Hotel Operations Efficiency

A GM in Singapore just killed the hotel industry as we know it. The real disruption isn't in the numbers anymore. It's in who's holding the keys. Last week, I watched this 34-year-old GM manage her entire hotel from her phone. Check-ins, housekeeping, revenue optimization. All automated. She spent her day doing what algorithms can't: building relationships with a Korean startup to POC their services. That startup chose her hotel over the one next door. Why? Because she understood their business. This is the shift few tech founders grasp. You're not disrupting hotels. You're empowering a new generation of GMs who think like CEOs, not caretakers. The numbers tell the story: - Hospitality will create 119 million jobs by 2034 - Gen Z will make up 30% of the workforce by 2030 - 72% of hotels report better advancement opportunities than pre-2019 Meanwhile, the best GMs are learning from Y Combinator videos and treating their hotels like startups. Innovation drives them. Knowledge backs them up. For Guests: Your next hotel stay won't feel like a hotel. It'll feel like staying with a friend who happens to have 200 rooms and knows exactly what you need before you ask. For GMs: Your job isn't operations anymore. It's orchestration. You're not managing a building. You're curating experiences, leveraging data, and building communities. For Startups: Stop trying to eliminate the human touch. Start amplifying it. The winning formula isn't B2C or B2B. It's B2GM...building tools that turn good managers into great leaders. It's not about tech replacing people. It's about people using tech to become irreplaceable. And that 34-year-old GM? While we were debating disruption, she was already building it. Welcome to hospitality's next chapter. The disruptors aren't in Silicon Valley. They're at the front desk. #HospitalityInnovation #StartupEcosystem #FutureOfHotels #PeopleFirst #HospitalityTech The photo is Singapore's skyline - the story could be any forward-thinking hotel here

Great news about direct hotel bookings or simply wishful thinking? Skift Research came with its much anticipated Hotel Distribution Outlook 2024. In this report, based on the wishes of both branded and independent hoteliers surveyed, Skift Research predicts that “by 2030, direct digital channels will have overtaken the OTAs as the dominant distribution channel for hoteliers: $409 billion of hotel gross bookings are expected to come from direct digital channels, compared to just $333 billion from OTAs.” The Skift survey also shows that hoteliers “would like to move toward an ideal scenario with the biggest increase in digital direct bookings (from 25% in 2024 to 42%) and the biggest decrease in OTA distribution (ideally from 25% in 2024 to 13%).” All of this is great news, correct? Wrong! I believe this “ideal scenario” hoteliers would like to move forward to is just wishful thinking. This is particularly valid for independent hotels, who “would like more digital direct bookings than the branded chains” according to the survey. Here is why: 1. Systemic Underinvestment in Technology: Normally, hoteliers spend on technology 2.5% - 2.75% of net room revenue, including payroll for IT personnel. Compare this to 15%-17% of revenue for Expedia or Booking. 2. Systemic Underinvestment in Marketing: Hotels spend on marketing less than 2.5% of net room revenue. Compare this to 36% of revenue for Booking and 54% for Expedia. There have always been intermediaries in hotel distribution. Even in the pre-Internet era, back in 1995, 25% of roomnights were generated by intermediaries vs 75% were direct. In other words, direct vs indirect ratio was 4:1. Fast forward to today: For many independents direct vs indirect (OTAs, bedbanks and other intermediaries) ratio is negative 1:3 to 1:4 and even 1:5 i.e. only 20% of online bookings are direct. Compare this to major hotel chains’ positive 3:1 to 4:1 ratio. Why do the independents have such an over dependence on the OTAs? Systemic underinvestments in talent, technology and digital marketing are the main reasons. Why are we even talking about direct bookings? At NextGuest, now part of Cendyn, we tracked the cost of direct online distribution in the course of 20 years across our more than 5,000 plus primarily independent hotel clients. You know what? The average direct booking cost has stayed consistently in the range of 4.25% - 4.5%. Compare this to OTA commissions of 18%-25% plus increased visibility commission add-observations, OTA loyalty member discounts, etc. Today's hoteliers must create and manage a robust digital presence and engage, acquire, service and retain travel consumers in this mobile-first world. They must invest adequately in technology, marketing and talent to engage, acquire and retain travel consumers throughout the Digital Customer Journey, enable the best user experience, provide the best customer service, thus increasing efficiencies and boosting direct revenue.

There're $2M Revenue Hiding in Hotels Empty Lobbies, and 99% is failing their innovation efforts. A new Skift and ZS report just quantified hospitality's most expensive gap: - 89% of executives say they need new revenue models. - Only 32% describe their efforts as "very innovative." Most operators think revenue diversification means: → Adding a spa → Upgrading F&B → Better amenities Real diversification means building new business models from existing assets. Your meeting rooms sit empty 60% of daytime. Your restaurant has vacant seats at 3pm. Your lobby is dead between check-out and check-in. That's not downtime. That's unrealized revenue. Here's what hotels need to do instead: Workspace Memberships Sell daytime access to lobbies, meeting rooms, lounges. Revenue: $50K-$200K annually Cost: Minimal One hotel: 150 local members × $75/month = $135K from space that generated zero. Corporate Workspace Partnerships Replace traditional office leases. Revenue: $500K-$2M annual contracts Retail Integration Partner with brands to sell in-room products. Commission: 15-25% Inventory risk: Zero Local Experiences Marketplace Book activities for non-staying guests. Commission: 10-20% Market: 30-minute drive radius Content Creation Rentals Rent space to creators and brands. Revenue: $100K-$500K annually One property: 80-150 shoot days/year at $500-$2K per day In Roatán we are adapting some of this trends by building a new coworking café and a new store with merch and gifts you can take, making the lobby a more active place and a revenue generator. Last year I saw the same in Dubai, a whole hotel lobby transformed into a coworking Café. The revenue opportunities are big in these empty spaces for hotels who want to disrupt the status quo. Have you been in a hotel recently who nailed it?

The Hidden Cost of OTA Dependency: Are You Trading Brand Loyalty for Short-Term Gains? In the ever-evolving hospitality landscape, Online Travel Agencies (OTAs) have undeniably transformed how guests discover and book accommodations. However, beneath the surface lies a pressing concern: the long-term implications of over-relying on OTAs. •The Financial Impact While OTAs offer immediate visibility, they come at a significant cost. Hotels typically pay commissions ranging from 15% to 30% per booking. For instance, a $500 room booked through an OTA could mean up to $150 in commission fees, directly impacting profit margins. In contrast, direct bookings, which bypass these fees, are approximately 9% more profitable than OTA bookings, both before and after accounting for ancillary purchases . •The Data Dilemma Every time a guest books through an OTA, hotels lose valuable insights into guest preferences, behaviors, and contact information. This data is crucial for personalized marketing, loyalty programs, and enhancing the guest experience. Without it, hotels risk becoming mere commodities in a vast marketplace, competing solely on price. •The Loyalty Factor Building a loyal customer base is paramount. Research indicates that effective loyalty strategies are becoming increasingly central to hotels' direct booking success and overall revenue growth . Brands like Marriott and Hilton have demonstrated the power of loyalty programs, with Marriott Bonvoy reaching 228 million members in 2024, generating 73% of U.S. room nights and 66% globally . •The Direct Booking Shift The tide is turning. Reports show that in 2024, hotel websites made about 60% more money per booking than any other way people booked rooms. With over 40% of hotel bookings expected to be direct by 2028, guest-focused strategies are clearly gaining momentum in travel . •Striking the Balance The key isn't to shun OTAs but to strike a balance. OTAs can drive volume, but direct bookings build relationships. By investing in user-friendly booking engines, offering exclusive perks, and leveraging guest data, hotels can reduce dependency on OTAs and foster direct relationships with guests. Final Thoughts In the quest for profitability, it's essential to consider the long-term value of guest relationships. While OTAs provide immediate returns, cultivating direct bookings ensures sustained growth, brand loyalty, and a deeper connection with guests. #HospitalityLeadership #RevenueManagement #DirectBookings #GuestLoyalty #HotelStrategy #BrandBuilding #OTA #TravelIndustryInsights

Lately, I was sitting with a hotel GM, poring over the monthly numbers. All was good, profitability, revenue growth, cost metrices But then came the F&B report—a story of missed opportunities. It wasn’t that guests weren’t spending; they were just spending somewhere else. The problem? Guests loved the local taste in the market, and try that instead of identical hotel menus. They were flocaking to a trendy cocktail bar with Instagrammable drinks, and the buzzing local café offering live music on weekends. The truth hit hard: We weren’t just competing for heads in beds; we were competing for plates and glasses too. We brainstormed the ideas to reclaim our fair share of the guest’s wallet and came across few time tested options: 1. Curate Experiences, Not Just Menus Guests crave stories. Host a wine night featuring bottles from local vineyards or a chef’s table with dishes inspired by the region’s flavors. Make dining more than just a meal—make it a memory. 2. Partner with, Not Against, Local Attractions The café next door doesn’t have to be your enemy. Collaborate with them for exclusive guest perks: free dessert with dinner, a signature cocktail, or a voucher included in the room rate. When you work together, everyone wins. 3. Leverage Convenience Without Feeling "Corporate" In-room dining has a reputation for being uninspired and overpriced. Break the mold. Offer picnic baskets for guests heading to the beach or late-night snacks tailored to their Netflix binges. 4. Know Your Audience Families, solo travelers, couples—they all want different things. Maybe your rooftop bar transforms into a family movie night on Sundays. Or your breakfast menu includes quick grab-and-go options for business travelers. Tailor your offerings to their needs. Here’s the thing: When guests have an unforgettable dining experience at your hotel, they’re more likely to return—not just to eat, but to stay. They’ll remember the rooftop view, the friendly server, and the local flavors. And they’ll associate all of that with your property. So, if your F&B numbers are lagging, don’t just ask why guests are leaving. Ask how you can make them want to stay. And if you can meet them where they are, you won’t just win their dollars. You’ll win their hearts.

This is often what senior leaders want to see when they think about 'improvement'....visible cost savings. I can show you lots of examples of how that's done- like the one below where I worked with a hospitality business to support Lean and Green improvements over 12 months. They ended up with an annual saving of €30,700 in the first year. (Not bad for the 12 hours a month they had to spend with me). Cost savings matter. Businesses need to be concerned with profitability and manage rising costs. They need to make the best use of the resources they have available. So when improvements generate measurable savings, we should absolutely celebrate it. But that's still not the same as having a continuous improvement culture. If you want that....you can't teach continuous improvement as a cost-saving exercise. I teach it as a way of thinking. A way of working. A way of developing people. The savings shown in this graphic are the visible returns. They're easy to see. Easy to calculate. Easy to report. But some of the most valuable outcomes never appear in a spreadsheet. Things like: ✔️ Employees becoming better problem solvers ✔️ Teams working together more effectively ✔️ Greater ownership and accountability ✔️ Better customer experiences ✔️ Reduced frustration ✔️ Increased confidence ✔️ Stronger leadership capability ✔️ A culture where improvement becomes part of the work These are sometimes invisible returns. They're harder to measure, but they often create far more value over the long term. That's why I encourage leaders to measure both. Track the financial savings. But also track things like employee engagement, customer feedback, absenteeism, staff turnover, improvement ideas, capability development and problem-solving activity. Because continuous improvement isn't just about reducing costs. It's about increasing value. For customers. For employees. And for the business. The visible savings help justify the work. The invisible (or hard to measure) returns are what make it sustainable.

Unexpected Machine Breakdowns Are Not a Maintenance Problem. They're a Business Problem. How can manufacturers reduce unexpected machine breakdowns without significantly increasing maintenance costs? This question comes up in almost every manufacturing leadership discussion. The common response is: ➡️ Increase preventive maintenance. ➡️ Keep more spare parts. ➡️ Expand the maintenance team. But is that really the most cost-effective approach? The real objective is not to spend more on maintenance. It is to maximize machine availability while optimizing maintenance investment. Leading manufacturers are shifting from reactive maintenance to data-driven, predictive maintenance strategies that focus on: ✅ Identifying early warning signs before failures occur ✅ Monitoring machine health instead of following fixed maintenance intervals ✅ Improving lubrication and contamination control ✅ Using maintenance data to predict failures ✅ Prioritizing high-risk assets instead of treating every machine equally The result? ✔ Higher machine uptime ✔ Fewer emergency shutdowns ✔ Lower maintenance costs ✔ Improved OEE ✔ Better delivery performance ✔ Increased profitability The highest hidden cost isn't the maintenance budget. It's the production that never happened because a critical machine unexpectedly stopped. The question every manufacturing leader should ask is: "Are we investing in preventing failures—or simply becoming better at repairing them?" I'd like to hear your perspective. Which single initiative has delivered the biggest reduction in unplanned downtime in your plant? #ManufacturingExcellence #MachineUptime #PredictiveMaintenance #ReliabilityEngineering #IndustrialMaintenance #OperationalExcellence #LeanManufacturing #SmartManufacturing #Industry40 #AssetManagement #ContinuousImprovement #MaintenanceManagement #FactoryOperations #PlantManagement #ManufacturingLeadership #OperationalEfficiency #BusinessExcellence

Singapore Hotel Association learning journey: on sustainability and inclusivity. How some hotels are succeeding in building an integrated approach. At The Fullerton Ocean Park Hotel Hong Kong, we saw a truly integrated approach around sustainability, presented by Melanie Kwok: the hotel is the first in Hong Kong/China to obtain the WELL gold certification, an international standard focused on human health and wellness of occupants: indoor air quality, water quality and conservation, lighting and thermal comfort, energy efficiency and sound control. Beyond sustainable actions that you can find in other hotels, a few initiatives that stood out for me: • Up-cycling 862 kg of plastic into 2,800 “EcoBricks” to pave the pedestrian road leading to the hotel  • Collaborating on reef restoration (“CORAL REEFStoration”) and a “Farm by the Ocean” guest-farm experience. At Rosewood Hong Kong ("ultra-luxury" category), Ada Ng explained how the “Blu” initiatives drive inclusivity: • The BluUp Upskilling Programme offers hospitality careers to young people with special needs (e.g autistic people) in the hotel. You may think this can be challenging given the hotel is serving very high profile guests, but it turns out that their presence is even elevating the engagement of the whole staff. • The BluHouse restaurant pledges 1% of revenue to underserved groups and partners with NGOs for employment of autistic people, single mums etc.  • Single mums are given training and the chance to craft flower decorations sold by Rosewood boutique. At Hotel ICON, founded by Professor Professor Kaye Chon Dean, School of Hotel and Tourism Management and owned by The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, a unique operating model is in action as a teaching-and-research hotel:  • Their sustainability approach emphasizes innovation: the hotel was built with “thinking green” and student-engagement at its core.  • It is a great living bridge between academia and industry, hospitality students living right next door to the hotel world and being regularly immersed in it. • Local innovation takes place, like re-using used glass bottles as glasses in the guest rooms. Each of these hotels are a very good demonstration that many things can be done to bring meaning and purpose to both hotel staff and guests. The common trait I saw: passionate leaders bringing a specific expertise (sustainability, inclusivity, education) and literally stepping into the hotel to make change happen. Thank you to each for the inspiring sharing! #Hospitality #Innovation #Sustainability #Inclusivity #Education #Hotel #Jobs #TheWayForward

In the early 1990s, Hilton Hotels faced significant challenges: economic turbulence, industry overbuilding, and a global recession led to declining guest satisfaction and loyalty. Although revenues were growing, the disconnect with customer experience was evident. So, how did Hilton realign and emerge stronger? Hilton revolutionised its strategy by adopting the Balanced Scorecard (BSC) in 1994. Here's how: ☑ Strategic Focus through BSC ↳ Goals included improving guest loyalty, ensuring consistent quality, and sustaining leadership in profit margins and revenue per available room (RevPAR). ↳ Value drivers such as operational effectiveness, revenue maximization, and employee growth were prioritized. ☑ Employee Engagement & Alignment ↳ Clear communication of goals, cascading KPIs, and incentivized programs kept employees focused and motivated. ☑ Technology for Real-Time Insights ↳ Automated reporting enabled faster decision-making and sharper performance analysis. ☑ Continuous Improvement in Execution ↳ Hilton paired the BSC with a Continuous Improvement Process (CIP), addressing gaps systematically and driving results. The results Speak for Themselves 🔹 Guest loyalty rose 9% within three years; Hilton Garden Inn won the J.D. Power Award. 🔹 Profit margins consistently exceeded competitors by 3%. 🔹 Revenue and share prices doubled post-BSC adoption. 🔹 Achieved $36M in cost savings within one year. 🔹 Inducted into the Balanced Scorecard Hall of Fame in 2000. Key Takeaways for Success ✔ Strategic alignment and communication are critical. ✔ Continuous KPI monitoring ensures focus on what matters. ✔ Technology integration amplifies decision-making impact. ✔ Team incentives create shared purpose and drive success. ✔ A clear, simplified vision ensures buy-in at all levels. This case study exemplifies how strategic clarity, execution excellence, and alignment at all levels enabled Hilton Hotels to thrive. Ps. If you like content like this, please follow me 🙏

Five-star service is never an individual act. It is the visible outcome of invisible systems done right. We often speak about brand promise, standards, and service excellence. Yet far less attention is given to the internal systems that support the people expected to deliver those standards flawlessly, every day. We ask our frontline teams to demonstrate empathy, precision, and consistency. But those qualities cannot be sustained in environments marked by unclear communication, reactive leadership, siloed departments, or processes that create daily friction. When service quality drops, it is convenient to label it a “training issue.” In reality, more often than not, it is a system issue. If we want our people to deliver five-star experiences, we must first give them five-star internal architecture: clear direction, aligned departments, consistent leadership, and decision-making they can trust. Service culture is not built by slogans on the wall. It is shaped quietly and relentlessly by the conditions people work within every day. And when those systems are thoughtfully designed, something important happens: professional behaviour becomes sustainable, excellence becomes repeatable, and service feels genuine rather than forced. This is also where leadership and ESG intersect. Respecting people’s time, effort, and professionalism is not a soft concept , it is operational discipline and dignity of work. Because sustainable service excellence does not come from demanding more from individuals, but from designing better systems around them. In the end, service consistency is not only a training outcome. It is a system outcome. And system design, whether intentional or not, always sits at the leadership level. #HospitalityLeadership #ServiceCulture #HotelOperations #LuxuryWithPurpose #PeopleFirstLeadership #SystemThinking #InternalExcellence #DignityOfWork Malaysian Association Of Hotels