An industry white paper issued by Cornell's Center for Hospitality Research (CHR) demonstrates the clear connection between guest satisfaction and hotels' financial results. Conducted by researchers from J.D. Power and Associates, the study, "Making Customer Satisfaction Pay: Connecting Survey Data to Financial Outcomes in the Hotel Industry," is available at no charge from the CHR's website at . The hospitality research was written by Gina Pingitore, Dan Seldin, and Arianne Walker, all of J.D. Power and Associates. In a survey of over 4,000 guests at an upscale hotel chain, they found that fulfilling certain key performance indicators is essential to hotel guest satisfaction.

"When we focused on the connection between measurements of customer satisfaction and hotel financial outcomes, we discovered the importance of four key performance indicators," said Pingitore. "Guests who were satisfied on all four of these indicators rated the hotel as delivering outstanding service. In turn, those highly satisfied guests reported far greater ancillary spending than those who were merely pleased with their stay." Pingitore is the chief research officer for J.D. Power; Seldin is a director in the firm's corporate research and marketing sciences department; and Walker is director of U.S. automotive research.

The key performance indicators that emerged from the study are fundamental to hotel operation. They are: the reservation was accurate, check-in was completed within five minutes, no problems were experienced during the stay, and no billing errors occurred. Guests who experienced all four of these performance indicators were most likely to grant the hotel a top guest satisfaction rating.

About J.D. Power and Associates | Headquartered in Westlake Village, Calif., J.D. Power and Associates is a global marketing information services company operating in key business sectors including market research, forecasting, performance improvement, web intelligence and customer satisfaction. The company's quality and satisfaction measurements are based on responses from millions of consumers annually. For more information on car reviews and ratings, car insurance, health insurance, cell phone ratings, and more, please visit . J.D. Power and Associates is a business unit of The McGraw-Hill Companies.

About The McGraw-Hill Companies | Founded in 1888, The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP) is a global information and education company providing knowledge, insights, and analysis in the financial, education and business information sectors through leading brands, including Standard & Poor's, McGraw-Hill Education, Platts, and J.D. Power and Associates. The corporation has more than 280 offices in 40 countries. Sales in 2009 were $5.95 billion. Additional information is available at .

J.D. Power and Associates Media Relations Contact: John Tews; Troy, Mich.; (248) 312-4119; [email protected].

About the Center for Hospitality Research

The purpose of the Center for Hospitality Research is to enable and conduct research of significance to the global hospitality and related service industries. CHR also works to improve the connections between academe and industry, continuing the School of Hotel Administration's long-standing tradition of service to the hospitality industry. Founded in 1992, CHR remains the industry's foremost creator and distributor of timely research, all of which is posted at no charge for all to use. In addition to its industry advisory board, CHR convenes several industry roundtables each year for the purpose of identifying new issues affecting the hospitality industry.

Center Members: Accenture • Access Point Financial, Inc. • Barclaycard US • Cvent • Davis & Gilbert LLP • Deloitte & Touche USA LLP • DerbySoft • Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts • Fox Rothschild LLP • Hilton Worldwide • Host Hotels & Resorts • Hyatt Hotels Corporation • IDeaS Revenue Solutions • InterContinental Hotels Group • Jumeirah Group • Marriott International • NTT DATA • Preferred Hotels & Resorts • priceline.com • PwC • The Rainmaker Group • RateGain • ReviewPro • Revinate • Sabre Hospitality Solutions • STR • Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces • Tata Consultancy Services • Wipro EcoEnergy • Wyndham Hotel Group

Glenn Withiam
607.255.3025
CHR

Related