Commercial Leisure – reed15
Gold’s Gym is an international co-ed fitness corporation that provides chains of local gyms to join for membership across the globe. It is the number one health club franchise in the world. The goal of this agency as stated on their website is, “to help people realize their goals and find their inner strength. We combine the most diverse amenities in the industry with the best personal training to deliver the ultimate fitness experience.” They accomplish this by providing the best in workout equipment and facilities. Since Gold’s Gym is a commercial leisure business, they are funded through membership fees.
Gold’s Gym is different from other health club agencies in a variety of ways. What sticks out to me is that Gold’s Gym’s works very hard to dominate the health club market. Their website gives entrepreneurs opportunities to open their own Gold’s Gym, they sponsor celebrities and athletes quite frequently, and are often advertised on television. With other health clubs, especially non-profit agencies like the YMCA, you don’t usually see this aggressive strategy. Another way Gold’s Gym tries to set itself apart from the competition is the level of fitness opportunities they provide. They provide all of the latest in cardio and strength training equipment along with personal trainers and group exercise instructors. Group fitness programs include yoga, group cycling, mixed martial arts, muscle endurance training and pilates. The larger franchises provide fitness on a much larger scale with facilities for child care, rock climbing walls, basketball courts, indoor surfing, and many other premium fitness opportunities. This level of opportunity is rarely seen in public or non-profit health club agencies.
Gold’s Gym definitely has its strengths and weaknesses as a leisure service provider. Boasting over 600 facilities in 40 states and 30 countries, the corporation does an excellent job of making sure everyone has an opportunity to live physically fit lives by working out at their facilities. They also hire talented fitness instructors to help their members regardless of skill, which definitely adds to the notion of making physical fitness a reality for everyone. A big disadvantage of this agency is the fact that it is driven by making a profit. The extravagant facilities that they provide cannot exist without paying members, so you get what you pay for out of Gold’s Gym. Another disadvantage is that because members pay for membership, there are many people who cannot afford to go to Gold’s Gym. As much as they say there’s a place for everyone at Gold’s Gym, the reality is that if you don’t have the money, you cannot join.
Overall, I believe Gold’s Gym does fulfill its purpose of delivering the ultimate fitness experience. It is clear through the global presence of the franchise, the enormous amount of members, and the mainstream popularity Gold’s Gym is experiencing, that this agency is the standard in health club fitness.
Whi Yeon Cho:
The Cog Hill C.C.'s mission statement is "To challenge in the best of the world". There objective is not clearly stated on the resources that I have, but looking at the interview of Frank Jemsek,two mission statements revealed "To challenge in the best of the world", and "To raise world's best golfer".
This private organization is organized to spread the joy of golf when John W., Martin J., and Bert Coghill first found the company.
However Frank Jemsek's goals are seem to recognition of the pubilc and raising pro golfers.
The Cog Hill Country club & Golf is a private membership organization that located at 12294 Archer Avenue Lemont, IL. It was first found by three brothers, John W., Martin J., and Bert Coghill. In early twenties, the brothers went to a golf outing sponsored by the electrical union at Oak Hills, which they worked as an electrician. Even though none of them played golf, they thought the game looked like fun, was easy, and they were satisfied. This event decided the brothers to search for a place to build a golf course in their hometown 28 miles Southwest of Chicago to Lemont and bought part of Lemont where the change in elevation between the floor of the valley and the hills of Cog Hill are striking contrast to the plains of Illinois.
Cog Hill provide great service through its members. Its facilities are stricted for those who are members.It bring prestige and also economic wealth to the community.
The BMW Championship has brought fame and economic to the Cog Hill Community. Even in Great Depression Cog Hill c.c. and its community could servive. People who had money still went to Cog Hill C.C. and spend lots of money, therefore, Cog Hill C.C brought economic relief. Now Cog Hill C.C. challenges to another goal. If it was spreading golf in 1900's, it is now raising future golfer and also the world's greatest golf course. It has re-newed Dubsdread and re-opend BMW Championship. It original gof schools helps Cog Hill to found new generation and helps golfers to develop and challenge their skills.
netID: mcclain4
The organization that I’m going to critique is the Rainbow PUSH foundation. Operation PUSH was founded by Rev. Jesse Jackson in 1971 to improve the economic status of African Americans in Chicago. Rainbow PUSH was successful at raising public awareness to imitate corporate action and government sponsorship. The National Rainbow Coalition became a prominent political organization that raises public awareness on numerous political issues and consolidates a large voting bloc. Operation PUSH is a non-profit organization, therefore it is government funded. In addition to PUSH, Jackson initiated a companion project called PUSH-EXCEL. PUSH-EXCEL aimed to improve academic standards of inner-city schools, and improve black and minority student performance. The Rainbow/PUSH Coalition initiated a return to PUSH’s traditional economic focus with “The Wall Street Project.” “The Wall Street Project” is a proposal that promotes minority hiring and inner-city investment among top financial firms and Fortune 500 companies.
Rainbow PUSH targets to serve mostly minorities in America. Through this organization and its predecessors, the organization has advocated universal health care, a war on drugs, direct peace, negotiations between Palestinians and Israeli’s, ending apartheid in South Africa and advancing democracy in Haiti. PUSH’s goals were to increase job security for African-Americans, organize those not making a livable income, and support black-owned businesses. The following is the organizations list of major issues:
• 1% Student Loans
• Jobs and Economic Empowerment
• Employee Rights an Liable Wages
• Educational Access
• Fair & Decent Housing
• Voter Registration & Civic Education
• Election Law Reform
• Fairness in the Media, Sports and Criminal Justice System
• Political Empowerment
• Trade and Foreign Policy
• Affirmative Action and Equal Rights
• Gender Equality
• Environmental Justice
In my opinion, I feel that the Rainbow PUSH Coalition does in fact fulfill its purpose. The organization works hard to ensure that the people in our communities to have a voice and be heard. An example would be the Hurricane Katrina Crisis. The Rainbow PUSH Coalition & Citizenship Education Fund held a daylong conference on the sub-par status of Hurricane Katrina relief for those displaced throughout the Gulf Coast region. Rainbow PUSH held a conference on Financial Literacy and Empowerment to make the victims become more knowledgeable about their circumstances. The conference encouraged the victims to stay involved in their communities and to spend time on the weekends volunteering to improve the condition of the neighborhoods we call home.
As a leisure service provider, I believe the strengths of the Rainbow PUSH organization are love, kindness, citizenship, fairness, leadership, and hope. Love involves valuing close relations with others, in particular those in which sharing and caring and reciprocated, and being close to people. Kindness involves doing favors and good deeds for others, helping them, and taking care of them. Citizenship involves working well as a member of a group or team, being loyal to the group, and doing one’s share. Fairness involves treating all people the same according to notions of fairness and justice, not letting personal feelings bias decisions about others, as well as giving others a fair chance. Leadership involves encouraging a group of which one is a member to get things done and at the same time maintain good relations within the group, organizing group activities and seeing that the happen. Hope involves expecting the best in the future and working to achieve it, believing that a good future is something that can be brought about. The only weakness that I have encountered about The Rainbow PUSH Coalition is not finishing one task before beginning another one.
Garcia54:
The National Safe Boating Council, also known as the NSBC, is a membership organization that includes over 330 U.S. and Canadian members. Its key goals are to reduce the amount of boating accidents and to enhance the recreational boating experience. NSBC tries to accomplish its goals by providing educational services that eventually promote the safety of the recreational boating experience. The mission of the NSBC is as follows, “To enhance the safety of the recreational boating experience through education and outreach.” The NSBC is funded through the programs it offers and through the events that it hosts. Programs offered by the NSBC are the education of young boaters through instructional classes and hands on experience courses. The NSBC co-hosts the annual National Safe Boating week which starts on the first Sunday in June, this event has taken place ever since 1952 it did not become official until 1958 but the tradition of this week still continues every year since.
The National Safe Boating Council serves the interests of many people especially those who own boats or use boats as a form of recreation and leisure. Because the NSBC urges the idea of safety it promotes a community of safe and peaceful boating therefore anyone involved with boating is directly affected by the NSBC and their campaigns and standards for safe boating procedures. The NSBC also serves young children and teens that are learning to boat by teaching them safe skills that they will use when they obtain their boating license. This younger generation is then in charge of making sure that the waterways are safe and enjoyable for the rest of the people on boats. The classes it offers to the young kids and adults are what set the NSBC apart from other agencies. It not only gives instructions and rules but it also enforces them through educational means as well.
One of the strengths of the National Safe Boating Council is that it is able to teach people about its goals and rules through education by offering classes to all age groups. Through education they are able to get their message across easier and are more certain that these messages will stick with an individual for longer than if it were just with some flier or notice stuck on a bulletin board or in someone’s office. One of the NSBC’s weaknesses, though, is that there advertisements aren’t that strong. I was not aware that the NSBC existed until I actually started to do research on them. I don’t know if this is true considering I am not a boater but I feel they could do a better job in advertising for people who are not boaters. The NSBC does in fact carry out its goals of safety. It is the co-host of the National Safe Boating week and it continuously is promoting campaigns such as the “Wear It” campaign which encourages all boaters to wear life jackets every time they are on a boat. The NSBC is an effective organization that is able to promote its message across to all boaters of all ages.
Buhrow1:
The goal of campus recreation is to provide a convenient and safe place for students of their respective universities to work out and perform other leisure activities. They perform these activities under their own freedom, and most the time for the qualities of satisfaction the activities give. Located on the campuses, such facilities as weight rooms and basketball courts, just to name a few, are provided to students and faculty members to use at their liking. They are funded by the University which gets money from both the government and the tuition paid by the students. Although it usually raises the tuition, a campus rec center is a much needed facility to promote a healthy style of living to people who are in an environment that they are not used to.
Campus recreation centers are set apart from other agencies by their vast services and large facilities. Although there are private and public recreation facilities, they are not usually the size or the quality as one on a large campus of a university. Besides the size, another positive is the exclusiveness of members. The only people that belong to the rec center are the students and faculty of the college. This promotes safety to the members, as strangers are not permitted to use the facilities. The only real weakness of the campus recreation agency is the lack of the ability to focus on members more. With everyone on campus belonging, it is hard to help each member individually.
As many have experienced, campus recreation fulfills its purpose with ease. It is there for college students to be able to work out and experience leisure and that is exactly what happens. With weight rooms to lift, programs such as intramural sports, rock climbing, and even spas, there is something for everyone to do. Although not everyone takes advantage of it, many do, and therefore it meets its goal. As a student at the university of Missouri I was able to work out, play rec basketball, and do my homework all at the campus rec center.
Kate Hastings:
The Drake Hotel was established to give people a high-class place to stay while in Chicago. However, the Drake is not only a top stop for vacationers, it is also serves as an interesting venue for people to hold their most important events. The events include a variety of occasions including corporate meetings and conferences, weddings, birthday parties and much more. The Drake boasts a very wide range of clientele from the average family to celebrities to businessmen and women. As a part of the Hilton brand, The Drake Hotel is given adequate funds to keep it in top shape and even allowed for a few recent renovations in 2006. These renovations have helped bring The Drake Hotel back to its former glory and given the hotel an extra element of luxury.
The Drake is no ordinary hotel. It has an amazing location on East Walton Drive between Michigan Avenue and Lake Shore Drive. It has a great view of Lake Michigan and it within a stone’s throw of Oak Street Beach. It is also right in the heart of a great entertainment district, The Magnificent Mile, which boasts great shopping, shows and concerts. Not only does The Drake have a great location, it has a fantastic indoor experience as well. The Drake offers unparalleled amenities and a classic décor. When you step into The Drake’s lobby, it is truly as if you are stepping into another time. The Drake Hotel’s ability to provide high-class comfort is its greatest strength. The staff at The Drake will go to whatever lengths to make their guests happy. This is probably the best quality any hotel could have. If a hotel’s staff is not willing to go the distance to serve their customers, then they will fail. The Drake Hotel also has the great ability to accommodate a very large number of guests. The hotel boasts over 550 guest rooms and 5 ballrooms. Two of these ballrooms are incredibly famous and are in high demand as venues for events. The fact that such a large hotel is in such high demand is essential for the hotel’s success. It is tough to find any flaws with the service at The Drake. Their greatest weakness may be that they only serve the upper classes. They lose out on a lot of revenue by only catering to the wealthiest of clients. However, they can hardly be faulted for having high standards.
The Drake Hotel succeeds in its goal to give its customers the very best in leisure services. They are the kind of place that people freely choose to go to so that they can achieve high rates of satisfaction. The Drake has top customer service, four exquisite restaurants offering great food and an unparalleled experience, overall. It would be incredibly difficult for any other hotel to steal The Drake Hotel’s “premier position as Chicago's most distinguished hotel.”
http://www.thedrakehotel.com/
http://www.thedrakehotel.com/explore_about_history.html
schroe24:
G.J. Mecherle State Farm Park provides a wonderful, spacious, and private recreation facility for all employees of State Farm and their families. Through its state-of-the-art facilities, State Farm Park provides one of the finest recreational areas in all of Bloomington-Normal. Because it provides recreation for State Farm families only, it is an especially unique form of recreation.
State Farm Park is privately funded. The agency was given a generous start-up donation and is now provides their own funds for the facilities. For example, the brand new water park was financed by the company itself.
The facility itself is certainly a strength. Guests have the option of participating in miniature golf, swimming, fishing, camping, volleyball, tennis, badminton, basketball, softball, baseball, soccer, frisbee, or football. As you can see, there are plenty of options for guests to enjoy during their visit to State Farm Park. Not only are there plenty of choices, but all of the facilities are well-maintained and in overall good condition.
The only downside to the park is that it is not a public recreation facility. If you are not a member of the State Farm family, you cannot enjoy the beautiful facility.
State Farm Park absolutely fulfills its objective. The park constantly has guests, therefore proving that it is a popular facility and guests enjoy going. It provides them with a wide variety of activities in which they can participate, and it provides an overall experience of entertainment! Moreover, it does not charge admission, so guests can come and go as they please.
elliott6:
My sports management agency was the Bulls Sox Training Academy. The goal of this agency is to improve the skills of young basketball and baseball players. The agency is funded through the money that its participants pay. Children from the ages of 3 to 18 are eligible for most of the Academy's services. The Academy's instructors are what set them apart from other agencies. They have a very nice balance of knowledge and ability to teach. Once they come aboard the go through a training process ensuring that they are teaching and knowledgeable of the ideas and methods taught by the Bulls and White Sox.
The strength of my agency is the abundance of programs and services it can provide. They offer instruction for both individuals and teams. They also offer different camps and programs for athletes of different talent levels and ages. They also have several locations around the Chicagoland area. The weakness of the Academy is the price tag on its services. Another weakness the small area it covers. Although it has many locations, the total area covered is rather small. In my opinion, the agency does fill its purpose. If an athlete wants to make himself/herself better, the Bulls Sox Training Academy will do that. Because of the abundance of programs they offer and the quality of instructors they have, the Bulls Sox Academy fulfills its goal of improving the skills of young athletes.
The Bulls Sox Academy has similarities and differences with other agencies. Compared with Gold's Gym, the Academy is very similar in the fact that it improves your physical abilities and talents. It is different because the Gym offers its services to adults. The J.C. Mecherle State Farm Park differs from the Academy in the fact that it offers its services to a closed group of people. It is similar in that both offer lots of employment opportunities in the leisure field. The Bulls Sox Academy fits into our definition of leisure because it gives its participants lots of gratification because they are able to improve their abilities in the sports they love.
All of these agencies are very similar to one another. Although their classification (non-profit, commercial, etc.), they all share a common goal. They all look to serve guests and provide them with an enjoyable experience. All of them have "customer service" as their number one priority. That alone goes right along with the definition of a leisure service agency. The primary goal of such an agency is to serve the people. No matter the field, the goal is still the same. The guests drive the business forward. Without guests, there would be no business. That is why it is especially important for these agencies to provide excellent service and facilities for their guests.
