Advisory Services

IAHE now has carefully selected industry experts who are able to provide the following advisory/consulting services to not only Hotel Executives but also independent hotel companies and owners.

For further information, please contact Leon Larkin, Founder & President on l.larkin@hotelgms.com

Selected Advisory & Consulting Services

Hotel Openings and Conversions

Studies have demonstrated that there are significant lost revenue opportunities in the first few months of operation after opening or rebranding. There are several causes associated, mostly with the impact of delays on revenues, but also the inability of many operations to "hit the ground running". 

Opening a hotel, or re-branding one is not just an exercise of effective project management. It requires know-how and experience to be able to make the unavoidable time trade-offs, the right decision-making at the right time, and to avoid getting caught up in the trappings of paperwork and procedure. The highly experienced IAHE Advisors offer experienced pragmatism and effective leadership combined with knowing what to do, how and when. An effective combination in optimizing the time to open, thereby maximizing the revenues in the very critical first months of operation.

Asset Management

International Hotel Companies for the most part do not own the assets where their brands and management systems operate. An asset owner may at times require the advice of an honest broker to assess the value proposition of the brand/management company. This is as much for the initial selection of the brand/company, as for the ongoing review of value delivery against the contract that yields the use of the asset to a management operator. 

As successful veterans of several international management/brand companies, across many continents, and as keen business operators, the IAHE Advisors not only understand the asset owner's interest, but also the ways to assess and enhance the operator's value to the asset.

Profit Optimization

True profit optimization requires an in-depth analysis of the operation to diagnose key focus areas and identify processes and activities to address, in order to achieve sustainable gains. The analysis includes risk, current organizational structure, operational processes and environmental assessment, as well as a thorough survey of stakeholders' roles and attitudes. This allows the identification of internal capability and the determination of commitment and readiness to change.

The end result is the execution of a project plan that incorporates:

• Phasing of financial Impact
• Investment/Resources required (if any)
• Specific actions, allocation of responsibilities and timelines
• Milestones for monitoring progress
• Calculation of the overall financial impact

Development of Strategy/Structure/Staffing (Management Company Formation)

The success of a hotel management company requires the perfect sequential alignment of these three components. IAHE Advisors offer the experience and knowledge, key to setting up a successful management company, or to re-structure one, based on the following simple but essential elements:

• develop a strategy to serve the goals;
• set up a structure (human and systems) to carry out the strategy;
• and; staff such a structure with the appropriate level of capability to deliver the strategy.

Human Resource Management

An essential aspect of business success requires that the human asset base is wholly aligned to the company's strategic objectives, and has the capability and desire to ensure those objectives are met. These critical elements do not happen by themselves; they are the result of a carefully crafted and executed human resources strategic plan. This plan must include all the facets of Human Resources Management, including:

• Industrial/Labor Relations
• Performance Measurement/Management
• Talent Acquisition
• Reward Systems
• Training and Development
• Optimum Organizational Structure

Executive Coaching and Development

The number one factor in the sustained success of an organization is without a doubt the human resource talent and its management. Hiring correctly, combined with a true commitment to developing talent and offering growth are the right policies to pursue. The IAHE Executives providing advisory and consulting services have worked with hundreds of hotel and corporate executives, coaching them and laying out development plans for them. This key success factor requires experience, knowledge and effective execution.  In fact, they have set the precedent in their organizations with respect to the design and execution of successful efforts in the talent development sphere; from needs analysis through career planning and personal development plans.  Our coaching and development services can encompass single Executives wishing to strengthen certain aspects of their management skills (strategic planning, budgeting, HR management, etc.), or groups engaged in a comprehensive Executive Development Program.

Management Systems

Hotels and hotel companies determine their own operational processes, however this can sometimes prove to be founded on not the most efficient and effective methods available to them, which can thus highlight disparities in processes developed to achieve the same task. This variation inevitably results in waste and sub-optimum results. In our business, there are some key areas where operating with a consistent optimized approach, yields substantial operating gains and competitive advantage.

These "Ways of Working" often represent the difference between mediocre or notable performance – regardless if the metric of success is money, guest or employee satisfaction, corporate responsibility or any other company objective. Having set up such ways in almost every facet of the hospitality industry, our Advisors offer the knowledge and the passion to develop and incorporate them into an individual hotel, a group, or a management company.

Service Quality Improvement

The symbiosis between a guest’s satisfaction and his/her intention to return to/recommend the hotel, is well established and known. Understanding the key drivers of satisfaction is less well understood, and much less is the knowledge on how to bring about sustained improvement in those key drivers. After decades of involvement in cutting-edge work and proven success in the field, IAHE’s Advisors not only offer the crucial knowledge required, but also the vast skillset necessary, to embed these concepts and tools in to the operational core of each hotel and the management company it is associated with.

Operational Performance

An operational review using a balanced scorecard of key metrics, coupled with a contrast with the best operating benchmarks in the hospitality industry, reveals the key areas to target for improvement. Effective and efficient action plans can then be laid out and executed to reach the operational objectives of individual hotel assets.  The review uses a variety of analytical tools against some common data sources, including:

• Risk Management and FLS Reports
• Market Competitive Data
• Guest Satisfaction Data
• P&L, CF and other financial reports
• Employee Satisfaction Data
• Sales and Marketing Plans and Reports
• Brand Standards Assessments

Development of Standard Operating Procedures

Along with the "ways of working", the development and execution of optimized Standard Operating Procedures is at the core of the "art of execution". This is principally essential for those processes that are key drivers for success.  We offer comprehensive know-how in the development of proven SOPs.

For further information on any of the above Advisory & Consulting services, please contact John Cameron, CEO on j.cameron@hotelgms.com.