations, problem solving, prioritizing projects that are required to get HSV into a sustainable position. Requires a priority in Quantitative skills. If HSV were a corporation it would be a prime candidate for a take over.. We need an interim GM with re-structuring type of skills to get HSV back into a sustainable position .
1. GM with high quantitative ability to analyze a bankrupt organization and provide the leadership to define the actions that need to be implemented to right the ship. Including the formulation , implementation and recommended controls for implementing the required strategies
2. GM must have Tension Balancing skills. Conflicts will continue to exist between the BOD, staff management, HSV residents .the ability to management these tensions will be critical. Performance and results will help balance the tensions
3. GM . Communication open and transparent .. ability to articulate the why and how the required actions need to be taken to ensure HSV sustainability .
jeerryjaycarroll
02/09/2021 — 12:10 pm
A lot of corporate bafflegab there. Past boards have been mesmerized by this kind of gaseous lingo.
steve bylow
02/09/2021 — 7:41 pm
Jerry – I agree some past Board members have been mesmerized by “corporate bafflegab” because they did not have enough corporate experience to expose it. That is why I believe it is critical to at least have several seasoned executives (like Dick Garrison) on our Board.
Morris – your three items are spot on.
Tom Blakeman
02/10/2021 — 6:45 am
Well then Steve. That begs the question: Did board members, “seasoned” or otherwise, and those “several folks with significant Executive Recruiting experience”, screw up when they hired the last GM? It would appear so. And no, it wasn’t the property owner’s fault he left.
steve bylow
02/10/2021 — 8:39 am
One thing I’ve learned through my career is a lot of stuff happens behind the scenes. I don’t have all the facts so here is my guess at what may have happened, who “screwed up”, and what could be improved;
1. If King really resigned because he got criticized too much then I “screwed up” because I did not find any data points during the screening process to identify the weakness. King was aware folks in the Village have a lot of time on their hands to be vocal.
2. If King resigned because he felt he was mico-managed by the Board Chair then I “screwed up” by not reinforcing with Board members that they hired a highly qualified GM with turnaround experience and needed to tap his talent instead of micro-manage. The good news is; although it was disruptive the majority of Board members appeared to recognize the issue and quickly made changes.
What I do know is the screening process was very thorough and the folks who volunteered their executive search expertise are some of the best in the country.
I also know the new POA HR Manager will have the lead in supporting the Board in the selection of a new GM so I won’t screw this one up.
Thanks
Steve
Sue Posner
03/07/2021 — 3:45 pm
Frankly do we need a GM, it’s a middle manager position? We have department heads that can report to the fiduciary board. If we need GM they should not act as a board member and no board member should act like a GM. Managers are not fiduciary they are paid employees, only board is fiduciary and are those we elect whom we give OUR money to allot it to the departments that manage/maintain the community. New addition or subtraction projects should be voted on by the owners, board or manager has no power of attorney to do. Think roles and duties are first thing that has to be established and adhered to.
Wes Smith
05/13/2021 — 1:10 am
I concur with Morris post of GM skill set with emphasis on “turn around talents “. It is imperative that the Executive will possess a proven past track record of rescuing distress operations similar to HSV . Seek someone who has consultancy experience in leisure / hospitality with expertise in Resort / Club management.
Executive Compensation Package:
Base Salary : $ 100,000
Quarterly Bonus : $ 25,000 correlated directly to balance sheet
Academically : MBA or MPA degree , PGM undergrad / top of class / accredited university only
Professionally: Minimum 25 years pertinent industry exposure ( Ideally age 45-55)
Disposition: Well rounded positive mental attitude, superior written and oral communication skills, strong organizational behavior background with staff, board & residents.