The Club Managers Association of Europe (CMAE) has elected Jörgen Kjellgren as its new President.
Jörgen Kjellgren, General Manager of Rya GolfKlubb, Helsingborg, Sweden, takes over from Lt. Col. John Hunt, Secretary of The Berkshire Golf Club, Ascot, England, who has now completed his two-year term of office.
Also elected at the AGM was Arnaldo Cocuzza, General Manager of Milano Golf Club, Milan, Italy, as CMAE Vice-President for the next two years.
The two new appointments were formally ratified at the CMAE’s International Congress and Annual General Meeting in Madrid, Spain on March 31. Mr Kjellgren is the first CMAE President from outside Great Britain and Ireland.
On taking office, Mr Kjellgren said: “I am honoured to be elected as the fifth President of the Club Managers Association of Europe, and over the next two years I am looking forward to working closely with my colleagues on the Board of Directors to achieve the objectives of the CMAE, and to support and assist all CMAE members across Europe. I enjoyed meeting so many CMAE members at the recent International Congress in Madrid, which was a great conference, with good speakers, good education and a lot of time for fine networking.”
Jerry Kilby, CMAE Chief Executive Officer, said: “Jörgen has been deeply involved in the Swedish Golf Management Association for a number of years, and their education programme is the envy of all other countries in Europe, so we are looking forward to his infectious passion for education that will help drive the CMAE’s Certified Club Manager qualification.
“Members also expressed their gratitude to John Hunt who has been an outstanding President for the past two years.”
More than 120 club managers from across Europe, including representatives from Spain, France, Italy, Holland, Sweden, Denmark, Portugal, Hungary and Ireland, as well as from around the United Kingdom, attended the two-day event at the Vincci So Ma Hotel in downtown Madrid.
Among the topics discussed was the implication of EU regulations on clubs, improving food and beverage operations for clubs, new education initiatives, and bestpractice in membership retention and acquisition.