Brandt Hospitality Group Getting Great Results From Accounting Software Partner
Aptech | June 5th, 2024
Hospitality Financial Leadership: Why Prioritizing Employee Development Has the Best ROI for Owners Too
David Lund | March 27th, 2023
New Year, New Franchise Partner?
Steve Belmonte | January 9, 2018
Owners should expect to get a lot more for a lot less from their franchise system in 2018 By Steve Belmonte Are you part of a great franchise? Because in today's environment, hotel companies need to be great to ensure a return on the owner's investment. What really makes a franchise great? To start with, a franchisor needs to understand the issues that hotel owners face daily and be understanding of their needs. A great franchise company has a strong infrastructure designed for one purpose — generating revenue and reservations for its owners and doing it at the lowest possible cost. Providing services such as full revenue manageme...
HFTP Releases Sample Hospitality Job Descriptions for Industry Professionals’ Use
HFTP | January 5, 2018
Effective templates for industry department leaders Discover example job description templates produced by international nonprofit Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP®) and the HFTP Americas Research Center. The organizations compiled information into standardized descriptions for accounting and IT positions in the lodging industry, as well as descriptions for accounting positions in clubs. Available now via the HFTP website as well as its hospitality-specific search engine, PineappleSearch.com®. The HFTP Hotel Finance Advisory Council and HFTP Club Advisory Council provided guidance for the development of t...
Hospitality Financial Leadership – Financial Statement Analysis and Your Hotel Career
David Lund | January 2, 2018
If you google the words "financial statement analysis," you will get a long list of definitions like this one by Wikipedia: "Financial statement analysis (or financial analysis) is the process of reviewing and analyzing a company's financial statements to make better economic decisions. These statements include the income statement, balance sheet, statement of cash flows, and a statement of changes in equity. Financial statement analysis is a method or process involving specific techniques for evaluating risks, performance, financial health, and future prospects of an organization." What it will mean to you as a leader in the hospit...
China – Hotel Asset Management in Numbers
Daniel J Voellm | December 28, 2017
By Daniel J Voellm ABSTRACT A period of irrational hotel development drive by ulterior motives has seen properties being built that are not economical in operations, use of real estate and ultimately investment. The industry must depart from its obsession with full-service hotels and embrace more realistic investment criteria, should hotels ever become a trading asset class with reasonable liquidity, attracting investors from around the globe. Controlling labor cost is paramount and too many properties cannot drive sufficient business to justify their expenses. Most hotels are too large, both in number of units and gross floor area and ...
Hospitality Financial Leadership – A White Paper on a 6-Month Client Workshop/Coaching Engagement – Part 3
David Lund | December 27, 2017
By David Lund The following is an overview of a six-month financial leadership project that I recently completed at a full-service hotel. The project consisted of six half-day hospitality financial leadership workshops delivered in house and monthly 1-1 leadership coaching appointments with the 15 managers assigned to the program. Each month of the project we completed a group workshop and each manager had a coaching meeting with me. The project goal had five measurable elements: Complete Forecasts—get the managers and leaders of this hotel to complete their monthly departmental financial forecasts. Track their results througho...
Wharf Hotels and Duetto Announce Revenue Strategy Partnership
Wharf Hotels | December 21, 2017
Hotelier Adopts Scalable Technology Powered by Open Pricing Hong Kong, 21 December, 2017 — Wharf Hotels, a leading hotel management company based in Hong Kong comprised of 16 properties operating as Niccolo Hotels and Marco Polo Hotels, has partnered with Duetto, hospitality's only Revenue Strategy Platform, expanding its presence in Asia-Pacific. Wharf Hotels will implement Duetto's Open Pricing application, GameChanger, at several of its owned and managed hotels in Hong Kong, China and the Philippines. "As a high-growth company that recognizes the importance of innovation in Revenue Strategy and hotel technology, Wharf Hotels is...
Hospitality Financial Leadership – A White Paper on a 6-Month Client Workshop/Coaching Engagement – Part 2
David Lund | December 19, 2017
The following is an overview of a six-month financial leadership project that I recently completed at a full-service hotel. The project consisted of six half-day hospitality financial leadership workshops delivered in-house and monthly 1-1 leadership coaching appointments with the 15 managers assigned to the program. Each month of the project we completed a group workshop and each manager had a coaching meeting with me. The project goal had five measurable elements: Complete Forecasts—get the managers and leaders of this hotel to complete their monthly departmental financial forecasts. Track their results throughout the month. ...
Palladium Hotel Group Implements Duetto to Drive Revenue Strategy in Spain
Duetto | December 19, 2017
Palladium Hotel Group Adopts Duetto's Open Pricing and Group Optimization Applications to Grow Business in Ibiza and Tenerife Ibiza, Spain, 19 December, 2017 — Duetto, hospitality's only Revenue Strategy Platform, has partnered with Palladium Hotel Group in Ibiza, Spain, and implemented its GameChanger application to eight Palladium properties on the island, including its Hard Rock Hotel Ibiza and Ushuaïa Ibiza Beach Hotel, as well as the Hard Rock Hotel Tenerife in the Canary Islands. Palladium properties are now also using Duetto's BlockBuster application for optimizing contracted and group business. The Spain-based hotel c...
GuestCentric and Duetto Partner to Bring Personalization to Hotel Bookings
GuestCentric | December 14, 2017
Booking Engine Provider and Revenue Strategy Platform Pioneer Real-Time, Contextualized Pricing and Merchandising with Playmaker, Duetto's New Personalization Application New York, December 14, 2017 — Duetto, hospitality's only Revenue Strategy Platform, and GuestCentric have partnered to bring a new level of personalization to the hotel and casino industries that will increase conversion and direct bookings. The companies' strategic partnership will enable hotel companies using Duetto's recently launched personalization application, PlayMaker, and GuestCentric's global booking engine the breakthrough ability to customize merchand...
Paramount Lodging Advisors Breaks Ground On New Chicago Office
Paramount Lodging Advisors | December 13, 2017
CHICAGO, IL – Paramount Lodging Advisors (PLA), with the support of Midland States Bank is constructing its new company headquarters in the Old Town area of Chicago. PLA has partnered with Irpino Construction as the General Contractor to build the office. The building is projected to be complete by July of 2018. The new headquarters will be a sleek, three-story building equipped with a wide variety of innovative technology and accommodations. It will also tailor specifically to the needs of the PLA's Hotel Real Estate Advisory Practice - with unique gathering spaces and private offices. The third floor, uniquely will offer a stunn...
California Labor & Employment Law Update: Key Changes in 2017 and What’s Slated for 2018
Jim Butler | December 13, 2017
By Jim Butler and the Global Hospitality Group® Hotel Lawyers | Authors of www.HotelLawBlog.com 12 December 2017 California has enacted a number of new regulations related to labor and employment that go into effect when 2018 begins. Hotels owners and developers with properties in California need to be aware of how these rules apply to their workforce so they can meet their legal obligations and remain in compliance with the law. A round-up of upcoming changes, written by the JMBM Labor & Employment group, is below. California Labor & Employment Law Update: Key Changes in 2017 and What's Slated For 2018 by The JMBM Labor &am...
HFTP and Forrester Group Administer Hospitality Survey to Shape the Industry’s Future
HFTP | December 12, 2017
Survey measures professional development, research and resources available to hospitality finance and technology professionals Focused on continually improving ways to communicate and engage with its members and stakeholders, international nonprofit Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP®) and Forrester Research have just released an extensive global research project that will provide guidance on the state of the industry; provide existing industry stakeholders with additional resources, and enrich the association's understanding of financial and technology trends that will shape the industry's future. HFTP...
Hospitality Financial Leadership – A White Paper on a 6-Month Client Workshop/Coaching Engagement – Part 1
David Lund | December 12, 2017
By David Lund The following is an overview of a six-month financial leadership project that I recently completed at a full-service hotel. The project consisted of six half-day hospitality financial leadership workshops delivered in-house and monthly 1-1 leadership coaching appointments with the 15 managers assigned to the program. Each month of the project we completed a group workshop and each manager had a coaching meeting with me. The project goal had five measurable elements. It was to get the managers and leaders of this hotel to complete their monthly departmental financial forecasts, track their results throughout the month, adju...
Best Practices in Creating and Completing Construction Knock-out Punch Lists
Cicero's Development Corporation | December 8, 2017
PLAINFIELD,IL, DECEMBER 8, 2017 -- Punch lists are a part of a construction contract that helps to meet and ensure the quality of the project. Throughout each phase of the construction process, a checklist is maintained by the contractor that details any unfinished and/or unacceptable work. Items that are found to not meet quality standards or do not conform to the scope as outlined in the contract documents are to be corrected by the contractor in a timely fashion and typically prior to receiving final payment on the project. A common practice in the construction industry is that contracts are written in such a way that allows ownershi...
Sonnenblick-Eichner Company Arranges $22,000,000 of First Mortgage Financing for Shops at the Pier, on Behalf of Provenance Hotels and Bolour Associat
Provenance Hotels | December 6, 2017
Beverly Hills, CA, December 6, 2017 -- Sonnenblick-Eichner Company has secured $22 million of interim first-mortgage financing for the Shops at the Pier, on the renowned beachfront, The Strand, in Hermosa Beach, California. The property is owned by a joint venture comprised of Portland, Oregon-based Provenance Hotels and Bolour Associates, Beverly Hills, California. Located at the base of the Hermosa Beach Pier, the Shops at the Pier is a mixed-used project, which includes 18,192 square feet of fully leased retail space and nine apartment units. Hermosa Beach is an affluent beach community in Southern California, which attracts millions...
The Rainmaker Group Closes Sale of Multifamily Housing Assets
Rainmaker | December 6, 2017
Company to focus exclusively on continued growth of its hospitality business ALPHARETTA, GA – December 6, 2017 – The Rainmaker Group (Rainmaker), a leading provider of cloud-based hospitality revenue and profit optimization software, today announced the closing of its sale of Rainmaker LRO multifamily housing business and product portfolio to RealPage, Inc., a Texas-based provider of software and data analytics to the real estate industry. The sale allows Rainmaker to strengthen its position as the leading provider of revenue management solutions for the hotel and gaming industry. "We have partnered with the hospitality comm...
Rockbridge, in a Joint Venture with Musselman Hotels Management, Acquires Kentucky’s Seelbach Hilton Hotel
Rockbridge | December 1, 2017
Columbus, OH, December 4, 2017 – Rockbridge announced the acquisition of The Seelbach Hilton in Louisville, Kentucky in a joint venture with Louisville-based Musselman Hotels Management, who will manage the property. "We look forward to working with our local partner and the City to explore potential opportunities for the Seelbach," said Jim Merkel, Rockbridge CEO. The Seelbach Hilton is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The 321-room property features several restaurants and bars and has more than 32,000 sq. ft. of meeting space. ...
HFTP and HSMAI Region Europe to Co-locate European Conferences in April 2018
HITEC | November 30, 2017
Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP®) and HSMAI Region Europe are pleased to extend their partnership and co-locate European conferences again in April 2018. HSMAI Region Europe will co-locate its Revenue Optimization Conference (ROC) and its Digital and Distribution Optimization Conference (DOC) with HFTP's HITEC® Amsterdam. HSMAI Region Europe's Annual ROC and DOC conferences will take place 10-11 April 2018 at Hotel Novotel Amsterdam City, while HITEC Amsterdam will take place from 11-13 April 2018 at the RAI Amsterdam Convention Centre. HFTP's HITEC is an all-encompassing vehicle that showcas...
HFTP and Naseba Set New Standard in The Middle East with HITEC Dubai
HITEC | November 30, 2017
Co-produced by Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP®) and Naseba, more than 600 hospitality technology professionals came together for the inaugural HITEC Dubai. The event served as a regional, Middle Eastern counterpart to HFTP's 45-year-old Hospitality Industry Technology Exposition and Conference (HITEC®) – the world's largest and oldest hospitality technology exposition and conference brand. HITEC Dubai served as HFTP's third HITEC of the year, and took place from November 14-15, 2017 at the Conrad Dubai in Dubai, UAE. The inaugural conference featured 600+ hospitality stakeholders, 40+ ...
Rainmaker Announces Antitrust Clearance from U.S. Department of Justice, Clearing the Way for Completion of Multifamily Assets Sale
Rainmaker | November 29, 2017
Company expects the transaction to close in December ALPHARETTA, GA – Nov. 29, 2017 – The Rainmaker Group (Rainmaker), a leading provider of cloud-based hospitality revenue and profit optimization software, today announced that it has received antitrust clearance from the U.S. Department of Justice to transition its Rainmaker LRO multifamily housing business and product portfolio to RealPage, Inc., a Richardson, Texas-based global provider of software and data analytics to the real estate industry. The company anticipates the transaction closing will take place by the end of 2017. On February 28, 2017, Rainmaker announced th...
The Unfinished Business of Revenue Management: Investment Abandoned
Pierre Boettner | November 28, 2017
Pierre Boettner CEO and Founder hospitalityPulse Hotel revenue management is on the verge of something of a second renaissance; the field is propelling itself toward the notion of Total Hotel Revenue Management. It is one that revenue managers have foreseen—in fact, requested—for many years now, and the idea is that revenue management should move beyond room pricing and channel strategies, beyond Pace reports and market segment reviews, and move to identify profitability gaps and opportunities across the entire operation. In the introduction to a 2017 Cornell Hospitality Research Brief on the topic, the authors say, "While a...
Sonnenblick-Eichner Company Arranges $35,000,000 of First Mortgage Financing for The Inn at the Market, Seattle, Washington
Sonnenblick-Eichner Company | November 28, 2017
Beverly Hills, California – November 28, 2017 – Sonnenblick-Eichner Company has arranged $35,000,000 of first mortgage financing for the iconic 76-room luxury boutique Inn at the Market hotel in Seattle, Washington. The hotel is located at the world-famous Pike Place Market, the most popular and recognizable destination in downtown Seattle. The hotel is currently ranked #1 of 100 hotels on TripAdvisor in Seattle. The financing, provided by a Wall Street investment bank, was a non-recourse, 10-year fixed rate loan with 5 years of interest-only payments. The Inn at the Market has historically been a rate leader in the downtown...
Global Hotel Groups Support HFTP’s Hospitality Certification Programs
HFTP | November 21, 2017
AUSTIN, TEXAS, USA (November 21, 2017) — Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP®) offers two certification programs that are globally recognized for setting industry standards for hospitality finance and technology professionals: Certified Hospitality Accountant Executive (CHAE®) and Certified Hospitality Technology Professional (CHTP®). These certification programs have been named a requirement for information technology and accounting employees at Rosewood Hotel Group, Two Roads Hospitality and Accorhotels Group – which operate Fairmont branded hotels. Accorhotels Group recently followed suit ...
Hospitality Financial Leadership – Testing vs. Trusting
David Lund | November 20, 2017
By David Lund "All of life is an experiment, the more experiments the better." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson When you really want to do something, the "how to" shows up everywhere. Getting into and staying in action is the key. Having and holding onto the notion that we must have the answer first kills our endeavors. Let me give you an example. A client of mine hired me to help him grow his new real estate business. We did some sessions and something was revealed. He had a predisposed notion of how his business should grow. He was close to trying some new ways to grow his business. He had heard the stories of the other more established and succ...
