Yokohama Country & Athletic Club

June 2005 : Yokohama Country & Athletic Club

For a number of years, Yokohama Country & Athletic Club used an update system which only enabled updates to be carried out centrally. Moreover, the former web solution consisted of many different open source components which prevented integration between applications. These factors complicated the daily routines of providing information to the members of Yokohama Country & Athletic Club. Furthermore, the members were unable to reuse their member information when they wanted to join various activities in the club.

Taking these facts into consideration, the club wanted to implement their solution in a system which both provided each member with a high degree of self-service and provided a flexible way of updating information on the web solution.

We are primarily a leisure club for our members but at the same time, we are also a service organization which has to take the wishes and demands of modern web users into consideration. We have integrated our solution with a CMS system which has provided us with a very high degree of flexibility and optimal integration possibilities. Moreover, the daily routines which consist of updating the solution with current offers, news and activities can be handled by our own employees.

- Cameron Graham

General Manager, Yokohama Country & Athletic Club

Content Management System defeated cumbersome technology
By analyzing the tools which were able to meet the club's needs of easy access to information updates, the club chose to implement the new web solution by using the Content Management System Dynamicweb. The reason for choosing Dynamicweb was among other things that it was possible to control design and layout centrally, but at the same time, it was possible to delegate the responsibility for updating the information in each section to local webmasters.

In addition, the club is now able to offer a range of member functions which assist in providing the members with a superior impression of the web solution. Among other things, these functions include searches in the member database, and allow members to edit their own member information. This means that the solution offers a high degree of interactivity between the club and its members.

The web solution imports the members' information and invoices from the club's finance software, which is based on a Microsoft SQL Database. Thus, it is no longer necessary for employees to spend their time maintaining membership information in two different systems. This is now done automatically by integration between the two applications.

“During the development of the new web solution, Yokohama Country & Athletic Club had a number of wishes and requirements to the solution. Among other things, the club wanted their members to be able to edit and maintain their own user information in the member database. This requires a very technically secure solution which still has to be intuitive to use. These requirements were fulfilled by establishing the solution with the Content Management System Dynamicweb using an Extranet module. The Extranet enables members to carry out a number of functions, such as maintaining their own information, get access to user statistics and join various club activities. And this does not limit the flexibility of the system”, says Soeren Laursen, Dynamic Systems A/S.

The solution was implemented in close collaboration between the club and its usual IT partner in Tokyo. During the process, status meetings have been held to ensure that the club's objectives and the supplier's understanding of these were consistent.

Geared to the future
Yokohama Country & Athletic Club has several other ideas as to how they want to develop their web solution further. This means that, before long, it will become possible to insert “classified” advertisements in the form of an online market place for their members, and it will also become possible to join scheduled activities in the club. In the nearest future, the web site will be converted to Microsoft .NET technology which means that it will become easier for the club to integrate other software applications and the web solution will run significantly faster. This makes it possible to offer even more services to the club's members.

Yokohama Country & Athletic Club in brief
Yokohama Country & Athletic Club was established in 1868 by a group of English businessmen. Within a few years, the club had integrated with Union Club and at the same time, the name changed to Yokohama Country & Athletic Club, which is the name used today.

Today, the club has more than 2,000 registered members which come from over 35 different nationalities. The members have access to a wide range of activities ranging from recreational possibilities to professional athletics.

Related links

» Visit website: Yokohama Country & Athletic Club
» Visit solution provider: Dynamicweb Software A/S (Ltd.)

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June - Yokohama Country & Athletic Club