Operations & Strategy

I have personally worked with a couple of third parties in the past, one that managed only the hiring process and the payroll portion, and one that actually managed the operations - under my team's supervision. I don't think it's fair giving an opinion based only on two precedents, but I can share I remember my experience when outsourcing operations as a challenging one.

I believe that outsourcing businesses are only better at managing housekeeping operations because we invest and focus on this one department wholly and solely. Like so many things in life, when you gather the team and concentrate all your efforts towards making something better and more efficient you tend to get better results.

In my experience, outsourcing your housekeeping is good if you can use it on a variable basis to cover peaks and reduce fixed costs or if it gives you flexibility in a heavily unionised environment. Rarely does outsourcing save money, and it tends to be more expensive.

My experience is being successful has an ability to constantly develop its strategy and adapt business development and skills. Like a sports team how every day tries to improve. Therefore, the wolf rarely comes to visit.Effects of COVID 19I believe there is new knowledge and confirmation to be added to the hotel business.

Our key learning in 2020 as hotel brokers was the value of being nimble, allowing us to pivot and refocus our resources very quickly. As a large part of the transactions market froze, we transitioned from a number of forward-sale deals with developers to working with hotel operators needing to free up capital from owned assets, particularly in the resort market.

The past six months of the COVID-19 pandemic has forced companies and individuals to reconsider not only what they do, where they do it, and how they do it, but also why they do what they do (or don't do what they don't do). In other words, it has forced executives to reflect more intensely on both the external environment in which their firms compete and the ways in which they do so.

I totally agree that housekeepers should walk tall and proud during this time. At LUXXE, we celebrate our "Hygiene Heroes" and they all wear a badge so guests and management are intrigued to ask them "what is a Hygiene Hero?" The staff member can then proceed to explain that they have been elected to this role by their peers and they are given special training and paid a higher hourly rate to take on the added responsibility of ensuring the Housekeeping Department is compliant and that COVID safe cleaning methodologies are being upheld at all times.

Cleaning is an intangible service. For years we have put points on toilet paper and done special touches to make cleaning visible, while in fast food restaurants, companies have posted an “inspected by” list. These are examples of what Dr.

I would certainly hope so. After all, the main purpose of any hotel is to provide the customer with a clean and safe environment where to spend one or more nights. Sadly, over the years, this focus has somehow shifted.The pressure of margins has ensured that most hoteliers went for the cheapest option, the less possible cleaning time spent in the room, using as uncomplicated protocols as possible.Too often, whenever Housekeeping got media attention, it was because of negative messages.Having developed a safety and hygiene protocol, we have been receiving feedback from guests to the effect that they are interested to know how their room has been made clean and safe.

In the short term, financial survival and building consumer confidence are the key issues for both owners and operators. Take a long, hard look at the impact of re-opening or staying open. Is now the time for renovation or change of use?

The current situation is likely to speed up several trends we have seen before C-19. Firstly, owners will likely want operators to take on more risk. As a counterbalance owners will need to support operators in adjusting their service offering.

Owners and Operators are in a long-term relationship, and a good dialogue is key among the parties. However, owners are likely to be the party who pick up the bills, which is a greater burden for them at the moment. As partners, they have been reaching accommodations on the use of FF&E reserve for rolling costs of business, staffing level, extension of temporary fees relief, manage and control operational costs.

I have always believed that a well organized and vigilant housekeeping department could pass any hygiene test. Detailed training and record-keeping is the key and utilizing technology platforms to record this information is critical.

Coronavirus is raising the stakes for hotels and housekeepers everywhere. To spur travel, our industry needs to not only promise cleanliness, but deliver on it, or there will be no industry. The knowledge and wisdom held by housekeeping professionals has never been more relevant, but it is no longer enough.

In the face of COVID-19, it seems that housekeeping professionals are required to (re-)activate their skill set; which already includes the management of complex projects. For the seasoned housekeeping professional managing the complex task of ensuring cleanliness, hygiene, and COVID-19 safety for guests and staff, is most likely not an issue.

The big question mark after the coronavirus crisis is, what will be the people's perception? In the short term, the customers and our employees will need to be reassured, with re-inforced hygiene control processes. Also, we expect customers to want more LOCAL: buy products locally made, eat local food, travel domestically...

A lot of different angles could be reviewed with respect to the BC/AC comparison. From an owner's perspective, the current crisis will hopefully benefit us in the long term as we are currently busy 'unfixing' some of the fixed costs of our industry.

The longer this lasts -- the lockdown specifically, and then the threat of contracting Covid-19 -- the greater the likelihood that there will be more significant changes in behaviour. Certainly in the short term, when the recovery does start, large group and convention business will likely be the slowest to recover, as both travellers' willingness to meet in large groups, and corporates' ability financially to support those events will be compromised.

I am a bit surprised to read this. From memory I was not quite so positive in my response. Although it has to be said that my expertise lies predominantly in Europe. I would have expected there to be a strong correlation between RevPAR trends and investment trends.

There are a significant number of headwinds facing the global economy -- the latest being the Coronavirus/possibility of a global pandemic, and reduced travel levels; and "shaming" from air travel and its environmental impact, to name a few -- that I think will all exert downward pressure on RevPar.

Transaction volume lags RevPAR growth for one, so in the early stages of stagnating or declining RevPAR growth, transaction may very well rise and flatten off at a later stage. Second, after 2018 interest rate increases by the Fed, interest rates have been lowered again in 2019 driving liquidity for asset purchases.