Always Forward Thinking
Branding is a process, and just like any process, there is a beginning. Branding is core to any business plan; it’s the touchstone on which decisions are made; therefore, it’s an integral part of what the business does (the mission) and where the business aspires to...
Fifteen years ago, I decided to quit my corporate job and try my luck at being self-employed doing consulting work for hotels out of my new home base in Mexico. I found a like-minded business partner, who lived in Pennsylvania, and together we embarked on creating a...
Strategic Solution Partners (SSP) continues to expand its hospitality consulting division, to provide hotel operators with guidance from trusted senior executives in every discipline.
The last few years have been unprecedented, both globally and in the hospitality industry specifically. This means that extraordinary measures have been necessary for the industry to adapt, and a level of creativity and adaptation is still essential in all aspects of...
Every successful F&B program should take into account major dietary trends and societal shifts, rather than just allergies and intolerances. This is becoming increasingly evident in the latest industry reports, such as the 2022 Plant-Forward Opportunity, elaborated in collaboration with The Culinary Institute of America, Food for Climate League, and the Menus of Change University Research Collaborative.
In a perfect world, increasing size and scale should lead to operating efficiencies, improved profit margins, a strong growth trajectory (both per unit and in the number of units), career opportunities for employees, and competitive prices and options for customers. Unfortunately, that is not always the case.
In a perfect world, the year-end financial process should be no more difficult than any other month-end closing. But we do not live in a perfect world and although all these boxes should be ticked at the end of each month, there are times when it is just not possible…and before you know it, another month has gone by!
As the hospitality industry returns to the new normal, internal audit departments along with their corporate finance and hotel operations teams have to examine their approach to achieving coverage and compliance with internal controls across their entire control...
As an industry, we have discussed moving towards a total revenue optimization model ad nauseum for years but achieved only limited success in meeting room space management. It’s time hospitality fully embraced the discipline. Challenges such as ongoing staffing...
Formulate, Maintain and Adapt a Clear Company Vision I am often complimented on the success of our business, the creativity of the premise and the length of time we have been in business. I also often hear the likes of “I wish I would have thought of that,” which...
Key Preparations Include Recognizing 'Red Buttons Conflict has such a negative connotation that I prefer to call it the “creative process.” Constructive debate and discussion are at the root of all truly impactful change. The hard part is keeping those discussions on...
My business partner and I started working together somewhat serendipitously. In 2008, I quit my corporate job as Vice President of Sales for a prominent management company and was ready for my next adventure in consulting, hoping that it would allow me to have the...
You know, we all have done it — worked our way up the ladder, pushed ourselves to physical and mental limits or sacrificed our personal plans — just to focus on our upwardly mobile hospitality careers. Over the last several decades, that is how industry leaders as...
Hotel operational expense growth pacing higher than revenue growth has made it more challenging than ever for many hotel owners to achieve their profitability goals. The pandemic turned the previous labor shortage into a crisis and new types of accommodation, such as...
One of the many changes to everyday living brought along by Covid-19 has been the meteoric ascension of food delivery, not only to homes and offices, but increasingly also to hotel guests. The trend really took off during the early stages of lockdown de-escalation,...
You never know what really is just a fad or what is signaling a change in the industry. But the rise in non-alcoholic (NA) spirits available on the market and the buzz around them is taking on a whole new momentum. The increased visibility of NA beverages...
As the world opens back up to welcome leisure and business travelers alike, the J-1 Visa Program is also reopening – a program that embodies and embraces cultures from every corner of the globe. The J-1 Visa Program is an Exchange Visitor Program which offers...
On a quarterly basis, Jim Schultenover of Strategic Solution Partners and JDS Hospitality surveys travel agencies to get a sense of trends and topics that the hospitality industry should be paying attention to. Our most recent survey, completed in May 2021, had...
“The Relentless Pursuit of Excellence” is a phrase I have been using as my mantra since I was very young. It has helped me push my limits in pursuit of that excellence that my mother instilled in me at a very early age. Pursuit of Excellence in Hospitality How can...
Independent hotels and resorts are notorious for being true trailblazers within the industry. This is due to the authentic brands at individual properties and smaller management companies with unique and entrepreneurial cultures. The secret sauce in their culture...
HOSPITALITY PANDEMIC EXHAUSTION Lately, everybody is “here for you” – the bank, the skincare retail shop, and even the furniture store. It is coming from all angles. At the same time, we no longer want to discuss the “need to pivot” or experience “unprecedented...
April’s unemployment rate is at 6.1% but the lodging sector’s unemployment rate is at 13.8% due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which is where it was also 30 years ago. Although the industry is seeing a demand for jobs, the labor pool is shallow. The problem is leading...
Hotel asset value is determined using multiple calculations, math problems, and sometimes magic tricks, but there are three critically important aspects of the physical plant that can make or break a hotel investment. As an owner or asset manager, keep these...
We have all been watching and waiting (however impatiently) for the trends to turn upward. Even though we are still experiencing softer booking trends, finally, STR data's moving average indicates that the weeks since January 23rd moved upwards and have leveled off...
The Food Gap There is a disparity today between food knowledge and food preparation skills. The pre-pandemic state of affairs, which is reasonable to expect will return as vaccines become more available and cases decrease, provided us the opportunity to...