We Want Your Job
By Jennifer Rowan

I remember my first NSAA show. I was 10, maybe 12, and we all drove up to Stratton. Before this, I knew that my father did something that had something to do with skiing. I mean, we did go skiing a lot. Then came Stratton, which was a bit like peeking behind Oz’s curtain. . .but in a good way. I realized that behind those corduroy slopes, those great steaming bowls of chili, and those warm and bubbly hottubs was an entire beehive of activity making it all happen. My father led me around the trade show floor and explained snowmaking, chairlifts, grooming and everything else I had taken for granted. But it wasn’t just this behind-the-scenes look at the sport I loved that got me hooked, it was the people he introduced me to. This group of passionate, enthusiastic men (yes, it really was mostly men), clearly loved what they were doing. I wanted in.

From there, my father took me under his wing and I attended many more trade shows during school breaks. I worked at his office every summer, and when I finished school, I came home to carve out my role at SAM. Even though I was in familiar territory, it was a tough transition from part-time helper to full-time employee with actual responsibilities that affected the future of the magazine. But, with good humor, constructive criticism and enough rope to hang myself or go swinging in the trees, my father taught me how to publish a magazine and, most important, not be afraid to take risks.

So that’s how a tiny, family-run company does it—this succession thing. What about the rest of our industry? What plans do we have in place to pass on the same enthusiasm and passion to our next generation of leaders, and where will they come from? Let’s face it, many of our current leaders lived through the exciting growth of skiing. Those were heady times and one couldn’t help but get caught up in the excitement. This was an industry where you could work your way up from loading lifts to running the whole show.

But, our industry has matured. The carnival atmosphere of growth has been replaced with a more sedate and business-like determination to keep our industry going. It’s a tougher atmosphere to get people excited about, but, hey, welcome to the real world.

Companies both large and small are starting to understand the importance of grooming future leaders. In fact, they have made prepping the bench a part of everyday business—it is as important as the spreadsheet, as returns, as productivity. Middle managers are held accountable and cannot horde talent. Instead, talent is groomed in every direction, in every department. Some CEOs are even starting their jobs with a written exit strategy. Sound crazy? Tell that to Orin Smith, CEO of Starbucks. He started his job with an exit date in mind, which has helped him push his business agenda.

Succession planning is vitally important, especially now. Our guests are aging and we are aging right along with them. Sure, I have seen some new faces grace the trade show halls, but it still mostly feels like a family reunion. There is some strong talent and enthusiasm out there that would rival that of the 70s. Don’t believe me? Just go listen in on a terrain park planning session or a ski school meeting. Identify these people and let them know they have a future at your ski area. Your future. Go ahead and embrace it. . .and embrace them. We’re not the only ones who love what we do.


Where’s All the Growth?
By Rick Kahl

With the nation’s resorts recording an estimated 58.8 million visits this past season, you’d expect the folks from RRC, which assembles the data and makes the projections, to sound upbeat. But at the NSAA convention, RRC’s Nolan Rosall, Nate Fristoe and David Belin appeared somber at times. That’s because NSAA’s Growth Initiative is not working. For the past season, trial was down, conversion was flat, and the core market shrank. If it weren’t for increased visits from core skiers and riders, it would have been a far less rosy season.

The proof is in the numbers. Those 58.8 million visits came from fewer people skiing and riding more often. About 10.5 million skiers and riders took to the hills last winter, down from 10.8 million the year before. Day and early-season visits both rose dramatically: Most of the 2 million increase in visits for the year occurred by December 19, and day visits were up strongly—especially in the Pacific West (21 percent) and Rockies (13 percent). Destination visits were flat, up just 1.5 percent in the Rockies, for example. Makes you wonder what all those new second-home and condo buyers are doing with their digs.

Discount passes continue to increase in number, and now account for 30 percent of visits, up slightly from 29 percent the prior year. That helps explain the growth of participation in the core market, which increased its average number of days on the hill by one.

While core skiers and riders, as defined in the Model for Growth, went more often, their numbers dwindled to just 61 percent of all visitors, down from 66 percent six years ago. The Boomers are, inevitably, leaking out of the bucket. And that lends urgency to the Growth Initiative. But we’re not pulling in new participants (that being the whole point of the Initiative). In fact, the number of beginners fell slightly this past season, and conversion remains stuck at 16 percent, virtually the same as it was six years ago. Privately, one area manager who has invested heavily in upgrading his learn-to facilities told SAM he is worried because the return on that investment has not nearly matched projections.

On a positive note, youth participation increased. Visitors under age 18 provide 28 percent of the visit total nationwide, but make up the majority of visitors in the Midwest. At the smallest areas, this youth group represents more than 60 percent of total visits. On the downside: in the Rockies, where presumably lots of kids in Colorado and Utah ought to be flocking to the slopes, youth make up just 15 percent of total visits. Even allowing for a mostly-adult destination crowd, the numbers strongly suggest that Rocky resorts are failing to recruit the region’s kids.

The result of all this is, as Belin noted, “the current growth vector is not sustainable.” He warned that areas must find ways to attract more newbies, retain the aging Boomers, appeal to women ages 30 to 40, and improve trial and retention rates.

Last season, none of that occurred. Anyone have an idea about how to change that?