Defining the organisational values and behavioural frameworks to drive culture change from the board to the clubhouse

the client  

On 1st January 2012, The English Golf Union merged with the English Women’s Golf Association to form England Golf, the governing body for all amateur golf in England.  The merger formed one of the largest sports governing bodies in England looking after the interests of over 1,930 golf clubs and 675,000 men and women club members.  

Responsible for the training of the country’s top amateur golfers, England Golf also organises all the major English amateur championships, actively encourage new golfers and increases the continued interest and participation in golf through its golf development initiative ‘Get into Golf’.  

The gradual decline in the popularity of the sport, or more accurately, the growing popularity of other sports amongst the target market was having a major impact. There was also an unclear role for England Golf in relation to the Regions as well as the individual players and members. 

the desired outcome 

Internally, there was also significant change with new Executives, new Board members and many new staff as well as a growing need for teams to be located across England and less in the HQ of Woodhall Spa.  

The desired outcome was to have alignment between the Board, employees and volunteers on expectations about how the business should operate including areas such as quality, communication, governance, process and reporting, as well as the wider challenges of common goals and aspirations for England Golf.  

the objectives 

England Golf realised they needed help to create a culture that worked for them and so asked Culture Consultancy to help them: 

2. To identify and define ONE set of Values for the whole of England Golf that could drive business performance.
3. To develop alongside them Values-based Behavioural Frameworks for the Employees, Managers and Volunteers associated with England Golf. 

the approach  

insight

We conducted our Cultural Assessment through workshops, employee surveys and interviews with key executive stakeholders to gain a current view of the culture within the business, including identifying enabling attributes and hinderances. This not only informed future work, but also gained buy-in from staff on the case and rationale for change. 

design

The next stage led to the identification and development of one set of Values that resonated and inspired all staff and Board members. This required the facilitation of discussions, debates and challenges from the various stakeholders across the business in order to reach an agreed set of Values that everyone could align and engage with. 

embed 

This was followed by the development of an appropriate set of Behaviour Frameworks, based on the newly agreed Values developed once again with the staff and volunteers who would ultimately be responsible for England Golf’s vision. 

results 

England Golf has now put in place a significant foundational stone to transform the culture of the organisation.  A set of Values-based Behavioural Frameworks, developed by and agreed upon at all levels in the organisation to drive the work practices throughout the organisation.  

testimonial  

“Culture Consultancy has made a great contribution to the development of our Values-based culture. The work included expert facilitation of both large All Staff events and small Senior Management Team and Board meetings.”   

“The engaging and thoughtful way Culture Consultancy approach all of their work had a positive impact within the organisation, even before the final aspects of the work have been fully embedded.  The great working relationships developed enabled the project to be completed quickly and effectively – we could not have managed it without their assistance.” 

Rod Findlay, Strategy Director 

Find out how our award-winning 3 stage culture change methodology works, here.