DAVE SALTMAN, Managing Director.
In between the responsibilities of parenthood and managing directorship, Deadline Dave, has actually managed to deliver a few articles ahead of the copy date for this issue. Sadly, they should all have been ready for the previous issue, but at least it’s a step in the right direction!
JOHN RICHARDS, Operations Director.
Preparing himself for the arrival (onslaught) of his two granddaughters from Australia for Christmas. This has meant getting out the paint brushes to undertake his favourite pastime! It also meant countless Christmas shopping trips and visits to supermarkets. So, as you can imagine, he’s had a really good December!
LAURENCE (WRITING) GALE, Editor.
If enthusiasm could be bottled then we would all be rich. Loz has been travelling the length and breadth of the country searching out stories for this issue, culminating in a match day visit to Twickenham as Keith Kent and his team prepared for the All Blacks game. It was yet another ‘blue smarties day’ for our editor!
by Laurence. By 9.00pm he had lost count of the number of ideas that he had been bombarded with and, also, the will to live! Fortunately it shouldn’t take long to put the futon back together, repair the shower curtain and fix the front door bell!
PETER BRITTON, Sales & Production. Is slowly recovering from an overnight stop-o
over WELCOME TO pitchcare
Time to turn self-doubt into self-belief ...
ELLIE TAIT, PR and Marketing.
Has anyone spotted Ellie recently? We haven’t. Dark mornings and cold temperatures force her into hibernation. Stubborn as she is, she can only be tempted out with the promise of hot chocolate with marshmallows, a 90% off sale in Faith, a pampering spa day or to collect the proceeds from a winning lottery ticket.
ALASTAIR BATTRICK, Web Monkey.
noticed! He has spent much of his recent time getting the magazine section of the website relaunched in the new PC styling. Now it’s on to the training section with the usual Al deadline “erm, well it should be ready by ...”
DAN HUGHES, Sales Manager.
Dan has a broad smile on his face at the moment as PC shop sales passed the £1m in November. He actually took a week out of the office recently that wasn’t a holiday! He was on his BASIS training, making sure that he was up-tto-d
always said he should be certified. CHRIS JOHNSON, Training Coordinator.
Walks into team meetings with the grace and elegance of a ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ competitor (no, not John Sergeant!). She has, once again, come up with some sound advice in the training and education supplement of this issue. It’s just a shame some of her colleagues don’t take note!
STUART BURTON, Web Designer
Had to take the goading of a certain Spurs fan when his ‘mighty reds’ lost two on the trot to Harry’s boys. He took it in good spirit though, mainly because they are at the top of the Premier League and, err, Tottenham aren’t! Stu continues to weave his magic over new website builds and e-n
newsletters. KIRAN CONTRACTOR, Sales Administrator
Kiran has joined the team to assist Dan in the shop. He’s a keen Manchester United fan (there’s going to be trouble) and reckons he’s been to Old Trafford forty times in the last five years -n
not that keen then! His music tastes
range from R&B to Indie. Nice to see the youngsters enjoying Elvis and the Stones!
JULIE ROBINSON, Administration Julie has had a difficult year -w
well, so would you if you shared an office with the above -s
she took herself off on a richly deserved holiday. Now back, refreshed and suntanned, she has set about doing all those admin tasks that nobody else had time to do whilst she was away. At least, that’s what we told her!
SHARON TAYLOR, Company Accountant.
Sharon remains rooted to the foot of our rogues gallery as befits her position in the company. No, that’s not bottom of the pile but a clear understanding by us all (honest) that a strong company accountant props up the business and ensures its smooth running. Please don’t mention ‘The Albion’ within earshot!
so date with all the requirements. We’ve
A recent bout of ‘man flu’ left Alastair feeling weak, feeble and grumpy -n
not that anyone
With the rush of Christmas and an early print run, this editorial is being written at the end of November and in the midst of financial doom and gloom. I doubt very much that the situation will have eased a great deal by the time you read this foreword; in fact it has probably continued to worsen.
I started life as a landscape gardener and moved into sportsturf maintenance, renovation and construction in the eighties because I felt that this industry was more recession proof than the seasonal ups and downs and the relative luxury service of landscaping. But, in recent days I have been party to a number of signs that, within our own industry, this downturn has really taken hold.
Commentaries in much of the media at this time include phrases like ‘confidence has disappeared’ or ‘no confidence’ as a reflection of what is happening around the globe. Therefore, whilst preparing this material, I have been musing on how important self assurance and ‘confidence’ is in so many aspects of what we do.
As an example take public speaking. This is one of the most feared aspects of anyone’s job and, for me, a personal terror. Yet, I have been at many conferences and seminars and heard groundsmen and greenkeepers, who are experts at it, just stand up, often with no notes, and deliver their speech with aplomb and without any apparent sign of nerves or need for alcohol!
You
could say
this is just a matter of practice, but it comes from more than that, confidence being the key.
In work and in business confidence, it seems to me, translates into the broader context of morale. You can almost sense a person or company that is doing well, or a salesperson who is on a winning streak. Which is all very well, but what happens when the converse occurs, as is predicted to happen over the coming months. This is the time when strong leaders are needed, and can come into their own. They know spirits are low but mustn’t show it - they have to give off a confident vibe.
So, what’s needed now is confidence to invest in time and money when others may be holding back, turning self-doubt into self-belief and driving your career or business on through these difficult times.
Despite these difficult times we at Pitchcare will continue to bring all of you the latest advice, expertise and help to keep your surfaces maintained to the highest standards.
And, all that priceless experience costs nothing as a Pitchcare member, so log in and share your wealth of experience on-line at
www.pitchcare.com
Let’s toast to a more prosperous New Year!
Dave Saltman Managing Director
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