The New Restaurant CIO
Today’s restaurant industry is extremely competitive. More than ever, brands rely on technology to capture market share while, at the same time, speak to their multigenerational customer base. How to best navigate these waters falls on the company’s Chief Information Officer (CIO). Gone are the days when the CIO focused solely on internal infrastructure. Today’s CIO must be focused on customer-facing technologies, e-commerce, social media tech, cybersecurity… all while upgrading legacy POS, inventory, and labour management systems. With this shift in focus comes a shift in strategy when identifying a restaurant brand technology leader for the future.
Read moreTechnology, Hotel Alternatives And Growth Top The Discussions At Expo Real 2019
Most industry executives recognised that a cooling down of the market is inevitable. Yet, amidst a search of a ‘safe haven’ – fuelled to some extent by perceived uncertainty created by, for example, political inertia and/or drastic changed in policy making in certain parts of the world – Central Europe and, in particular, Germany are continuing to thrive. Here, the strong investor appetite coupled with the favourable interest rates have propped-up prices and somewhat ‘masked’ the turbulent times at hand. So, despite executives on the buy-side complaining about prices being too high to allow for the right returns, and irrespective of the economic and political ‘clouds’, the lodging sector appears to retain its optimism – at least for now.
Read moreAn App For This, An App For That – Travel Edition
When traveling these days, it’s not so much about planning where you might be going, but about the experience getting there. There are new apps to help you along the way with fun, time-saving features. Without listing the “usually suspects,” here are a few new apps that might pique your interest and even start a dialogue:
Read moreCalling For More Clout For Tech and Digital Leaders In Hospitality
Findings published by the Harvard Business Review, built on research by the McKinsey Global Institute (MGI), put the hospitality industry at the bottom of 22 surveyed sectors as it relates to ‘digital advancement’. This last spot is shared with, among others, the mining industry. This is not good news for the hospitality sector – and its executives are aware of it.
Read moreKey Take-Aways From Seatrade Europe 2019
Last week, many of the international senior cruise line executives gathered at Seatrade Europe in Hamburg, Germany. Industry leaders exchanged thoughts and insights with port and destination representatives as well as land-based tour operating partners. Overarchingly, “sustainability” was the topic of conversation – everyone agreed that consumers and cruise businesses alike, as well as the industry’s various partners and travel intermediaries, have grown increasingly concerned about social and environmental impacts of tourism and have started to demand, and implement, concrete action plans addressing key sustainability issues.
Read moreHuman Capital And The Current State Within the Hotel Asset Management Community
Regardless of where we are in the hotel cycle, the importance of high-performing asset management is critical to the success of any hotel owner. Over the last 20 years I have had the pleasure to work closely with this community assisting clients, such as public REITS and private equity groups, recruit high-performing executives, allowing owners to maximize value for their hotel property and/or portfolio. My thoughts regarding some important human capital misconceptions in the world of asset management will hopefully help shape the future for 1) hotel owners to attract and retain top talent and 2) for asset management executives thinking about charting their future career path.
Read moreA Look Ahead – The Lodging Conference 2019
Later this month the 25th Annual Lodging Conference will be held in Scottsdale, Arizona, an event that historically caps off the “conference year” for many in the hotel business. It is a time to reconnect with industry friends and colleagues, but it also gives us a few days to pause and reflect on the past year and speculate on the year to come. Heading into the event there are a number of agenda items that pique our interest, so let’s dive in.
Read moreVUCA – Its Meaning and Implications for Hospitality
The US Army War College introduced the term VUCA during the Cold War ― a time when the world was facing especially high levels of volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity. Since being introduced, this framework has become a trendy acronym that strategic business leaders regularly use to assess the suitability of their environment or market for launching new products, entering new markets, and embarking on other key initiatives. It allows them to pinpoint where the four challenges in their respective business are situated or skewed, as well as how to create appropriate responses.
Read moreSeatrade Europe and Thomas Mielke In Conversation: Sustainability, Recruitment And Leadership Development In The Cruise Industry
"People are the product if the hospitality industry" – this most certainly holds true for the cruise sector. Without the continuity of the talent bench-strength cruise companies would be unable to execute on their ambitious growth plans. As the fight for talent has continued and intensified throughout the last few years, cruise companies have started to embrace an approach which can be coined as "future-casting" – in other words, rather than focusing on proven track record and/or domain knowledge, they have moved away from assessing task competencies. This shift in their recruitment efforts has enabled them to identify people with potential who are adaptable, inquisitive and knowledge-thirsty and who perform well in high-pressure work environments such as the cruise industry.
Read moreCFO Compensation in the Gaming Industry
Extreme competitiveness in today’s business world demands that hotel companies consistently outthink and outpace companies within and outside their immediate hospitality verticals. Such competitors include cruise lines, home-sharing, and other luxury or niche experiences like “glamping,” all of which constantly strive to dominate market share. Identifying and securing superstars for senior leadership roles is the cornerstone for ongoing company performance in branding and profit share. Here, companies must be forward-thinking by looking at the “best-in-class” talent from other segments and specifically those within the wider hospitality industry. This is not a new idea, but with the competitor set constantly evolving and broadening, hotel companies need to raise the bar on a continuous basis. This best practice makes sense and can be extremely effective when implemented thoughtfully according to a well-defined strategic purpose.
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