NSP BOARD SESSION

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NSP BOARD SESSION

• June 21-22, 2001
• Indianapolis, IN

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Presentation Overview

• Association Focus
• Research
• Member-at-Large Survey
• Education/Program Leaders Survey
• Phone Interviews with Related Organizations
• Focus Groups with NSAA Members
• Lessons Learned and Implications
• Increasing Value

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Association Focus

• Problem Statement
• Historically, NSP has tended focus on internal
  matters and preserving of the status quo. Now,
  due to rapid change within the snowsports
  industry, NSP finds itself increasingly out of
  touch with industry trends and unable to respond
  to our ski area partners. We must change to
  recapture a leadership role in the industry.

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Association Focus

• Charge to the G.1 Committee
• The G.1 Committee was directed by the NSP Board
  of Directors to research and present a process to
  implement a change to the NSP governance and
  structure.

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Association Focus

• Board Mission Statement
• The function of the NSP Board of Directors
  will change to address strategic national issues
  important to the organization. This change will
  result in a business model that will be more
  effective for members and industry stakeholders.

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Association Focus

• As a result of the boards work, NSP
• membership is satisfied and growing
• is a dynamic and valued partner in the outdoor
  recreation industry
• will be an enabler for all industry stakeholders
• will provide the credential of choice

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Association Focus

• As a result of the boards work, NSP (continued)
• members and ski area managers will feel
  indispensable to one another
• will be a leader in outdoor recreation industry
• value will be increased in the marketplace by
  virtue of its being a problem solver for industry

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NSP Background

• 26,245 NSP members
• 8,000 members in education ranks (Instructor
  through Program Director)
• 1,060 receive POB
• Members average age is 44
• 9,544 education course attendees in FY 2000
• 624 Local Patrols
• Members by years of membership
• 0 - 5 yrs -- 37 5 - 10 yrs -- 20 10 - 15
  yrs -- 15.2
• 15 - 20 yrs -- 3.8 20 yrs -- 19.9

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Member SurveyYears as NSP Member
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Member SurveyFrequency of Connection with NSP
by Level
Never Local 2 Section 51 Region 53 Division
53 National 49
1-3x per year Local 8 Section 30 Region 33 D
ivision 35 National 40
6 per year Local 75 Section 2 Region 0 Divi
sion 2 National 3
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Member Survey Continuing Interest
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Member SurveyWhy Remain a Member?
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General Members Lessons Learned

• Local patrol is main reference point for members
• followed by the national organization (though
  members may have limited understanding of
  national services)
• Members have relatively little direct contact
  with regions, sections, and divisions
• Members are positive about the services they
  perform and their expectations about their role
  as a patroller are being met

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Implications

• Better communication is needed to overcome
  member-at-large confusion about NSPs levels and
  layers
• NSP must review the function and necessity of all
  the organizations levels

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Education GroupNumber of Years as an NSP Member
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Education GroupFrequency of Connection with NSP
by Level
1-3x per year Local 11 Section 36 Region
36 Division 48 National 53
4-6x per year Local 5 Section 14 Region
14 Division 7 National 11
gt6 per year Local 85 Section 12 Region 12 Divis
ion 11 National 9
Never Local 0 Section 36 Region
36 Division 34 National 27
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Education GroupContinuing Interest
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Education Group What Do You Receive from
Involvement in NSP?
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Education Group What Do You Know About Becoming
a Leader in NSP?
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Education Group Lessons Learned

• The political process is often seen as adversely
  affecting the education process
• Instructors do not perceive themselves as future
  NSP leaders
• 40 dont know the process for becoming a leader
• No one effective method of communicating program
  changes to program personnel
• Frequency of communication implies inconsistency
  from bottom up and top down

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Education Group Implications

• NSP needs to gain control and direction over its
  education courses and training
• NSP needs to address issues surrounding
  disenchantment and burnout
• Program personnel are vital to NSPs business
  strategy

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NSAA FOCUS GROUPS

• Two focus groups
• Community areas
• Destination resorts
• May 8 9, 2001
• La Quinta, California (NSAA Convention)

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NSAA Focus Groups

• Topics Discussed
• Major concerns/ Hot Topics
• Role of the patroller current future
• View of NSP
• Channels of communication
• Scope of ski area management services
• Future Issues relationships
• Open comments

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NSAA Focus Groups

• Scope of ski area management services in terms
  of partnership with patroller s
• Would like volunteer patrollers to do the same
  work as professional patrollers, except for
  avalanche work
• Prefer to treat patrollers like employees i.e.,
  they have most employee privileges and need to
  mesh their services with employee services
• Would like patrollers to buy into resort
  philosophy take pride in resort and treat
  people like customers
• Would like volunteers to take on a professional
  approach to their role

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NSAA Focus Groups

• Future issues relationships
• Customer service and guest services will continue
  to increase in importance
• Ski areas know they need to train patrollers in
  awareness of guest services
• Concerned about time commitment required by
  volunteer patrollers for each NSP skill level
• Believe that there will be less volunteer
  patrollers and more professional patrollers

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NSAA FOCUS GROUPS

• Future Issues Relationships (continued)
• Ski areas know that industry is changing and
  patrollers must adapt too
• Recruiting continues to be a problem (Finding
  alpine patrollers is difficult and finding nordic
  patrollers is almost impossible)
• Patrollers must be careful not to exceed NSP
  standard of care
• NSP needs an image that is current with the
  industry

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NSAA Focus Groups

• Open comments
• NSP is a great organization, fortunate to have
  the NSP patrollers
• NSP should help areas find new patrollers
  (concerns about the next generation of
  patrollers)
• Organizational structure needs to be streamlined
• Stay focused on core purpose of NSP, which is
  education and public awareness of safe skiing

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NSAA Focus Groups Lessons Learned

• Confusion over who is in charge of what?
• Opportunities for collaboration
• Opportunity for patrollers to be part of the
  skiers positive experience
• Guest service needs to be an integral part of the
  patrollers function

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NSAA Focus Groups Implications

• NSP needs to work together with NSAA on
  developing joint programs and industry strategies
• Guest services, guest experiences, growing the
  sport
• Increased communication needed between NSAA and
  NSP
• NSP needs to deliver a clear message about the
  value of its members and services to ski areas

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Related Organizations

• American Avalanche Association
• Canadian Ski Patrol
• National Association for Search Rescue
• National Ski Areas Association
• Midwest Ski Areas Association
• Ski Maine Association
• Professional Ski Patroller Association
• U.S. Forest Service

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Related Organizations

• Interview Questions
• What are the hot topics in your segment of the
  industry?
• What business challenges have you experienced in
  the past 3-5 years?
• What is your view/opinion of NSP?
• What is you relationship with NSP (all levels)?
• Within the industry, where do you see NSP?
• If you could say one thing to NSP, what would it
  be?

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Related Organizations Lessons Learned

• All organizations are experiencing changes in the
  ski industry, i.e., decreasing membership and
  decreasing number of ski areas
• NSP is in danger of losing its role in the
  industry due to isolationist behavior, i.e., the
  industry is changing and so must NSP to remain
  relevant

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Related Organizations Implications

• NSP needs to take a greater role within the ski
  industry and recognize that the industry must
  work as a team for its own survival
• NSP must stop thinking about internal politics
  and start thinking strategically about the
  industry

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RECAP Lessons Learned

• All membership organizations are experiencing
  rapid changes in the ski industry
• NSPs isolationist behavior endangers its
  position, and must change to remain relevant
• Guest service needs to be an integral part of the
  patrollers function
• Confusion over who is in charge of what? is
  compounded by bureaucracy and layers
• The political process is often seen as adversely
  affecting the education process

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• Weve gathered data
• and asked hard questions.
• Now what?

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The Next Steps

• The NSP board is in a good position to
• Make decisions about structural and procedural
  operations of NSP
• Make decisions about its own effectiveness, size
  and structure
• Develop a plan for change and take that plan back
  to NSP Divisions and other stakeholders for input
• Focus on the business strategy for NSP
• Deliver unique value to stakeholders