Brandt Hospitality Group Getting Great Results From Accounting Software Partner
Aptech | June 5, 2024
Hospitality Financial Leadership: Why Prioritizing Employee Development Has the Best ROI for Owners Too
David Lund | March 27, 2023
Finance
Hospitality Financial Leadership: Your Department Managers Really Want to Do Their Monthly Financial Forecasts
David Lund | October 8, 2018
By David Lund You probably read the title and said to yourself, "No way, that's a load of BS. There is no way my managers want to do their financial forecasts. Heck, I can't even get them to submit their accruals or commentaries. We ask them to do their forecasts but rarely do we get them on time or even halfway making any sense. How on earth can I get my department managers to want to do their forecasts?" One of the most powerful distinctions in the world is the difference between wanting to do something and knowing how to do something. There is a saying that goes like this: If you can find the 'want to', the 'how to' is everywhere. Th...
Avison Young Hospitality Group Announces Market Milestone
Avison Young | October 8, 2018
ATLANTA – October 8, 2018 – The team that comprises the Avison Young Hospitality Group announced today that it has now closed more than 1,000 hotel transactions located in every region of the United States. The milestone was achieved by the recent closing of a Hilton/ Marriott hotel portfolio. The Avison Young team has now has closed 1,007 hotel transactions, totaling 138,150 guest rooms. "Very few companies ever reach this market milestone, and we are fortunate to be a part of the Avison Young growth story," said principal Keith Thompson. "We enjoy working with our many clients, and this milestone is a testament to the peop...
People Power: The Surprising Secret Sauce of Profit
Doll Rice | October 4, 2018
By Doll Rice Revenue management strategies today are built largely on the relevant, impactful and extraordinarily detailed data provided by the increasingly sophisticated software and reporting that is now available. But this is only half of the picture. The successful execution of these tech-driven strategies relies on the human element to fully harness, utilize and implement the insights provided by big data and predictive analytics. Without a talented revenue optimizer translating and applying the strategies from the data and predictive analytics, the hotel will not be as profitable. Ironically, at a time when technology and new soft...
Hospitality Financial Leadership: Understanding Liabilities
David Lund | October 1, 2018
By David Lund When I do financial leadership workshops with hotel teams we often talk about liabilities. I tell my audience that I know for a fact that each one of them have at least two liabilities. I get some puzzled and Kreskin-like looks from my audience as I tell them I can see two numbers floating magically above their heads. I tell them that I know for a fact that each student also knows the same figures, they are just not aware, yet! You see everyone knows how much vacation they have to take, and they also know how much money is owed to them in wages. They just don't see these two "things" as liabilities but they are excellent e...
Hoteliers – Make the Most of Your 2019 Tech Budget
Magnus Friberg | October 1, 2018
By Magnus Friberg Autumn isn't the only season that is taking shape right now — for hoteliers, budget planning season is fast approaching. Budget management is always top of mind for hoteliers, but no time more than now, as CFO's and Controllers work to predict expenses and allocate spend for the upcoming year. The question on everyone's mind becomes — where will 2019 investments go? Renovations? Technology? Staffing? Marketing? FF&E? During the budgetary process, there are a number of variables to consider. Primarily, hoteliers tend to focus on guest-facing CAPEX initiatives in the form of property updates — think...
Basic, Better, Best: Low Season Revenue Strategies
Ian Chinn | September 27, 2018
By Ian Chinn Low season; it's a term no hotelier likes to hear. In times of lower demand, some hoteliers adopt the 'busy hotel is a successful hotel' strategy, accepting lower-rated business and relying on the in-house spend in food and beverage, spa, ancillary and more, to top up revenue. However, guests paying significantly lower room rates are also typically less likely to spend on the spa, luxury dining or experiences needed to compensate for a cheap room rate. The longer-term ramifications of rate reductions to boost business in times of lower demand are far reaching. Not only does this impact brand perception but it al...
Xenia Hotels & Resorts Acquires 185-Room Fairmont Pittsburgh for $30 Million or $162K Per Key
Xenia Hotels & Resorts, Inc. | September 27, 2018
ORLANDO, Fla., Sept. 27, 2018 -- Xenia Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (NYSE: XHR) ("Xenia" or the "Company") today announced it has acquired Fairmont Pittsburgh, a 185-room luxury hotel located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania for a purchase price of $30 million, or approximately $162,000 per key. The acquisition was funded with cash available on the Company's balance sheet. The purchase price represents an estimated 11.0x multiple on 2018 forecasted Hotel EBITDA. Xenia currently forecasts that the hotel will generate approximately $0.9 million of Hotel EBITDA during the remainder of 2018. "We are excited to acquire ...
HFTP Announces 2018 Paragon Award Recipient – Anna McFarland, CPA, CFE, CHAE, CHTP
HFTP | September 25, 2018
The HFTP Global past president will be honored at HFTP's Annual Convention this October Anna McFarland, CPA, CFE, CHAE, CHTP was selected as the 2018 Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP®) Paragon Award recipient for her unwavering support of the association and substantial contributions to increase knowledge sharing and promote growth in the hospitality industry at large. McFarland will be honored next month during HFTP's 2018 Annual Convention held at the Omni Louisville Hotel in Louisville, Kentucky USA. "I am honored to accept this award and to join the past recipients who I have long admired and res...
AccorHotels Deploys Infor Revenue Management Solution Across France
Infor | September 25, 2018
212 French Hotels Gain Better Visibility to Optimize Revenue NEW YORK, Sept. 25, 2018 -- Infor, a leading provider of industry-specific cloud applications, today announced that its revenue management solution dedicated to the hospitality industry, Infor EzRMS, has been deployed by AccorHotels in France. This is part of a global project and aims to replace the existing solution that will disappear soon and that had been installed in nearly 150 Accor sites in France. EzRMS is currently in place in 212 hotels in France, throughout the territory, allowing each of these establishments to benefit from a better visibility on the customer deman...
GJP Hotel & Resorts Invests in Infor Software
Grupo GJP Hotel & Resorts | September 25, 2018
Infor EzRMS Helps Hotel Group Drive Revenue NEW YORK, Sept. 25, 2018 -- Infor, a leading provider of industry-specific cloud applications, announced that GJP Hotel & Resorts Group is implementing Infor® EzRMS, a revenue management solution used for demand modeling and forecasting, to help better manage revenues and help build a successful revenue strategy across all its key hotels in Brazil. Competition is increasing in the hotel sector and, as such, it is essential for hoteliers to understand and react to customer behavior and business trends to ensure that customers are always offered the right product, at the right price and ...
Hospitality Financial Leadership: Unplugging the Brand and Cranking up the OTA’s – Hotel Overachiever
David Lund | September 24, 2018
By David Lund It's nothing new to hear about hotels or owners who have said "good bye" to brands and have gone on their own as an independent hotel. This is the story of one such hotel and a look at their results. I am also going to highlight the typical costs associated with being affiliated with a brand and what some say is the biggest reason to get out while you can. The whole idea was the new owners. They bought the hotel with the express purpose of taking down the flag and making the hotel an independent. The market was strong and the hotel with its brand was doing quite well – a positive revpar index with its historical comp...
HFTP and Naseba Announce HITEC Dubai 2018 Advisory Council
HITEC Dubai | September 20, 2018
Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP®) and Naseba are bringing back HITEC® Dubai this year from December 5-6 at the Madinat Jumeirah in Dubai, UAE. A regional extension to the world's largest hospitality technology conference brand, HITEC Dubai 2018 will feature 30+ speakers, 600+ hospitality stakeholders and 60+ solution and service providers. The show will give Middle East buyers - currently worth over USD 75 billion - access to global top solution providers in hospitality market through a top-notch education program planned by the expert HITEC Dubai 2018 Advisory Council, as well as an exhibition showc...
North American Hoteliers Kick Off Second Half of 2018 With Continued Steady Rates and Bookings; Q2 2019 Shows Signs of Softness
TravelClick | September 20, 2018
NEW YORK – September 20, 2018 – TravelClick, a leading global provider of data and revenue-generating solutions for hoteliers, today released new data from the Company's August 2018 North American Hospitality Review (NAHR). According to this data, the second half of the year has stable rates and bookings across all travel segments, up 1.80 percent in average daily rates (ADR) and 0.51 percent in bookings in the third quarter when compared to the prior year. Group travel in Q3 is also up 1.81 percent in ADR and 0.50 percent in bookings, and the transient segment overall is up 1.80 percent in ADR and 0.52 percent in bookings i...
The Rainmaker Group Now Integrates With Central Reservation System, Windsurfer® CRS, to Provide a More Streamlined Interface for Customers
Rainmaker | September 20, 2018
ALPHARETTA, GA. — September , 2018 —The Rainmaker Group (Rainmaker), a leading provider of cloud-based hospitality revenue and profit optimization software announces a full integration between Rainmaker's premier revenue management system, guestrev®, and SHR, Sceptre Hospitality Resources, a pioneer of advanced hotel distribution technologies and developer of Windsurfer® CRS. This integration allows guestrev® to send pricing recommendations directly to Windsurfer CRS, giving properties the ability to access strategic information as they make pricing decisions. Hotel properties that utilize both guestrev® and ...
SHR Integrates With Rainmaker Guestrev® to Provide Advanced Revenue Optimization Tool
SHR | September 20, 2018
ALPHARETTA, GA and HOUSTON, TX, September 20, 2018—SHR, Sceptre Hospitality Resources, a pioneer of advanced hotel distribution technologies and developer of Windsurfer® CRS, has become fully integrated with the The Rainmaker Group's guestrev® product to help drive revenue and manage forecasting for SHR clients. Hotel properties that utilize both guestrev and Windsurfer will now be able to see Daily Rates, overbooking (at the property level or room type level), and Open/Close to Stay-Through within the CRS, instead of waiting for their PMS to relay the same data. And by sending pricing recommendations directly to Windsurfe...
HFTP Heads to Orlando in 2019 and Minneapolis in 2020 for Its Upcoming Annual Conventions
HFTP | September 19, 2018
Mark your calendars and join HFTP for even more networking and high-caliber education Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP®) announces future dates for its Annual Convention, an event the association has produced since 1952. Next year's HFTP Annual Convention will take place October 23-25, 2019 at the Rosen Centre Hotel in Orlando, Florida USA. In 2020, HFTP will produce its Annual Convention from October 14-16 at the Hyatt Regency Minneapolis in Minneapolis, Minnesota USA. This year's HFTP Annual Convention will take place October 24-26, 2018 at the Omni Louisville Hotel in Louisville, Kentucky USA. The ...
Hotel Underwriting Tips
Hans Detlefsen | September 18, 2018
By Hans Detlefsen As the owner of a hotel appraisal and advisory company, I get the opportunity to review hundreds of hotel appraisals, feasibility studies, investment pitch books, and offering memoranda each year. One of the things I've learned over the past two decades is that a few small changes in underwriting assumptions can greatly affect how hotel deals looks to investors. If these underwriting assumptions are not carefully considered, then they can represent big pitfalls for investors, appraisers, and others involved in the underwriting process. The following is a list of 12 issues and pitfalls I encounter frequently. This is no...
Hospitality Financial Leadership: Using Expense Checkbooks
David Lund | September 17, 2018
By David Lund I can vividly remember, as a young lad, my dad sitting at the kitchen table paying the monthly bills by check and then updating his checkbook. I remember asking him why he entered the details on the page at the back of the checkbook. He said very clearly, "So we don't spend more than we have and in the bank. If I don't keep track, we will run out of money and I'll end up bouncing a check!" In hospitality, we are all much better off when we use the checkbook system to manage our expenses so we don't run out, and so we don't overspend. The only difference between my dad and your department's expenses is you do not really run...
Paramount Lodging Advisors Sells Washington Red Lion Hotel
Paramount Lodging Advisors | September 13, 2018
Bothell, WA - Paramount Lodging Advisors (PLA) has successfully executed the sale of the Red Lion Hotel located 3850 Monte Villa Parkway, Bothell, Washington. PLA Senior Managing Directors, Scott Griemsmann and Brent Clemens, and Senior Associate Subu Thiagarajan represented the seller in this transaction. The 84-room Red Lion Hotel, former SpringHill Suites by Marriott, is ideally situated within the Seattle MSA and is proximate AT&T, EKOS Corp., Google, HaloSource, Philips, and a short drive to Seattle Tacoma International Airport (SEATAC). "We were extremely pleased with the activity and level of interest in this opportunity, whi...
Oliver Companies Goes Mobile: Installs Aptech PVNG Enterprise Accounting for 18 Properties
Aptech Computer Systems, Inc. | September 13, 2018
Mobile Oliver Execs Access Financials in Web-Based PVNG to Get Work Done PITTSBURGH, September 13, 2018 – Aptech Computer Systems announced that Oliver Companies, Inc. upgraded its back office financial processes to PVNG Enterprise Accounting. Oliver Companies converted from Aptech's Profitvue® hotel accounting software to web-based PVNG to enable mobile system access to company financials and property performance reports. Oliver Companies is based in Duluth, MN. It operates 18 properties across eight states that fly flags from Hilton, IHG, Choice and others. Aptech is the leading provider of hospitality business intelligence,...
Puzzle Partner Enters 5th Year Supporting Innovative Travel & Hospitality Companies
Puzzle Partner | September 11, 2018
B2B technology marketing agency Puzzle Partner marks major milestone working with the industry's most recognized technology brands to generate excitement and exposure TORONTO, ON (September 11, 2018) – Puzzle Partner, the most trusted travel and hospitality technology marketing agency, is celebrating a significant milestone this year. The company, founded in 2013 by industry veterans, is now entering it's fifth year of helping their clients engage with their target audiences to raise awareness, drive new business opportunities and build market share. The company's vision to empower brands through educational and entertaining c...
Beyond RevPAR: Understanding Total Group Revenue for Hotels
Dan Skodol | September 11, 2018
By Dan Skodol, Vice President of Revenue Analytics at Rainmaker Once upon a time, group business was essentially a filler for the guest rooms that transient business didn't occupy. In today's world of all-time occupancy highs,1 group business tells a different tale. When hotel owners examine their full profit picture, many now understand that group business and the revenue it generates is a major player in their overall revenue management (RM) strategy. However, groups are a challenge to revenue manage, as they're made up of many moving parts. To be successful in the group arena, hotels need to have the appropriate tools and strategies ...
Hospitality Executives Tackle Technology and Distribution Challenges at HSMAI’s Curate
HSMAI | September 10, 2018
Attendees Gain Insights into Innovation from Amazon, Under Armour, and Each Other (McLean, VA, September 10, 2018) Hotel senior leaders representing HSMAI Organizational Member companies investigated key issues facing the hospitality industry at Curate: An HSMAI Executive Insights Forum, hosted by the Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI) on September 5 and 6 at the Hyatt Regency Inner Harbor in Baltimore. Headlined by keynotes from Amazon and Under Armour, the event also featured collaborative and interactive elements, such as group brainstorming and live polling. "Curate is a unique opportunity for leaders ...
Hospitality Financial Leadership: The Morning Meeting
David Lund | September 10, 2018
By David Lund The morning meeting is a mainstay in almost every hotel. All the key department managers and leaders gather, usually in the front office or sometimes an in-house meeting room, to devour the day's business at hand. It is a great way to distribute last minute information and highlight important changes to groups and business volumes. However, most morning meetings miss the most important pieces of information. The most valuable nuggets are stepped over and not seen or exposed for what they are. A rundown of the following is a typical morning meeting: Previous day's occupancy, rate, and RevPAR. Anticipated occupancy, rate,...
