by Ram Gupta,
published:
syndicated: 0 | total views: 530 |
word count: 979
laesbarhedsindex readability score: Difficult Readability
on the net: http://www.bcgglobal.com
INDIA, Oct 09 — The other day I was compiling profile of general manager for a luxury hotel owned by one of my clients. I thought of searching on the net to find out what others are looking for as essential qualities for this person. I surfed and surfed and found that if I was to base my search for a good and efficient hotel manager I might land up with someone who treats his people as his extended family, takes regular rounds of the property, greets his guests, has knowledge of internet and understands sales functions. Should be able to lead a team of professionals, motivating them …
T
he other day I was compiling profile of general manager for a Luxury hotel owned by one of my clients. I thought of searching on the net to find out what others are looking for as essential qualities for this person. I surfed and surfed and found that if I was to base my search for a good and efficient hotel manager I might land up with someone who treats his people as his extended family, takes regular rounds of the property, greets his guests, has knowledge of internet and understands sales functions.
This left me a bit disappointed, until I saw the term 3P’s, I jumped because the P’s are my favorites too, so I read it further only to find that these “Three Pees” meant – people, price and property. The most important P was missing, I am sure you all have guessed it by now, yes I mean “Profit”. For me the most basic and primary role of a hotel manager or for that matter, any manager is to generate profits for the enterprise he is heading.
This experience prompted me to pen down my thoughts on what traits and qualities a successful hotel manager should have. I am sharing these thoughts through this short article. I know many of you would have different views on the subject.
In my experience I found that in addition to the knowledge of hotel operations like food & beverage, front office, housekeeping, engineering, a present day manager has to have an in-depth knowledge and hands on experience of hospitality marketing and above all he has to be a “number savvy” manager who believes that numbers are his best friends. He should have the ability to talk to the numbers to understand and interpret them. I have met so many managers who would fumble to respond to a question like “ so Bob, what will be your closing number this month” or say “what is your deficit this year”..and so on. This happens because “Bob” simply reads the reports as a newspaper without the due analytical approach it deserves. By the foregoing, I am by no means propagating that the manager should have a finance specialization, but he must have a thorough understanding, appreciation and interpreting skill of financial results and documents.
I have observed that a good hotel manager focuses on a few numbers only. He does not get bogged down by the rows and columns stuffed with numbers in a financial report. His approach is focused. It is not very difficult to understand and separate those important numbers for any one, but one must have the basic understanding of those. Let’s walk together to understand these.
Most of us focus on the top line and the bottom line. But we have to focus on the elements that the top line is made up of and what are the components of the bottom line. We all understand that the top line or the revenue or sales whatever you may call it, is a product of price and volume, in other words Revenue equals price multiplied with volume sold. The task of the manager therefore is to play with these two factors to maximize the value of revenue. Here he has to keep in mind that his total available volume, if not utilized perishes by the hour and vanishes at midnight. Therefore he has to apply a dynamic and reactive marketing strategy for any given period, be it the year, the month, the week or the day and even for the day for forenoon, the afternoon and the evening. All these are possible only if the manager has his numbers and they are on his fingertips.
Let us also go to the second set of numbers that are important to improve the bottom line. The bottom line spells out the profits or the surplus of revenue over expenses. In other words, profit equals revenue minus expenses. Expenses are basically of two types, fixed irrespective of the amount of revenues and variable expenses which keep increasing with each unit of sales. A good manager concentrates on variable and semi variable expenses, line by line in search of ways and means to economies. I would discuss an interesting example here. Let’s take electricity cost. It is made up of number of units consumed and unit price. Now, the hotel does not fix the unit price of electricity, it is the utility company, who does it, what you could do is to control the consumption. But the question is does your report contain the units consumed numbers, if it doesn’t, how do you control it, you cannot. Now this is what I mean by a number friendly manager, he will seek the numbers that will help him improve the results.
A successful hotel manager concentrates on revenue (price and volumes) of all products and sub products and all controllable costs embedded in 3M’s - Manpower, Material and Marketing. In all these revenue and cost heads he controls both variables that are the numbers consumed or used and the price or cost. This gives him greater leverage to maneuver, control or economize improving the efficiency of bottom line. In addition, if he is able to operate the hotel, that will be an added advantage. So here is the profile of a successful general manager of an upscale luxury hotel… A dynamic, profit oriented, experienced hotel manager with strong marketing skills. Should be able to lead a team of professionals, motivating them ….
The next time you are searching the internet for qualities that a good general manager should possess…I hope you will think of these pearls of wisdom …
You are permitted to reproduce, print or copy this article without any change or edit in any manner, provided the author information is also reproduced.
Communicate directly with Ram Gupta, the author of this article. Ask questions, send suggestions, comments, engage in conversation, or perhaps you would like to submit a project.
Click Here to ask a question, send a comment, or proposal.
The field of social work, although wrought with challenges, is enormously satisfying when positive results are achieved. Unfortunately there is a large shortage of social workers, due to two predominant reasons. This places a large work load on the e
An IT Project Manager role involves a great deal of organizational skill, technical ability and inter-departmental communication. The IT Project Manager is responsible for the planning, execution and close out of an IT project from start to finish wh
Many of us are used to senior staff and managers to be older than us; the older you are, the more experience you have and therefore you bring wisdom to the role. However, more and more young people are being pushed into management and leaders
Work takes up the majority of one’s life. The contributions we make, the feedback we receive, the new opportunities – all contribute to our self-esteem. When pe
A home based business does not have to occupy most of your time at first. You can actually have a home based business under flexible working hours. You can do it during your free time or before and after your working hours. By starting small and on a
Tired of having to wake up early just so you can avoid heavy traffic and arrive at your office before the clock says you are too early for the afternoon session? There might be a solution to that but it takes guts, talent and lots of hard work and de
The conception referred to as business health checks has always existed, though maybe on many occasions it has not been formally termed and realized as a fully fledged business activity. Organizations have internally monitored project flows, checked
For those who have a lot of free time and been meaning to do something about, a home business would be perfect. Setting up businesses from home has become a trend because of less stress as compared to working in a company.
Nearly everyone know that exercise helps with weight loss, and so does containing your diet. But, how about truly eating for fat loss? It’s not as far-fetched an scheme as it may show at first. In fact, there are many foods that burn belly fat.
Amongst the many reasons that lead to relationship failure, one of the most prominent ones is money and financial disputes. When your relationship is young and strong, you will naturally have great trust in it and in your partner. However, it
When you sense that your relationship is growing dull and your boyfriend is losing interest, the feelings that begin to grow in you are anxiety and insecurity. You may be wondering whether you can get your boyfriend back and save your relatio
One of the main reasons why you may be struggling with your weight loss goals is that you simply want to have some fun. A lot of people hesitate to go on a diet or consult a trainer, because they believe that weight loss involves a boring, regimented
If you are vegetarian, India is no less than a paradise. There are several hundred vegetarian recipes out here, and it is one of those few cultural zones in the world where meats and cheese are not essential components of a main meal. With Indian coo
Syndication
tweet
PDF version
Printable version
Publisher HTML version
Discussions (0)
Email Article
Post New Comment