Along with smoky board rooms, directors sipping vintage brandy at their desk and the ever popular liquid lunch, meetings on the golf course are an old vision of the way the world used to do business.
While the smoking ban did away with Cuban cigars in the office and a huge police campaign put paid to booze followed by an interesting drive home, golf and business still appear to go very much hand in hand.
So why is golf so synonymous with business people? Its popularity grew on the back of the old fashioned, “men only” image that both golf and the executive lifestyle shared, but even though that mindset is thankfully on the way out, it still remains as popular as ever among the business fraternity.
The new fitness craze may be one reason that it has retained its popularity, with golf still being a good source of exercise for those who decide against the buggy. It is also a great opportunity to get one over on your closest business rivals!
So far from dying out it seems that golf will continue to be a big part of the executive lifestyle. Just looking at the corporate gifts market will show you how highly regarded golf still among the business fraternity, with a myriad of golf themed gifts available for the golf loving exec.
Promotional products also play a big role in the world of corporate golfing, with branded golf apparel also available for companies who want to add their logo to anything from golf tees to balls and umbrellas. Indeed, golf days are still an effective way of increasing staff morale and entertaining clients, so in many ways golf is embedding itself even further into the business world.
But how about the meetings on the golf course, do they still have a place in the modern business world?
Happily you don’t have to play golf to run a successful business, and modern workday practices would seemingly make the golf course an inappropriate and non-inclusive way of getting work done. While golf is still a favourite hobby of the business person, it seems that its popularity is now confined to evenings and weekends, with golf days used to improve staff morale and build relationships with clients.
While the other old fashioned business practices may have died out, golf still plays an important role in the modern business world. Just looking at the corporate gifts and promotional products market will testify to how popular it still is, but in 21st century Britain it seems that meetings are for meeting rooms, not the golf course.
