News:
2099-12-31
2011-12-03
HOTEL ASSET MANAGEMENT HAS CHANGED FOREVER
The focus of hotel asset management has traditionally been on cost control. Reducing the operational or flexible costs on the hotel balance sheet is what used to determine the profitability of a hotel. Over the last few years, focus has shifted !
To control staff payroll, purchasing costs and overhead spending used to be the main components of the job of a hotel asset manager. With the rise of the internet and increased dynamics of hotel distribution we have seen a shift in focus over the last few years.
The attention of hotel asset management has been increasingly moving towards room yield. Driving occupancy and average room rate is the key nowadays to controlling the bottom line the hotel. Of course a hotel revenue manager should have a strategy that goes far beyond REVPAR. NREVPAR (read article) and GOPAR are if instrumental importance.
For the Xotels portfolio we have seen an overall revenue growth of 15.8% in first three quarters of 2011, through strategic pricing strategies. We looked beyond mere cost control and had our hotel clients invest in SEO and internet marketing to increase direct sales. As a result, distribution cost was reduced and profit increased.
For more: XOTELS
2011-10-13
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From 1 October, it will be illegal to force staff to retire on age grounds. Also, agency workers will be entitled to equal benefits as permanent staff after 12 weeks. Nick Martindale explains the impact for FMs. |
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2011-09-28
In a climate of sharply rising costs for sending waste to landfill, Tim Price discusses the challenge for facilities managers of achieving zero waste
Commercial waste accounts for around six per cent of waste in the UK – around 25 million tonnes a year. Now that reducing waste is a pillar of the government’s environmental strategy, businesses are increasingly setting targets for their own performance. For many, this has crystallised into a quest for the holy grail – zero waste.
Many businesses have achieved major reductions in waste over the past ten years, with paper recycling bins common in almost all offices. However, more often than not, that is the extent of the recycling facilities. Many other materials, such as cartridges, cardboard, plastics, metals or even WEEE (waste electricals) end up in the bin, heading straight to landfill.
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2011-09-27
The incredible shrinking lunch hour
The office lunch hour is actually just 21 minutes on average, according to a survey.
Almost a quarter of people eat lunch at their work desks, noted the eating habits survey from independent contract catering group Westbury Street Holdings (WSH), owner of contract caterer BaxterStorey and state schools caterer Caterlink.
Lunch is a sandwich, 30 per cent of respondents said, followed by salad for 11 per cent of the people.
When it comes to drinks and snacks, tea is by far the most popular hot drink. Those choosing coffee go for i
nstant, with latte second.
Two-thirds of people usually snack in the afternoons. “Encouragingly, 57 per cent claim to regularly eat fruit as a snack, followed by biscuits/cookies (55 per cent), crisps (53 per cent) and chocolate (51 per cent). The average spend on snacks is £1.70,” says the report.
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2011-09-23
13 Illegal Interview Questions: Do You Know What To Do?
Most Job Seekers have no idea what an Illegal Interview question sounds like. Here is a list of 13 questions that a job interviewer should not be asking you.
Remember the purpose of an interview is to get the job. So it is important that you understand how to answer even inappropriate interview questions.
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2011-09-20
New APP for AH&LA Newsletter for Iphone or Android
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2011-07-20
10 Easy Steps To Thrive During A Job Phone Interview
"Job hunting starts at the phone interview. To get the job, you need to present yourself well over the phone - say the right things, mind your tone, and be confident overall. To see how you can do this, read this article so you can land a job".
Phone interviews are frequently used by companies to save time by pre-qualifying your interest and expertise. The following are some recommendations to ensure your next phone interview is successful for you.
Isolate Yourself
Phone interviews place you at a disadvantage because you only have one tool of communication, your voice. The interviewer's impression of you is shaped by all the sounds coming through the phone. Insulate yourself from distractions and background noises. Do not have your phone interview when you are surrounded by a lot of noise like an outdoor café at a busy intersection. If the call is on your cell phone make sure the caller can hear you clearly.
When the phone interviewer first contacts you, make sure it is comfortable for you to talk on the phone for at least 20 minutes. If it's not convenient, recommend scheduling another time for the call.
Schedule the Phone Interview
If you can not speak comfortably when the first call arrives, ask the interviewer if you could schedule a specific time for the phone interview. Be sure to define who will call who. It is recommended that you offer to call the company. This ensures you are fully prepared and in a situation where you can speak without interruptions. Schedule the phone interview just like you would any face-to-face interview.
Stand Up
During the call standup, walk around and smile. All these things make a big difference in the projection and quality of your voice.
What's Next
At the conclusion, ask the interviewer about next steps and timing of their hiring process.
Get Face-to-Face
If you are interested, ask for a face-to-face interview. Remember that your objective (during the phone interview) is to secure a face-to-face interview. You will be most effective discussing your background and assessing the company in a face-to-face meeting.
Prepare Your Responses
Phone interviews follow a similar pattern of questioning with the purpose of screening you out of consideration. Below is a list of questions most phone interviewers ask. Write down and practice your responses.
- Tell Me About Yourself.
- What do you know about our company?
- How did you learn about this position?
- What is our current salary?
- What are your compensation requirements?
- Why are you looking for a new position?
- What are your strengths?
- What are your weaknesses?
- Do you have any questions?
Questions You Ask
Questions are your primary tool of influence with an interviewer. Questions help you direct the conversation and assess if the company is right for you. Here are some questions to ask during a phone interview.
Opening Questions:
Questions you ask at the beginning of the phone interview.
- What is your position with this company?
- How much time would you like to speak on the phone?
- What position are you considering me for?
- What are the key things you'd like to learn about my background?
More Questions:
Questions you could ask in the middle of the interview.
- What business imperatives are driving the need for this position?
- Describe the three top challenges that I'll face in this job?
- What are the characteristics of people who are most successful in your company?
- What are the key deliverables and outcomes that this position must achieve?
Closing Questions:
Questions you ask at the end of the phone interview.
- What additional information would you like me to provide?
- What concerns do you have at this point?
- When is the best time to follow up with you?
Best of luck on your next interview. It is the most important moment in your search for a better position.
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2011-06-09
The "Elephants" in the Job Interview: Handling Difficult (but Impossible to Ignore) Topics
You don't want to talk about it, but you can't ignore it: You left your last job because you were fired. Or because you shouted "I quit!" in a rage and stormed out. Or maybe your last job wasn't the problem, but you can tell that this interviewer is just, as they say, "not that into you."
Dealing with the metaphorical "elephant in the room" can be as difficult as handling an actual elephant -- but when a new jobis on the line, it can be even harder. We asked Jim Camp, the president and CEO of Camp Negotiation Systems and the author of the bestselling book Start with No: The Negotiating Tools That the Pros Don't Want You to Know, for some advice on getting past elephants.
Camp explains, "A job interview by definition is a negotiation. It is an effort to bring about an agreement between two or more parties, with all parties having the right to veto."
Camp has developed a negotiation-management system and tools that he says can help anyone, in any type of negotiating situation, deal with barriers to negotiation. "Having such tools before you get to the negotiating table helps you prepare for, execute, and debrief the negotiation step by step," he says.
Now let's bring on the elephants:
Elephant #1: You were fired from your last job.
Before your initial job interview, Camp recommends creating a checklist. "In the checklist," he advises, "you would list any problems that you foresee might hurt your efforts, such as a firing on your resume, and that [might] keep you from the conclusion you want -- getting the job. Then you will address each problem in your first interview, either in person or on the phone. It would sound something like this: 'There is a potential problem I would like to address. It is important that we have transparency and openness as we begin. I was terminated from my last position. If that is important, I would like to address that at the very beginning. How would you like me to proceed? If termination is a game stopper, let's know right now.'"
That may sound scary, but Camp believes that not addressing the firing directly can be far worse: "Your directness, and your invitation to allow them to 'veto' -- in this case, to bring the interview to a stop -- will set them at ease," he says. "Such honesty puts you in a good light."
Elephant #2: You quit in an angry blowup (or just without giving notice).
Camp says you can use the same strategy here that you would use if you were terminated -- and for the same reason: "There's a good chance that your interviewer will call your previous employer. If you don't bring this out into the open, you'll be in a compromised situation when it comes time for your interview. That is, you'll be wondering whether and when they'll bring up the topic. You'll be wishing you'd said something. ... In the interview, you should be focusing on your words and behaviors, definitely not emotions such as fear or worry. Instead, just bring it out into the open, using a similar statement as previously discussed. And remember to talk about it in a way that helps the interviewer see you as an asset -- someone who made a mistake and learned from it, perhaps, and someone who will be forthright, honest, and direct. These are positives for the employer, not negatives."
Camp says that once you vanquish elephants like this, you can then discuss your job history "in the context of creating a well-rounded picture of the circumstances -- one that puts you in a beneficial light and helps the interviewer see you as an asset to the organization."
He adds that it's very important for you to retain control of your image -- and if you hide part of your history, you can give up some of that control.
Elephant #3: The interviewer says you're overqualified (and you just might be!).
Camp says that, like the first two elephants, this one should have made it on to the checklist of problems that you are facing. And, he says, you have to negotiate those problems out first.
"If it's not a deal breaker," Camp says, "then you've just gotten the interviewer to open up to the vision that you are going to start building for them, the one that shows them their problems, and that offers yourself and your top three or four qualities as the solution to those problems."
(For more tips on dealing with this particular elephant, read "I'm Overqualified.")
Elephant #4: The interviewer is hostile and aggressive.
Camp explains that his system of negotiation is made up of soft skills and hard structures: "The soft skills fill the structure," he says. "Within the behaviors that make up the soft skills, we have two that come immediately to bear on this situation. The first is the 'stripline.' It is the ability to be a little more negative than the other party. For example, the interviewer says, 'It just doesn't appear to me that you accomplished near as much as you could have in your last job.' Your response: 'From what you have to go on, it probably seems even worse than that.'"
Then you can speak about your accomplishments in more detail.
"The second is to nurture," Camp says. "Lower your voice, slow your pace of speech, and sit back as the discussion continues. By utilizing the stripline, nurturing, and a strong checklist, this type of interviewer is fairly easily handled."
Elephant #5: You can just tell that the interviewer is just "not that into you."
Again, Camp says it's crucial to get this problem out into the open: "By this, I mean stopping the discussion and stating the new problem you see, followed by a great open-ended question that can't be answered with a plain yes or no. For example: 'May we stop, please? I see a problem growing here. I sense I'm falling short in your eyes. Where am I falling short? Can you help me see that?' With that you should be able to re-engage and reboot the discussion."
2011-05-27
Hotel Sales - The Clients You Want versus The Clients You Get!
We all have them. You know those customers that we wish we had 10, 20 (fill in the blanks) more like them!
If you don't know what the customers you want looks like, market segment, demand periods, rate sensitivity, etc. you will have to keep settling for the inquiries that come in over the phone - even if they are ‘shopping' you and all the other hotels in your market. You know they are shopping so desperation sets in and you go lower and throw in more value adds to get the business. Why? Because you have no other prospects to work because you don't know where to look for the clients you want!
There have never been as many prospecting tools as there are now. The prospecting process has become infinitely easier but also provides nearly an infinite universe of prospects that will become overwhelming, if you don't know exactly the profile of the prospects you are looking for.
The DNA of Prospects You Want. The DNA model provides a filter for that overwhelming number of potential prospects by market segment, seasonality, etc What do your ideal clients look like?
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Geographically. Where do they come from? Where does the booking originate? Where do the participants come from?
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Demographically. What is the vertical that your best clients represent? What type of business is it, i.e., sales meeting, family reunion, etc.? What is the title or position of the person that books the business? What is the demographic of the participants?
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Fiscally. How rate sensitive are they? How do they pay the bill?
The Power of Search. Use the DNA as a filter to apply to search on search engines and social media.
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Google Search and Advanced Search. Google is still the power house of search and in entering the vertical and the geographic area, a wealth of information appears. An example would be ‘wind energy companies Seattle' that brings up no fewer than ten such companies displayed on a map. Advanced Search on Google allows the entry of certain words, the elimination some words in the search and a geographic focus as well. This link provides more info on how to best use Advanced Searchhttp://tinyurl.com/lfw48q.
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Social Media. LinkedIn is the planet's biggest B2B prospecting tool. It goes well beyond the network building and discussion groups. The ‘search' feature in LinkedIn is its most powerful tool. "At this moment in 2011, business social media is still in its infancy, but a random job title search on LinkedIn in a defined geographic region will not only net hundreds of new prospects, it will also tell you how these prospects are related to you and who in your network might serve as an introduction - thereby making it a warm call." Says Geoffrey Gitomer in a recent Forbes interview. (Dan Schawabel interview, April 15, 2011) There is also an Advanced Search tool in LinkedIn that permits narrowing the search to specific parameters.
Let's pull all of this together with a real life example. At a recent seminar, a resort identified their shoulder season as October and early November. Their ideal client was a repeat piece of business from a retail franchise manager who always brought his franchisees together the last weekend of October. The booking originated within a two and half hour drive distance of the resort. The franchise manager paid for the meeting expenses while the franchisees paid their own room tax and incidentals.
An Advanced d Google Search for franchise companies in a list of cities within a two hand half hour radius also brought up Entrepreneur Magazine that maintains lists and information on the top franchises in the country. They narrowed the Franchise companies down to seven within a two and half hour radius form the resort. The Franchise managers' contact information was readily available on the companies' web sites.
A search on LinkedIn for the franchise managers revealed two that were connected to the original franchise manager that booked the original piece of business. They were able to get introductions to these two prospects. Of the seven franchises they identified, the resort booked five of them.
Without a prospecting system in place, hotel sales people are at the mercy of the telephone inquiry. The clients you want are modeled after current GOOD clients so it can be reasonably assumed that they will also find value in the product.
So - do you want to wait by the phone or actively look for new prospects? It's your choice!
http://bit.ly/jw2sL5
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2011-04-11
9 Bad Behaviors That Are Sending Your Customers To Your Competitors
Loving customers sounds great when we’re reading it in a business book. But in the real world, the way we interact with customers can be anything but loving. Here are some of the bad behaviors that I’ve experienced over the years and how to fix them.
1. Push them into a sale.
The days of the pushy salesperson are long gone. And if you’re still measuring sales performance on quantity (revenue) instead of quality (profit), then you are bound to get reluctant customers who cost money to integrate into your system and are often lost before they become truly profitable.
How to fix: find your ideal customer.
Start by identifying your favorite customers, the ones you get along with, who seem effortless and even a pleasure to work with. They are often a pleasure to work with because their requirements match what your business system delivers. For example, if you consistently deliver within 48 hours and your customers need product in 48 hours, they will be delighted. But if you bring on customers who need 24-hour delivery, you will consistently disappoint. When you’ve identified your ideal customers, dig into the specifics of what it is about your business that works for them.
How to fix: Go for the "no."
This sales strategy consistently yields customers who literally sell themselves on your company. This doesn’t mean to run away from the sale; it means to help your prospect choose the BEST provider for them. Don’t be afraid of losing the sale; be afraid of attracting a customer who needs something your business doesn’t deliver very well.
For more just click HERE
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2011-04-05
Amsterdam launches high-tech baggage handling system
Amsterdam Airport Schiphol officially opened a 15,000-sq.-m. baggage hall as part of its effort to increase the handling capacity of AMS by 40% to 70 million bags annually. The South Baggage Hall is located on the south side of Departure Hall 1 and is able to facilitate handling for several airlines for both check-in and transfer baggage. In the future it will be a dedicated SkyTeam hall.
The new baggage hall is based on a method for baggage handling developed by AMS and KLM to create a more efficient process, reduce the physical demand on workers and better utilize space. Vanderlande Industries, IBM and Grenzebach Automation designed, built and tested the "smarter" baggage system, which incorporates six robot cells for automated loading of bags into containers and carts. The robots "pull" bags from storage "on demand," releasing them on the conveyor belt only when needed to prevent an overload of the system. It is expected that up to 60% of all checked luggage in the South Baggage Hall will be handled by robots.
The 21-km. transport conveyor contains other innovative technologies like AS/RS (Automated Storage and Retrieval System), a baggage storage mechanism with 36 cranes managing more than 4,200 bag positions. Also included is Destination Coded Vehicles, an interconnected, synchronized system that ensures every single bag can be located at any point in its journey.
AMS integrated the baggage control system with passenger check-in information to streamline baggage tracking and more quickly return misplaced bags to passengers.
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2011-03-02
HVS - 2011 European Hotel Valuation Index
This year’s survey shows that Paris and London retained first and second place in the index with the highest value per room, although the 2010 star performers were Frankfurt and Munich, with the highest percentage change in values per room of 19% and 15%, respectively. HVS London director Tim Smith said: “The importance of understanding the local dynamics of each city is more pronounced than ever. There is no longer a European hotel market but a group of independent markets sharing the same geographical proximity that is Europe. “In prior years, there was a clear divide between Eastern and Western European markets with cities in the west clearly outperforming those in the east. In 2010, that clear distinction blurred, with some cities (such as Warsaw) showing growth beyond those in the west. Given the improving conditions in the majority of the countries analysed, the big question is whether the bottom been reached?” On 2011, Smith noted: “An interesting year awaits, but it may be for differing reasons. Some cities will enjoy performance and value growth, others will remain reasonably static (and relieved to be so), whilst others may fall still further in the early part of 2011. Although we expect all markets to stop declining during the year, the importance of the next few months will be dramatic as it will show the depth, shape and speed of the recovery.” Just Click here for all details
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2011-02-01
Will Google take on hotel distribution?
It’s enough to strike fear in the hearts of OTAs worldwide - if Google enters the hotel booking game, what will the resulting merchant landscape look like? Don’t worry about it too much because the scenario is not likely, according to industry experts.
Despite buzz surrounding Google’s pending acquisition of ITA Software, there are no signs that Google plans to become a hotel room retailer, according to industry participants. In fact, many think Google’s increased interest in travel-related search results could be a benefit, with an important exception being the online travel agencies.
To be clear, ITA processes flight information so the acquisition by Google in itself does not affect hotels directly. What is likely to happen, however, is OTAs will respond to the changes and that will in some way affect hotels, according to Tim Unwin, senior VP, product management for Pegasus Solutions.
Google will likely take the combined capabilities of ITA and its existing platforms to the hotel search and discovery process, according to Henry Harteveldt, VP & principal analyst, Airline & Travel Research, Forrester Research.
“Google wants to take advantage of ITA’s capabilities to understand (consumer search) intent,” he said.
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2011-01-24
Automatic Hotel Check-In: The Way of the Future
We've featured YOTEL before - a revolutionary hotel group focused on airport hotels, packing maximum luxury into minimal space. Based on our YOTEL video and recent guest reviews, this approach seems to be working.
One of the things YOTEL has done differently is to re-examine the check-in process - and automate it. So I spoke to Jo Berrington, YOTEL's marketing director about the technology and thinking behind this.
One reason YOTEL decided to automate check-in was that it rents rooms for shorter time-periods - often for people who want a snooze if they have a few hours between planes in the middle of the day - so it has twice as many check-ins as a normal hotel would.
Automated check-in works especially well when most bookings are prepaid - that's the case with Yotel, which takes bookings through its website and gives customers a booking reference number. "That's all you need," Jo told me, "and the kiosk will issue you your key and your wifi code."
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2011-01-24
First Young Hoteliers Summit
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2011-01-19
2011 social media best practices for hotel marketers
social media specialists Senior Account Executive Margaret Mastrogiacomo and Account Executive Allison Sena have assessed the Facebook and Twitter strategies of HeBS’ client portfolio keeping in mind industry trends and predictions for 2011 to offer key initiatives, recommendations, and creative ideas to help your social media strategy soar. more...
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2011-01-06
Luxury hotels attract guests with exclusive experiences
Select upscale hotels are borrowing a page from tour operators by offering their top guests tough-to-get tickets to major events, VIP tables at the hottest nightclubs or other exclusive perks. A free spa treatment or a free night's stay is not always enough to sway some high-end customers, hoteliers say. Instead, luxury hotels have had to ramp up their game and go beyond their property lines. Los Angeles Times
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2011-01-05
Today’s Concierge – A Role Model of Service Excellence and Profitability
Concierge... the word appears almost everywhere these days as the ultimate symbol of personal service. No longer only the domain of the hotel lobby, the word "concierge" is appearing across all industries as an individual, whole departments and even virtual functions. When "googling" in the word "concierge" for an internet search, almost four and a half million choices appear. This is more than double the two million results of the same search done last year. The profession is hot and the demand is extraordinary.
Consumers and guests are driving these increasing numbers with a frenzied desire for more personal service. At the same time, organizations are scrambling to convince a skeptical public that the personal touch still exists. They plug in the word "concierge" with hopes that the public will symbolically appreciate the effort yet many simply use the word or hire an individual without the essence and skills of the professional concierge. The ability to truly deliver exceptional service does not automatically appear by simply adding the word concierge. Organizations that hire properly trained, professional concierges will see significant impact to the bottom line and guest/customer satisfactions levels will soar.
Hotels and hospitality organizations have long been noted as the original venues of this profession yet even those environments are seeing tremendous change and with vision, opportunity in this multi-dimensional role and profession. Today's concierge plays an increasingly strategic role in the overall guest experience. As the ambassador and key focal point for all types of questions and answers, a professional concierge can make the mundane seem special and the out-of-the-ordinary seem simple. But how does that translate to dollars.and business? Do general managers, senior executives and even the concierges themselves really understand the value of this role and the multiple contributions the concierge makes to the bottom line?
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2011-01-05
Is college is the best place to build entrepreneurial muscles?
For young adults, the best place to flex your entrepreneurial muscle is while you are in college — or at the very least when you are young enough to not be bogged down with a career.
College is a great place to start your venture as you have lots of free time, access to a large pool of human capital and your school can provide much-needed support. The following six points are what I have based my college endeavors around: MORE
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2010-12-27
How Guest Perceptions and Behaviors Haven’t Changed in the Past Year
Last year, when many people stopped traveling, hotels frequently cut prices in order to bolster their struggling occupancy rates. A year later, occupancy is coming back, although the average daily rate (ADR) charged by hotels is still lagging somewhat. (The exceptions are New York and a few other scattered markets where ADR is pretty much back to normal.) Conventional wisdom suggests that guests are happier when paying less money and having their hotels less crowded. There is also the belief that, during the worst of the recession, people sought value and avoided higher end hotels. This would suggest that, now that times are improving slightly, people might be likely to ‘trade-up’, particularly since rates have, for the most part, not yet rebounded to their pre-recession levels. read more
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2010-12-13
Mishappen of the week:
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2010-12-13
The "stop-doing list": Make it, then check it twice
Business owners who constantly put out fires create a company culture that encourages workers to do the same, according to G. Michael Maddock and Raphael Louis Vitón. To focus your team on the essential rather than the merely important, they recommend a "stop-doing list" -- a reverse to-do list specifying tasks and behaviors that take up time without creating value. Bloomberg Businessweek
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2010-12-08
Tourism to benefit as Baby Boomers reach retirement age
WORLDWIDE When the first of America’s Baby Boomer generation—those born between 1945 and 1964—turn 65 on January 1, they offer an enormous opportunity for the global tourism industry.
Considered the healthiest, wealthiest and most active senior generation in history, the demographic is composed of veteran travelers who say they plan to intensify their pursuit of travel, new experiences and adventure during retirement.
“Unlike their parents’ generation, Baby Boomers don’t consider themselves ‘old’ at 65,” says Lindsey Ueberroth, president of Preferred Hotel Group. The Chicago-based hotel sales and marketing consortium has conducted a survey about the travel intentions of retiring Baby Boomers, and some of the findings may be surprising.
The generation constitutes nearly half (47%) of active American leisure travelers. Two-thirds (66%) have taken a leisure trip to celebrate a life event like an anniversary or a birthday. Boomers are more likely to travel as a couple and, since 40% are grandparents, more likely to travel in multigenerational trips. More than two-thirds (68%) have a valid passport.
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2010-12-08
Websites have become far too complicated
Marketers believe that they are just at the beginning of how integrated marketing can be measured especially as they add new channels such as social media and video sites in their marketing mix, and the market shifts to delivering more and more personalised content on multiple devices such as mobile and iPad than ever before.
The industry seems to always be one step behind the data tracking on the newest touchpoint innovations so there’s always a need to invest /iterate on channels before you’ve got the data to know it’s working and will pay back.
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