CCM Q&A: David Roy CCM

David Roy CCM is Secretary Manager at Crail Golfing Society and has held this role for over 14 years. He has also held General Manager roles at Shirley Park Golf Club and Linlithgow Golf Club and has a background in green keeping before that. David has been on the CMAE board for 10 years as have served the past two as President. He will step down at next months AGM in Portugal. 

In this Q&A he reflects on his time as President and how his time with CMAE has helped him raise the profile at Crail.


Having been on the CMAE Board for 10 years in total and serving the past two as President, what do you think the biggest achievement has been in your time?

Employing Debbie full time. It was quite a gamble for her to take but it looks like the finances have stabilised and we can look forward with confidence that as her role develops, so the Association will grow.

You have become a regular presenter on the CMAE’s MDP since its inception. Has this helped you develop your skills as a presenter and how has that transferred to your job at Crail?

It hasn’t necessarily helped me in my job but Crail has definitely benefitted. I have now addressed delegates from well over 30 countries and always introduced as manager of Crail Golfing Society, which will have significantly enhanced the profile of the club.

In terms of my skills as a presenter, the mentoring from the likes of Jason and Bill Sanderson has been immeasurably helpful. I have a far better understanding of how to deliver the learning outcomes and hopefully keep the delegates engaged.

How did your background in greenkeeping help most when you first entered club management, and what was the biggest gap in your knowledge that you had to plug?

My greenkeeping background was the reason I was employed at Crail and at my previous club in Croydon. It makes a massive difference to be able to sit at a Board meeting and argue for increased resources for the golf course when you understand exactly what the benefits are.

Along with your job at Crail, your role as President of CMAE, an EPB member, an MDP presenter, Chairman of your Drama Club, Board member of the Fife Golf Partnership and treasurer of your local curling region, how do you manage a healthy work/life balance?

Sadly, I fail miserably at this. However, I greatly enjoy everything I do and I get the chance to meet very interesting people and stretch myself in many different areas. I have a theory that spending time being creative improves your problem-solving abilities and keeps the right side of your brain active.

Your CMAE commitments requires a certain level of support from your club captain and committee in terms of time away from the club. How did you manage to gain that support and what advice would you give to others looking to do the same?

To get the chance to be the President of CMAE is a genuine privilege and honour but also provides tangible benefits that I hadn’t anticipated. For a start, the role provides an insight into the challenges of being the leader of a voluntary organisation with paid staff. Secondly, the fact that the role is voluntary results in time being very limited and strategy becomes incredibly important in this context.

In many ways, the tenure as President can be viewed as invaluable training for a serving club manager and there any number of ways in which a club as an employer of the President will benefit. However, the one piece of advice I would give is that any President cannot fulfil their duties without the wholehearted support of their partner. The time away from home is significant, along with the time spent on correspondence and reading papers.

I have enjoyed my time as President immensely and look forward to supporting James Burns in whatever way I can once I step down.