➊ DATA CONSOLIDATION Dana Cariss , SVP of revenue optimization for management company CoralTree Hospitality , highlighted the importance of integrating diverse data streams to create a holistic view of operations . “ It all starts with data ,” Cariss said , a nod to the famous Peter Drucker counsel : “ What gets measured gets managed .” CoralTree consolidates revenue data from property management systems , sales and catering , point-of-sale systems and even golf and spa departments , providing a unified view , which Cariss said enables better decision-making and more personalized guest experiences .
➋ EMBRACE A CULTURE OF DATA- DRIVEN DECISION MAKING Sudharshan Chary , manager of the resorts division at Otelier , emphasized the need for a mindset shift . “ You can have the best data and dashboards , but without a data-driven culture , it ’ s just numbers on a screen ,” Chary said . He stressed the importance of empowering department heads to embrace analytics and make proactive decisions based on trends , forecasts and key metrics .
IT ALL STARTS WITH DATA
– DANA CARISS , SVP OF REVENUE OPTIMIZATION , CORALTREE HOSPITALITY
➌ LABOR OPTIMIZATION Labor costs remain the largest expense for most hotels . Chary suggested using time clock data alongside payroll metrics to track regular , overtime and double-time hours by department . “ With real-time labor data , department heads can monitor performance daily and adjust staffing to avoid costly overruns ,” he said .
Yohannes Semere , corporate director of revenue strategy at Peregrine Hospitality ( formerly KSL Resorts ), added that accurate forecasting plays a key role . “ We aim for less than 3 % variance in our 90-day forecasts . This precision allows us to align labor needs with anticipated demand ,” he said .
One of Peregrine ’ s principles is to establish core department disciplines that guide process . It allows the GM , a generalist , for example , to not get into the weeds of all departments but understand enough so he or she has a sense of the dayto-day happenings .
➍ REVENUE MANAGEMENT BEYOND ROOMS While room revenue remains central , ancillary revenues , such as F & B , golf , spa and retail , are increasingly significant . Chary pointed to a Florida golf resort where package deals boosted Total Revenue Per Available Room ( TrevPAR ) by $ 450 over RevPAR . “ The key is to understand the interplay between departments and strategically bundle offerings ,” he said .
At the same time , though luxury hotels , which by nature have higher expenses than lower chain-scale hotels and more line items , are more challenging to operate and necessitate higher staff counts , they generate higher revenue due to their composition of room rates and F & B costs . “ Higher top-line revenue can cover up a lot of mistakes ,” Semere said . “ The margin of error tends to be a little bit bigger .”
HIGHER TOP-LINE REVENUE CAN COVER UP A LOT OF MISTAKES
– YOHANNES SEMERE , CORPORATE
DIRECTOR OF REVENUE STRATEGY , PEREGRINE HOSPITALITY
➎ PERSONALIZED GUEST EXPERIENCES DRIVE PROFITABILITY Personalization and unique offerings are key to providing exceptional guest experiences . Cariss underscored the role of CRM systems in capturing guest preferences and transaction history . “ Understanding guest tendencies enables targeted marketing and upselling ,” he said . For example , guests who previously booked spa services but lack a current reservation can be offered exclusive spa packages during their stay .
Semere added that investing in scalable systems ensures seamless data aggregation across diverse platforms , enabling deeper guest insights .
➏ THE IMPORTANCE OF FORECASTING AND CHANNEL MANAGEMENT Both Cariss and Semere stressed the
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