Job Details

GENERAL MANAGER/CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER PROFILE:
SOUTHERN HILLS COUNTRY CLUB
TULSA, OK

GENERAL MANAGER/CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER OPPORTUNITY AT SOUTHERN HILLS COUNTRY CLUB
Southern Hills Country Club (SHCC), one of the nation's premier private clubs, is seeking a hospitality leader who has built a career in servant leadership, rooted in humility, coupled with a passion for building long-lasting relationships with both members and staff alike to serve as General Manager/Chief Operating Officer (GM/COO). This individual shall be a dynamic leader who excels in organization and strategic planning, with an ability to engage members and employees at the highest level. The Club has a legacy of being rich in membership and staff and currently has an extremely experienced and high-performing team in place that this executive will lead. Mentoring and caring for the future of their team is of the utmost importance. Excellent written and oral communication skills are desired to allow the successful candidate to be able to support the board's positions and vision over time, articulate priorities to all, and connect with each key constituency group.

This individual shall have a strong financial acumen, and a keen understanding and respect for the club's history, championship golf, and traditions, in addition to having the strong capability of continuing to steward the Club forward while enhancing the friendly, inviting culture of excellence that Southern Hills has established over the last 90 years. SHCC has done an excellent job of sustaining its relevance by continuously enhancing the member experience and ongoing investment in its people and amenities, so project management skills are of great benefit to the successful candidate.

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ABOUT SOUTHERN HILLS COUNTRY CLUB
Southern Hills Country Club is a private, member-owned country club located in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Southern Hills Country Club is best known for its Championship Golf Course, which is recognized among the top 100 courses in the world and has been the host to 17 Championships since 1945. Southern Hills Country Club had a remarkable start, having been established in 1935 amid the Great Depression. The swimming pool, stables, bridle paths, polo field, skeet range, and tennis courts were completed in 1935. A year later, the golf course, which was originally designed by Perry Maxwell, opened on May 23rd, 1936, as the Club held its official opening.

While the Club no longer has the stables, bridle paths, polo field, and skeet range, over the past years, Southern Hills has grown and expanded to enhance the member experience. They have 12 tennis courts, including six indoor courts, a Tennis Center, a Pool Complex, a Golf Performance Center, and a Health & Wellness Center. The Clubhouse boasts a diverse array of dining venues, including the Mixed Grill, Men's Grill, Maxwell's, The Patio, and The Lounge-offering both indoor and outdoor seating to suit every occasion and preference. Renowned golf course architect Gil Hanse completed the Championship Golf Course restoration in May 2019. Major championship golf will return to Southern Hills in May 2032 for an unprecedented sixth PGA Championship. Southern Hills recently hosted the 2022 PGA Championship and the 2024 U.S. Women's Amateur Championship.

As part of ongoing reinvestment, the Membership recently unveiled the newly designed Snug Harbor, featuring two dynamic dining options. The "Old Snug" was built in 1952 and served as the poolside grille between Memorial Day and Labor Day. The "New Snug" restaurant, completed in 2025, is a fast-casual venue space featuring 250 seats between both outdoors and indoors and will be open year-round. The space also features the Harbor Caf, a Grab-and-Go concept equipped with a full Starbucks beverage menu, and smoothies. The concept has been a resounding success and quickly became a member favorite.

Coming in 2026 Southern Hills will begin construction of 4 new indoor pickleball courts and the renovation of the West 9, (The Warren), with Gil Hanse coming back to create a "reversable more player friendly nine holes" that will be a great addition to the club's iconic golf experience.

CLUB MISSION: With exceptional service and warm hospitality, we provide our members, their families, and their guests with the unique Southern Hills experience through excellent recreation, outstanding dining, and social interaction.

CLUB VISION: We are committed to being one of the premier country clubs in the world by providing excellent services and facilities to the membership and their guests while taking our historic tradition, present values, and innovative ideas into the future.

CLUB CORE VALUES:

• Exceptional Quality & Service - Continuously seeking to exceed expectations.
• Professionalism - The energy and determination to perform an outstanding job.
• Teamwork - A cooperative effort by SHCC employees to achieve a common goal.
• Integrity - Honesty, sincerity, fairness; and sound judgment.
• Tradition - Recognizing the events and people that shaped the history of Southern Hills and preserving its heritage.
• Innovation - The ability to be creative and flexible in implementing new ideas.

SOUTHERN HILLS COUNTRY CLUB BY THE NUMBERS

• $135,000 Initiation fee
• $16,800 Annual dues
• Approximately $24.5M Gross volume
• Approximately $14M Dues volume Annually
• Approximately $7.1M F&B volume
• Approximately 32,000 Rounds of Golf
• Approximately 988 Members from all categories
• Approximately 220 Employees (FTE); 80 seasonally
• 11 Members on the Board serving 3 year - terms and a max of 2 terms
• 62 - Average age of members

SOUTHERN HILLS COUNTRY CLUB: www.southernhillscc.com

GENERAL MANAGER/CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER ROLE OVERVIEW
The General Manager/Chief Operating Officer provides visible, engaged, and authentic leadership and a positive, respectful, and energized image for Southern Hills Country Club and its amenities. He/She needs to provide members and guests with exceptional service in all club facilities, creative and quality dining, championship golf course conditions and playing experiences, outstanding racquet sports, aquatics, and other recreational amenities, while also working closely with the Board of Governors and committees to perpetuate strong and consistent governing and leadership practices.

The new GM/COO at Southern Hills CC will be following a tradition of highly regarded and nationally recognized predecessors and will continue to assure the smooth, efficient daily operation of the club to provide the members and guests with the environment for which the club is renowned in a highly respectful, visible, and engaging manner, recognizing his/her positive impact on the senior team and associates by doing so.

Imperative to his or her success is the GM/COO's ability to equally engage members of all generations, ensuring the highest levels of member satisfaction. Being visibly present throughout the operation and possessing an intuitive sense to see and be seen is a key aspect of this role. Innovative programming and a vision for the future direction of the club while respecting long-standing traditions and heritage is also critical.

He/She will oversee all aspects of the operation and ensure that all facilities are upheld and maintained at a pristine level.
He/She should take the appropriate amount of time to listen, learn, observe, and absorb all of the systems and processes that are in place, and provide stability in leadership to maintain appropriate levels of success while making improvements over time.

Golf has been the foundation of Southern Hills CC since its inception, and Championship Golf has been a key focus. The new GM/COO must both appreciate golf's place in Southern Hills CC's lore and focus while also understanding its place in the club's heritage and traditions. The two championship courses offer a unique golf experience and are maintained to provide world-class conditions to members and guests. The GM/COO will ensure that the tenured leadership team is engaged, empowered, and supported to run their respective departments.

They will also have clearly defined goals and objectives while being held accountable to achieve the desired results. In turn, the GM/COO will ensure that the standards set in place cascade down throughout the organization, respecting the tenure and value of the team members in place and creating buy-in for all. The GM/COO coordinates with the Executive Committee, as appropriate, on department head compensation, benefits, performance appraisal, disciplinary, and other significant personnel actions, ensuring that Southern Hills CC is competitive with its key comparable club set. The GM/COO conducts interviews assesses applicants' key positions and exercises final hiring approval for all senior team members and other 'high touch' positions.

Importantly, the GM/COO ensures that appropriate and necessary commitment is in place for the training, mentoring, and further development of all senior team members, department heads, and other personnel, recognizing that top-tier delivery and consistency of the member experience at Southern Hills CC is paramount to meeting its ultimate 'brand' mission.

The GM/COO is responsible for maintaining a positive and inspiring working environment throughout the club and must be a naturally approachable, interactive, and authentic leader who personifies the culture of Southern Hills CC by the way he/she conducts him/herself. The GM/COO needs to be sincerely engaged in member and staff interactions in all areas of Southern Hills CC's operations, recognizing the need to be an ambassador of the club.

The GM/COO is ultimately responsible for the approval of contracts, and overall expense management as well as revenue generation to deliver on the 'brand' goals of Southern Hills CC, through close coordination with the Board of Directors, and is clearly in charge of all operational decision-making and outcomes at the club. He/ She is also responsible for partnering with the board to ensure that adequate capital planning and funds are allocated and managed accordingly.

The GM/COO assumes primary responsibility for all club administration, community relations, and national and international ambassadorship, representing Southern Hills CC to key golf and other industry-related groups. This latter activity is of particular importance to Southern Hills CC, as its preeminent role in golf is a critical success factor for the club, especially as it relates to positive relationships with the PGA TOUR, PGA of America, and USGA, among many others.

Ultimately, the GM/COO is expected to attend and actively 'partner' in all meetings with the Board of Directors and those committees to which he/she is designated an ex-officio member or is desired as a participant. He/She should possess an acute level of self-awareness, high emotional intelligence, and diplomacy in all interactions. A very comprehensive governance structure and processes have been developed over time and are presently in place to help guide the direction and roles of the GM/COO, board, and committee members. He/She must earn and build the trust of the board and committee members to maintain the present standards to ensure overall partnership and effectiveness. Finally, the GM/COO role at Southern Hills CC is NOT a caretaker role, but rather one where he/she is expected to be the true business leader of this operation and needs to be appropriately assertive as an "expert" in his/her areas of oversight and accountability, providing well-reasoned recommendations and "own" the role.

CANDIDATE QUALIFICATIONS

• A minimum of 10 years of progressive experience as GM or GM/COO in a hospitality environment, preferably a member-owned club, with a leadership role relative to management across a diverse range of amenities.
• Involvement with member-driven, family golf, and country clubs with top reputations is most attractive.
• Proven leadership qualities with demonstrated ability that would allow one to believe that he/she can effectively direct, coordinate, and control all facets of a full-service, high-volume private club with approximately a $24M operating budget and just under 1,000 members.
• Exceptionally strong communication skills, both written and verbal, with the distinct ability to function effectively before a wide variety of groups and forums. Communication with members and a track record of being known for enjoying their ability to be forward-facing and visible with both members and staff are extremely important aspects of General Manager/Chief Operating Officers' responsibilities.
• Ideally, a personal interest in golf and a solid understanding of the game and its history and traditions would be an asset, due to its long-standing and future involvement in championship golf events. Having experience in significant golf tournaments and/or championships is a plus but not a pre-requisite.
• An overriding sense of quality consciousness that pervades every part of the club's operations, both within and outside the clubhouse, especially in the food & beverage area.
• The ability to complement and lead a competently trained, high-quality, and efficient staff who are empowered to deliver and create an atmosphere of service excellence with clear expectations. The need is for an accomplished team builder, as well as a passionate charismatic and dynamic leader who has the innate ability to hold people accountable for their performance.
• Knowledge and ability to attract, recruit, retain, and develop high-performing team members. Ensures that proper feedback mechanisms and performance management systems are in place.
• Strong prior experience in coordinating and overseeing major club improvement projects, especially as they relate to construction and renovation. It is likely that several significant capital projects, in addition to a large annual capital expenditure program, will occur.
• A committed doer with high-energy high energy and staying power who, through personal example, encourages others to get things done. Possesses an elevated work ethic and instinctively knows when to be seen.
• Able to effectively use the board as a sounding body and raise issues with the board of a policy nature, presenting alternatives as well as advantages and disadvantages. An enthusiastic supporter of board decisions, as well as a confident thought partner regarding the strategic direction and vision of the club.
• Capable of initiative and resourcefulness in directing the activities of a large, full-service, family-oriented country club; able to present a consummately professional image to the staff, membership, and the public.
• The Club will consider well-mentored AGMs from similar operations, or regionally or nationally recognized club operations where strong mentoring has occurred.

EDUCATIONAL AND CERTIFICATION QUALIFICATIONS

• Ideally, a bachelor's degree with a focus on Hospitality Management is preferred. In lieu of the degree, substantial private club or hospitality experience will be considered.
• Industry certifications such as CCM, CCE, MCM, or PGA GM Certified are encouraged but not required.

EMPLOYMENT ELIGIBILITY VERIFICATION

In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States and to complete the required employment eligibility verification form upon hire.

SALARY AND BENEFITS
Salary is open and commensurate with qualifications and experience. The club offers an excellent bonus and benefits package including association membership.

INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW TO APPLY
Please upload your resume and cover letter, in that order, using the link below. You should have your documents fully prepared to be attached when prompted for them during the online application process. Please be sure your image is not present on your resume or cover letter; that should be used on your LinkedIn profile.

Prepare a thoughtful cover letter addressed to the Southern Hills Country Club search committee/Mr. Brett Pratt, President and Search Chair. Clearly articulate your alignment with this role, why you want to be considered for this position at this stage of your career, and why Southern Hills Country Club and the Tulsa area will benefit you, your family, your career, and the Club if selected.

You must apply for this role as soon as possible but no later than Friday, June 27, 2025. Candidate selections will occur in early July, with the first Interviews expected in late July, and the second interviews a short time later. The successful candidate should assume his/her role in mid to late September.

IMPORTANT: Save and send your resume and letter in the following manner:
"Last Name, First Name - Resume" &
"Last Name, First Name - Cover Letter - Southern Hills"

Note: Once you complete the application process for this search, you are not able to go back in and add additional documents.

If you have any questions, please email Bethany Taylor: ...@kkandw.com.

Lead Search Executives:

Paul K. Levy, PGA, CMAA
Search & Consulting Executive
M: 760-###-####
O: (833) KKW-HIRE, ext.711
...@kkandw.com

Thomas B. Wallace III, CCM, CCE, ECM,
Partner
O: (833) KKW-HIRE, ext. 700
...@kkandw.com