By the end of 2019, many of the thought leaders in revenue management had begun echoing a common theme, basically that the Revenue Management discipline was stuck in a rut. Industry-wide, Total Hotel Revenue Management was starting the become a joke. There was the longstanding complaint about the OTAs, but little being done about it. And the more recent debate about whether AI was on track to replace the Revenue Manager, despite only 15% of all hotels globally even having a revenue management system. Some openly warned that without evolving, the discipline risked losing relevance, and the influence and opportunities that go along it.

Then COVID-19 came out of nowhere to occupy the top of everyone's mind… overnight. Short term crisis management became the only job requirement. But these concerns did not go away, and if anything, the opportunity (and responsibility) that organizations possess to challenge every existing norm as they rebuild has only shortened the timeline.

The question to the Revenue Management community is: As we move out of the crisis management phase and towards the "next normal", how have your organization and responsibilities changed? What tools, technology, and processes have earned a permanent place in your routine going forward?

Kelly McGuire
Kelly McGuire
Principal Travel & Hospitality, ZS
Klaus  Kohlmayr
Klaus Kohlmayr
Chief Evangelist and Development Officer, IDeaS
Timothy Wiersma
Timothy Wiersma
Principal | Revenue Generation, LLC.

Do more with less seems to be the theme of the day as companies move forward. With the clients I've dealt with I am finding them looking to technology to fill in those gaps where human resources do not exist. Some of my clients are now looking at automated forecasting/budgeting tools, pricing tools, and new sources of data to help them understand the greater dynamics of the environment they are in. Additionally, from a structure standpoint, I see hotel companies combining the leadership of Sales, Marketing, and Revenue Management into one role of Commercial. This has been talked about for some time now and the time is ripe to take advantage of breaking these silos.

Gino Engels
Gino Engels
Co-founder and Chief Customer Officer of Lighthouse (formerly OTA Insight)
Raul Moronta
Raul Moronta
CRME, CHIA, Chief Commercial Officer at Remington Hospitality
Diego Fernandez Perez De Ponga
Diego Fernandez Perez De Ponga
Corporate Director Revenue Management Palladium Hotel Group
Ira  Vouk
Ira Vouk
Hospitality Technology and Revenue Management consultant

I can only talk from our viewpoint - we make revenue management software for smaller hotels. It has been interesting for us to see that despite the terrible events hitting a lot of the hotel industry, we have still been receiving strong demand from new customers. When times are tough, you really need to be doing the best job possible with what you have, and I think that this necessity is driving smaller hotel owners (and chains) in the direction of revenue management software.

Patrick Landman
Patrick Landman
CEO & Founder at XOTELS

I published an article on Hospitality Net this week. The role of the Revenue Manager has to become much commercial. A deal maker for promotions, flash, tour operators, wholesalers, etc. Revenue Managers need to change the mindset from filtering demand to generating demand. See here for the full story: https://www.hospitalitynet.org/opinion/4100033.html.

Scott Dahl
Scott Dahl
SVP Sales, Marketing, & Revenue Management at The Wurzak Hotel Group
Max Starkov
Max Starkov
Hospitality & Online Travel Tech Consultant