The Villages Boards and Management selected the McMahon Group in 2024 to create a three-year rolling strategic plan that incorporates every aspect of who we are as a Club and community—and what we aspire to be in the future. We have already defined our north star—to be the active Country Club Community of Choice for people age 55+ in the South Bay. The question before us is how do we get there—and where do we start? We start by asking honest and forward-thinking questions that lead us on a strategic path.
Since fall of 2024, the McMahon Group has been working with the Boards and Management where hours have been spent in thoughtful and provoking conversations. The current Villages 2025-2028 Strategic Plan reflects this initial exploration of our industry, our community, our culture, and our resolve to move us to a secure future. To date, the plan includes:
- Trends in the community/club industry
- Trends within our community and marketplace
- Refined statements on our direction and culture: Mission, Vision and Values
- Analysis of our strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT)
- Top goals for the next immediate three years – becoming a rolling three-year outlook that evolves annually to guide future priorities
- Strategic initiatives, including action items, to meet our goals
The plan provides a framework, and now we move to the broader community—all 4000 of us—to further define The Villages. It will take everyone to fulfill our next three-year goals.
Top Goals:
- Member/Resident Experience and Engagement: Offer relevant, social, and recreational experiences for all members by providing a broad variety of well-maintained amenities and engaging programming.
- Master-Planned Facilities: Protect, preserve and grow the assets of the community through comprehensive capital planning that addresses obligatory and aspirational improvements within a unified Facilities Master Plan.
- Landscape and Fire Safety: Continue to implement the Landscape Plan to improve and coordinate appearance and to manage drought and fire-safety challenges.
- Landscape and Fire Safety: Continue to implement the Landscape Plan to improve and coordinate appearance and to manage drought and fire-safety challenges.
- Stewardship of Our Resources: Improve the approach to financial management to fund operations, aspirational facility improvements, capital reserves/obligatory maintenance and provide the resources to achieve our Mission.
These goals are sensible, with our Vision in mind yet grounded in our Mission—to provide a safe, attractive and well-maintained country club community for adults 55+, offering an active and enriching lifestyle for our residents. The Club Board commits to spending no more than is necessary and no less than is needed to achieve this.
- Safe, attractive, and a well-maintained country club come at a cost that we’ve worked diligently to define in the FY25-26 budget so that we are aligned with this mission and confident that we will meet our objectives.
- To offer an active and enriching lifestyle for our residents means that our Capital Replacement Funds must rise from the current $2.7 million in dues revenue to $3.9 million, or our ability to maintain this lifestyle will not be possible. The Club Board must remove constraints on Club policies and bylaws in order for us to responsibly invest in The Villages. This investment will come back to all of us not only in our daily enjoyment of being a Villages member, but in our homes, increasing value by upwards of 20%.
We are optimistic about the path ahead. We have brought in incredible caretakers, and we continue to be wiser stewards of our resources. We have brought alongside the Villages Board and Villages Team leadership experienced partners—visionaries, financial advisors, wise counsel and mentors—to safeguard our future.
Questions?
Please contact the General Manager’s office by emailing Theresa Ostrander at tostrander@the-villages.com or by calling the team at (408) 223-4634.
More details
Focus groups begin Survey Phase of The Villages 2025-2028 Strategic Plan
