Contents P2 P3 P4 5 P6 P11 P12 P13 P14 P16 P17 P18 P19 P20 P21 P22 Welcome Timetable Speaker Profiles Key Program Components Building Success Gaming Mechanics Contract Essentials The economics of Tryers, Buyers, Flyers and High Flyers Getting Club Competition Right The US Competitive Framework Maximizing your team Alternative ways to get the job done Making your program addictively fun Exploring new markets Getting them early Master Your Marketing Why all Children are not equal How kids like to play! Training players to become flyers P23-24 Complete PRM (Parent Relationship Management) P25 P26 P27 P28 Belong or Leave Creating Customer Loyalty Summary Change Strategy Notes 1
Stay In the Moment Welcome Welcome to the evolution conference workbook We are really excited about spending a few days with you Please print this workbook, complete as much of it as possible and bring with you It is designed to help you to establish where your program is and which questions and needs you may have when you attend the event With so much content over the three days it will be important for you to stay focused on the information that you really need so setting out your goals before you even start will ensure that you get the most from this opportunity The event is three days of presentations, and networking with coaches who are in the same position as you Each presentation relates directly to the content of the workbook creating a menu of options and ideas, helping you to find the ones that best suit your program Presentations will be presented by the team and introduced and summarized You will then have time to discuss and collaborate with other coaches Each day will finish with final questions and a chance to review the key points of the day The Fifth Set Now the hard part; you know what you want to do but the challenge is implementation back at your club Like any good coach we are not just there for the training, we are staying for the match too The event will be followed by review webinars, you will also have special access to the evolve9 Junior Directors facebook group, free premium membership of evolve9com, and the chance to work with one of the evolve9 team to enhance your program If there is anything we can do to help during the event then please don t hesitate to contact me on +1 919 400 2222 Again thanks for being part of this event Mike Barrell Director evolve9 2
Timetable Time Page Content Lead Presenter Friday 1200 Introductions and Networking All 1230 6-10 LR Key Program Components Building Success Mike Barrell 200 11 LR Gaming Mechanics Mike Barrell 300 Coffee Break 330 12 LR Contract Essentials Susan Kohlhausen 430 13 LR The economics of Tryers, Buyers, Flyers and High Flyers Laramie Gavin 530 LR Day Summaries & Questions All Saturday 800 14-15 OC Getting Club Competition Right Jason Wass 900 16 LR The USTA Competitive Framework Bonnie Vonna 1000 Coffee Break 1030 17 OC Maximizing your team Getting the job done Mark O Neill 1115 18 OC Making your program addictively fun All 1200 Close Sunday 800 19 OC Exploring new markets Getting them early Mike Barrell 900 20 LR Getting the Word Out Todd Upchurch 1000 Coffee Break 1030 21 OC Why all Children are not equal How kids like to play! - Jason Wass 1130 22 OC Training players to become flyers Ajay Pant 1230 Lunch 115 23-24 LR Complete PRM (Parent Relationship Management) Mike Barrell 200 25 LR Belong or Leave Creating Customer Loyalty Laramie Gavin 230 26-27 LR Summary All 3
Speakers Mike Barrell Director evolve9 Mike is the Founder and CEO of evolve9 The mission of the organization is very simple, to help federations and providers design and implement tennis programs that specifically meet the needs of children A Level 5 LTA Coach, PTR Pro and ITF Clinician, Mike has delivered training and presentations in over 60 countrieshe was the author of the ITF Tennis10s manual and has been a keynote speaker at three ITF Worldwide Conferences, and presented at the USPTA World Conference three times He has has recently been involved in the development of Evolution, now the National U10 program of Serbia, Tennis Whizz and the Girls Tennis Network Mike continues to work with clubs across the US including Sportime NY, Midtown and Tennis CT, helping them to fully implement child centered principles in their programs with aim of engaging, retaining and developing more players Laramie Gavin Director of Racquet Sports, Midtown Rochester, NY For the past 6 years, Laramie has led a staff of 14 as first the Junior Director and now the Director of Racquet Sports for Midtown Athletic Club in Rochester, New York Before that, starting in 2001, he worked for the Midtown Tennis Club in Chicago, Illinois Laramie is a USPTA Elite Professional, a USPTA Specialist in Competitive Player Development, a PTR Professional and a graduate of the USTA High Performance Coaching program He has served as the USTA Eastern Chair of the 10 and Under council as well as the Western region representative on USTA Eastern s Junior Competition committee In 2013, he received the USTA Eastern s 10 and Under Tennis Award He is also a National Clinician for the USTA s 10 and Under trainings Susan Kohlhausen Director, Contractive Global, Raleigh NC Susan is the founder of ContrActive Global, a full service contracts management firm Knowing that legal agreements can be hard to read and even harder to understand, her company helps to take the mystery out of contracts by assisting sports professionals and organizations with the review and negotiation of contracts Susan is a graduate of North Carolina State University (BA with honors) and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Law (JD) and has over eighteen years of experience in compliance, risk and vendor management and legal affairs She will share the elements of a good contract and what you should look for so you don t get stuck in a bad contract A keen tennis player who competes regularly in the Raleigh area, Susan currently sits on the USTA Southern Grievance Committee and is also Vice President of Raleigh Tennis Association Ajay Pant Senior VP Operations, College Park Tennis Club, MD Ajay is currently the Senior Vice President Operations for the College Park Tennis Club, home of the Junior Tennis Champions, in Maryland Prior to his current position, Pant was the National Tennis Director for Tennis Corporation Of America (TCA) Ajay was with Tennis Corporation Of America for 18 years and also served as Head Tennis Professional, Club Manager and General Manager for TCA clubs in Chicago and other parts of the United States Pant has worked at the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy in Florida He was the Coordinator for the Arthur Ashe/Nick Bollettieri Cities Tennis Programs in New York, New Jersey, Kansas and Missouri Ajay is a Master Professional and currently serves on the Board of the Professional Tennis Registry (PTR) The PTR has honored Ajay as Tester, Clinician and Pro Of The Year Pant is also a USPTA Master Professional Ajay is a member of the USTA Ten and Under Faculty He also served as the Chair for the USTA National Ten and Under Committee 4
Mark O Neill Tennis Director, Hillcrest Tennis, Reading, PA Mark is a native of Dublin, Ireland He played the ITF junior circuit and other tournaments in Ireland and was a top ranked Irish junior In college he was a three time state player of the year and achieved a national ranking inside the top 50 A PTR professional and ITF high performance, he is the Director of Tennis at Hillcrest, an independent club in Reading, PA USTA Faculty national coach for EDC camps and middle states U14 intersectional coach In 2008 in Dublin, he grew the junior program from 40 juniors to over 300 juniors Of those 300 juniors, six were chosen to play in Ireland s BNP Paribas National Academy, playing 16 hours of tennis a week and representing Ireland Mark continues to develop and expand the program at Hillcrest and is an evolve9 associate Todd Upchurch Serve It UP Tennis Academy, Charlotte, NC Todd is the Director of Serve It UP Tennis Academy His management company, founded in 2010, manages clubs and administers after school elementary programs in Charlotte, NC He is also the founder of 3v3 World Tennis Tour, an alternative tournament format for juniors He is a very active Social Media user with accounts on multiple platforms and frequently writes articles on tennis, business and positive attitudes He has been a USPTA Elite Professional since 1996 Todd is the current President of USPTA Southern Division and was the 1999 NC USPTA Pro Year and 2008 Pride of the South winner for USPTA Southern He and his wife, Lisa (also a USPTA pro), have 2 children, Noah (10 yrs old) and Reese (8 yrs old) and live in Charlotte, NC Bonnie Vona USTA Mid Atlantic Bonnie is currently the Senior Manager of Youth Programs & Competitive Tennis for the USTA/Mid-Atlantic Section Responsible for creating a competitive pathway for the success of junior players, that drives participation and growth of the sport; fosters good sportsmanship; and encourages players to excel She manages a 5-Staff Team who handle multiple youth programs and events sharing a passion for tennis and a commitment to grow tennis in every community through innovative & dynamic programming Bonnie previously worked for USTA Texas in the competitive department and the Houston Tennis Association Jason Wass Tennis Director, Kings Park, NY Jason is the Director of Tennis for Sportime Kings Park and also a Regional Director for U10 Tennis for Sportime Clubs located throughout New York state He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, Amherst and has 15+ years of experience as a Director Jason is a USPTA Elite Tennis Professional with certifications in Ten and Under Tennis (TAUT) and the USTA High Performance Coaching Program At Sportime, he has instigated one of the most dynamic and success internal U10 Competitive Circuits with over 200 children compete at each event The Sportime World Tour has quickly become one of the models for all clubs to aspire to Jason lives in Massapequa, NY with his wife Julie and son, Daniel 5
If I had given them what they wanted I would have just made a faster horse Henry Ford Automobile Visionary Key Program Components Building Success A tennis program is not all about lessons! To be a real program the child must be provided with what they need to Become engaged in the game Actually play the game Progress within the game Achieve their ambitions A kids tennis program will have an ethos or mission that umbrellas all aspects of the program plus Structured delivery 1 Instructional element usually lessons which will include a curriculum 2 Competitive Element some kind of provision to get kids actually playing the game through competitions and tournaments 3 Training, Practice and Free Play 4 Social Element opportunities to create relationships and really belong including events, parties and socials 5 Progressive Opportunities able and committed players should be able to play more and fulfil their ambitions 6 Take home opportunities to really hook players into the game 7 Other tennis opportunities such as camps and trips Logistics 8 Staff coaches, assistants, administrators 9 Facilities these could include marked courts, nets, a room to socialize in for parents, changing facilities and a child friendly environment 10 Session times, and durations 11 Administration process 12 Safe Processes And effective Communication 13 Support Systems for Parents, carers and siblings 14 Connections to partners for example links to schools 15 Marketing 6
Program Overview What opportunities does your program provide to meet these key program elements? Is there an area where you are really strong and one that could be better? Competition Instruction Training Social / Belonging Able and Committed Dev Other 7
I skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been Wayne Gretzky Ice Hockey Legend Fundamental Needs Let s start with the customer At under 10 the customer is not just the player but also the parent Both are involved in the buying decision and the decision to commit to more tennis One of our challenges is to provide more than they imagined and provide things through tennis beyond just a lesson Committed players and parents are the secret to happiness as a teaching pro working in this age Only through commitment from both player and parent do we have the opportunity to influence lives Needs of the Player To learn and see my improvement Needs of the Parents (see also pages To find something that my child is really good at 8
There are three constants to life Change, choice and principles Steven Covey Author Seven Habits of Highly Effective People Program Philosophy Around the word 10 and under is developed in many different ways Rather than being a stand-alone product we should understand that it is part of a pathway from 6 to 16 and as such should reflect the following: 1) The overall philosophy of the program as a whole 2) The beliefs of the key coaches, drivers and influencers 3) The needs of the child, parent and supporters 4) The learning needs of the child including motivation, readiness and relevant challenge Just to start the process shade in the board below giving each area a priority for your program For example if you think that physical is a very high priority you could shade the rings in that segment out to level 4 or 5 This is not a test but a task to help you to think about what is most important The upper half of the circle relates to the performance factors, the lower left half your coaching approach and the lower right half on your overall ethos Of course no section is mutually exclusive 9
"If you cant explain it simply, you dont understand it well enough" Albert Einstein Program Philosophy Notes The boxes below are designed for your notes You will need to be able to explain your philosophy to customer and partners concisely, with passion and vision This is an on-going task that we will complete during the workshop 10
The worst thing a kid can say about homework is that it is too hard, The worst thing a kid can say about a game is it' s too easy Henry Jenkins US Professor of Communication Gaming Mechanics You may think that computer games are the enemy of the tennis coach, making kids more sedentary and dragging kids from the courts but in 2012 91% of all 2 to 17 year olds were involved in some sort of gaming annually On further examination maybe we should move with the times and develop a greater understanding of the ways in which the computer games formula (gamification) is actually in use all around us This doesn t mean changing tennis into an episode of Harry Potter but the mechanics can be used to motivate and engage players Principles to consider Missions Tools and Weapons Levels Collecting Challenge Free Lunch Reset Virality How can you use any of these principles in your program? 11
Contracts are the net that allows you to take the leap Contract Essentials Small businesses usually don t fully understand how contracts can help their operations Contracts are designed to help to define a relationship At the end of this presentation you should understand the elements of a contract and be able to define and understand key terms and elements Performance Protection Offer Acceptance Consideration Keys 12
A program should be measured not on numbers but on long term and ever increasing commitment The economics of Tryers, Buyers, Flyers and High Flyers The value of a player increases TRYER Group Lessons Private Lessons Competition Practice Social Membership Equipment Apparel / Shoes Food & Beverage Camp Other BUYER $ X Total $ X Total Group Lessons Private Lessons Competition Practice Social Membership Equipment Apparel / Shoes Food & Beverage Camp Other FLYER Group Lessons Private Lessons Competition Practice Social Membership Equipment Apparel / Shoes Food & Beverage Camp Other HIGH FLYER $ X Total $ X Total Group Lessons Private Lessons Competition Practice Social Membership Equipment Apparel / Shoes Food & Beverage Camp Other 13
Being competitive is not the desire to win, but the love of battle more than victory Getting Club Competition Right! What are the tennis skills and knowledge players must have to make competition fun? What are the emotional and competitive skills players need to enjoy competition? What format ideas do you like that might help to create the ideal club based competition environment? 14
What does the off court environment look like? How are parents needs met and managed? How are events connected to each other and other elements of the program? What is it to be competitive? What is the competitive process about? How does a child see competition? How do you prepare players beyond a Serve, Rally and Score? 15
She is such a great opponent, I love playing her she really brings out the best tennis in me Serena Williams (About Angelique Kerber, Wimbledon Final 2016) The US Competitive Framework What provisions are you making to support the USTA Youth Progression in your facility? 16
Individual commitment to a group effort, that s what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work Vince Lombardi, Legendary Football Coach Maximizing your team Alternative ways to get the job done What parts of a program can be delivered by someone other than a teaching professional? Who within your team has a special set of skills that should be channeled? Traditonal Pro Driven Model Academy / Camp Model Team Coaching Model 17
Motivation is the first step in every journey Making your program addictively fun Fun is an adjective, not a noun! It is different for each player Factors that determine this include the players level of commitment confidence, age, gender and preferred play style What are the factors that could make something fun for a child? What physical mechanisms that can be used to increase fun and engagement? Which of strategies and mechanisms do / will you use in your program as a consistent part of your program? 18
We don t wait until school to teach our kids the brush their teeth or eat the right foods so why do we wait to teach them about physical activity Rae Pica, Your Active Child Exploring new markets Getting them early What do the following groups want from physical activity (tennis) Children Parents Pre- Schools What other markets engage children or parents? List the strategies to engage and work with pre-school children! 19
Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing about Benjamin Franklin 1 Communication Levels Master Your Marketing 2 Most Effective Networks Based on Club Demographics 3 Setting a Media Plan 4 Social media perceptions and misconceptions 5 Marketing Shortcuts (Save hours of work) 6 #SocialMedia 101 7 PREPARE 8 Realistic Goals and Action Steps 20
Play is the highest form of research Albert Einstein Why all Children are not equal How kids like to play! Preferred Way to Play Motivation Strategies Warrior Buddies Olympian Likes to battle against an opponent Likes to work with a team mate to achieve the result Like to beat previous records Enjoys improvement through measurable tasks Use training blocks followed by competitive blocks Ensure players are clear on context Partners collaborate on cooperative drills Compete and share solutions with partner who then competes against prev opponent Use a series of cooperative to competitive practices over 3 4 stages Core drills over the term Explorer Likes to solve problems and work things out Define situations and missions and maintain frequent discussions Racer Likes to achieve tasks but beat others Use training blocks followed by competitive blocks Be aware technique may suffer Acrobat Likes to be very creative and find new ways to do things Allow players to be involved in making decisions and make choices Post clear objectives to stay on track or control environment 21
If only people knew how hard I had to work to make it look this easy Pete Sampras Training players to become Flyers What are the provisions you have at your facility for more committed players? How do you modify competencies / schemes of work for players on a more committed track? What additional support or program opportunities do you have for more committed players? 22
A parent s job is to do nothing for their child that they can do for themselves Abraham Lincoln, US President Parent Relationship Management Managing parent expectations and relationships is a major part of the role of a coach in the U10 area Children are not independent and the parent must be the taxi, the laundry, the cook, the policeman and many more roles Consider that no one trains parents to do the job and they will often need help and guidance if they are to make the right decisions If you do not have a good parent relationship system then you run the risk that parents will listen to other parents who may not be as knowledgeable Revisit page 6 and look at the fundamental needs of parents Most are just trying to do the very best that they can for their child What information would you like parents to have about your program and the game? What methods of communication are open to you to ensure that this information is understood and supported by parents? 23
Parent Pressure Points In the beginning When the Wheels fall off Planting the Flag When the World s not fair Who is that child? When the peacocks circle 24
We are driven by five genetic needs survival love and belonging, power, freedom and fun William Glasser, American psychiatrist Belong or Leave Creating Customer Loyalty As fundamental human need it is to breathe, so it is to belong The US is the biggest team culture in the world and nowhere is belonging held in so many ways than there And yet Tennis does a terrible job of connecting kids both on and off the court In this part of the workshop we are looking at how other businesses and organisations facilitate this To start list a few ways you make players feel connected to your program Team uniforms The way the world does it? From the workshop list other ideas on belonging that could be implemented in your program 25
Do or do not, there is no try Yoda, Jedi Master Summary 26
Step with care and great tact, and remember life is a great balancing act Dr Seus Change Strategy Making changes and even improvements after an event like this can be a real challenge! For the most part we suggest that you take the way of the tortoise! One steady step at a time and never backwards Don t let your enthusiasm take over and leave you juggling more changes than you are ready for Instead keep you keys on the goal and add one thing at a time Action Priority Date 27
Notes 28
he Place to Play Award is designed to recognize Global Best Practice in Under 10 Tennis Programming The award is judged on the criteria that we believe are the core elements to creating a program that attracts, retains and develops young players At evolve9 we are always looking to recognize those that make a child s (and parents) world better through tennis It s our hope that this award will drive more programs to reflect on what they provide and strive to keep improving The Program needs to include: A progressive instruction program A supportive competition program and calendar Helping children to belong and build relationships Communication and Marketing and a defined program ethos Provision for support of parents Professional Develop of the coaching and management team Innovation The winning club will receive: Plaque to post in your facility Club profile posting Free Conference Place for the 2016 Junior Directors Conference in July at College Park One years free membership to evolve9 Directors One years free premium membership to Tennis Whizz Free Conference Place at the ITS Her Game Summit in November at the IMG Academy Florida We are so excited to find out more about your program, recognize it and share your achievements with the world Thanks for taking the time to nominate your facility 29