Jeff Palmer, the affable golf professional from The Raven at Lora Bay, is heading off to Shanghai, China to head up the Sheshan International Golf Club and GolfScene caught up with him just as he was packing his bags. Just enough time for short chat and to wish him well in his new position and what should be quite a golf / life adventure.
GS: Jeff what was your first job in the golf industry?
JP: I was born in Edmonton Alberta but moved to Victoria BC when I was ten. My first job in the industry was at Uplands Golf Club in Victoria as a back shop assistant at the age of fourteen in 1984.
Jeff Palmer's next stop is China
GS: Describe your three most recent golf positions, including The Raven at Lora Bay
JP: I opened the Shanghai Links Golf and Country Club as the Director of Golf in 1998 which was a thrilling experience. It was my first time traveling to Asia and it was rewarding professionally and personally. I was promoted to the position of General Manager and remained at the Links until 2003. In 2003 I took the position of Director of Golf at the Big Island Country Club on the Big Island of Hawaii. This was a great job as I reported to Jim Mclaughlin of, what was at the time, Intrawest Golf. I learned a lot working for that organization and it has helped me in what I have accomplished since. I was transferred from Hawaii to Lora Bay as we opened The Raven in 2006 under the Intrawest flag. Then Intrawest was sold to Fortress Investments and they decided to sell to Lora Bay. The Raven has seen an unprecedented amount of change in a very short period of time. But my position at Lora Bay was very challenging and rewarding. I am proud of what we accomplished there from opening to present.
GS: What is the name of the new course (and company) you will be working for?
JP: I have just accepted the position of Director of Golf at the Sheshan International Golf Club, home of the HSBC World Golf Championship. Our facility was just voted the number one golf club in China by Golf Digest Asia. My responsibilities will include overseeing the retail and golf shop operation, guest services operations including the staffing and management of the locker rooms, the caddie operations, golf cart operations as well as the Golf Academy.
GS: How will you handle new language issues?
JP: My basic Mandarin is not too bad. I have been engaged in some audio learning but will also enroll in evening classes in Mandarin once I arrive in Shanghai. In the short term I will rely on my key personnel and do the best I can to communicate.
Sheshan Clubhouse
GS: What will you and your wife Karin have to deal with in making this big move to a far off part of the world?
JP: I think the three most important things Karin and I will have to deal with will be finding a suitable place to live that is central. As the course is about 50 kilometers from the city I want to make sure we are close enough to the city so that can ‘have a life’. Another thing will be to establish a network of people so that we can feel comfortable with medical and dental services and things like that. Then it will be all about establishing a routine to feel comfortable. Once we get established we can get creative.
GS: Do you have plans to stay for any specific period of time or just let the job play itself out?
JP: I am on a two year contract and after that we will see what happens. There is tremendous growth in China in the golf industry right now and our owners have 5-8 new golf projects on the boards over the next 5 years. It is exciting and I hope there will be a bigger picture scenario that plays out there.
GS: What can you say about the game of golf in your new part of the world?
JP: Well, due to the emergence of a brand new middle class, things like golf and tennis are really taking off. There is also a new and growing upper class and so the products are very high end right now. I think we will see more government owned public courses where it becomes more accessible to the people living in the middle. But for the most part it is booming and owners of these new courses are looking for skilled people to operate these new facilities.
GS: What will Jeff Palmer bring to the table in this new position? What will be your biggest challenge?
JP: I will bring some interesting experience to the table. Having worked in three different countries (China being one of them) on two different continents in the last seven years has exposed me to some unique business cultures, having to manage a wide range of people in different settings. I would say the last four years at Lora Bay have taught me a lot about change and managing aggressive people in an aggressively changing economic environment. My management skills have definitely grown in the last year and a half.
GS: Are you excited?
JP: Very. Travel and change excite me and I thrive when I can try something new.
About the Author
