You could be a Certified Revenue Management Exec

This week’s conferences in Oslo and Stockholm featured an introduction to Revenue management confirmed the need for an international certification within that field – regardless your chain affiliation or nationality. The programme, originally developed in the U.S., is currently adapted and tailored for European needs, to be launched on this website in a couple of weeks.

The global financial recession has brought about challenges we need to address, as tourism and business travels alike have taken a downturn, calling for increased focus on maximising business opportunities and revenue management.

We also need to take a closer look at marketing, and to establish how to get the most out of each penny spent, thereby improving margins. Interestingly, we see how the two Special Interest Groups Revenue management and Travel Internet marketing overlap in that respect, which is why we’ve decided to launch the two first. But we acknowledge national differences, introducing both national and pan European SIG’s.

However, we go even farther:

With seminars and the Certified Revenue Management Executive programme we wish to enable our members to optimise income for just their businesses, and it really doesn’t matter where you are, as webinars will be used extensively, both in this particular area of interest and others. What better way to maximise income, than to save both time and money?

All webinars will be held in English and in a number of European languages.

Thanks a lot to all those who have contributed to a memorable and instructive week – and to HSMAI Global’s president and CEO Bob Gilbert, who toured the Norwegian and Swedish capitals with us this week.

A peaceful and enjoyable weekend to one and all!

Ingunn Hofseth
President and CEO
HSMAI Europe

European SIG’s en route

A conference was held in Oslo this week, focusing on Special Interest Groups and Revenue management, also featuring two sessions on Travel Internet marketing, Resort marketing, an environmentally sustainable hospitality industry, and theme-based adventures. The conference drew an interested crowd from all parts of the industry, eager to set up SIG’s, initially within the fields of Revenue management and Travel Internet marketing.

“I’m thrilled that HSMAI Global’s president and CEO Bob Gilbert took the time to attend, both in Oslo and Stockholm,” HSMAI Europe’s president and CEO Ingunn Hofseth says, adding “There’s little doubt that Revenue management SIG’s are in demand, as we saw in Oslo on Wednesday”.

Huge U.S. success

Marion Hughes, vice president for business development in Intelligent Hotels, gave a lecture – and supervised workshops – on revenue management, supported by HSMAI Global’s president and CEO Robert A. Gilbert, who shared the American experiences with an interested audience, focusing on the financial situation and the importance of establishing acceptance for the ROI (return on investment) pertaining to marketing expenses. He also pointed out that revenue management and travel Internet marketing are closely linked, and, as such, quite often overlap, in terms of special interests and their groups.

“The SIG concept has been very well received in the Americas region,” Bob told us. “This has been a huge value proposition, with somewhere in-between 700 and 1200 members per special interest group, and you know, HSMAI members are free to opt into all SIG’s for free. Turns out that lots of people want to learn, and we’re only happy to comply”.

“Crucial to the SIG concept are the various groups’ advisory boards, consisting of leading professionals within their respective fields of expertise,” he says. “And the user evaluations have been nothing short of fantastic. We have sponsored whitepapers, strategy conferences, web-based toolboxes and work on numerous platforms, both through the Internet and in more conventional settings”.

Much to gain on unfiltered customer response

When it comes to social media and opening up for member and user dialogue, the HSMAI boss is surprisingly open-minded:

“From a hospitality perspective, I think we’ve only benefited from the unfiltered feedback these new media offer. Whether a company decides to act on that response or not, is entirely up to them, but it provides a whole new set of opportunities. Also, it’s changed the paradigm of marketing completely, although, granted you have to give up some of the control, but gain so much more,” he says.

“We shouldn’t fear criticism. Criticism is good. And you know, sometimes, issuing an apology, if criticism is due, can earn you lots and lots of customer trust”.

When asked about the chief challenges facing the hospitality industry today, Mr. Gilbert replies unhesitatingly:

“The threat of new standards on all levels of travel and hospitality, especially in the corporate market. Travel and conference expenditures have been kept at a minimum throughout the global recession. We see this in all regions of the world, and I think we need to address that challenge, the sooner the better. If the industry allows that level to establish itself as the new normal, we’re all in deep trouble,” the global president and CEO concludes.

European Revenue Management Executive certification on the way

The author of this article also gave a lecture on travel Internet marketing, for an equally interested audience, eager to make use of the opportunities offered through blogs, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube – and the plethora of social media outlets available today.

“I’m happy to say that a special interest group for travel Internet marketing is en route already,” says Ingunn Hofseth, who, by the way, has become quite the Internet socialite herself over the last couple of months. “But that’s not all,” she says. “In a matter of weeks we’re ready to launch a European certification programme on Revenue management, entitling the graduates to use the CRME (Certified Revenue Management Executive) designation, which has proved a great success in the Americas region, and which fills a void in the European hospitality industry’s follow-up studies,” Ingunn concludes, promising more news on the matter in two weeks.

Top photo: Norwegian HSMAI members from all parts of the industry listened carefully as Marion Hughes and Bob Gilberts shared their experiences with Revenue management in Oslo on Wednesday 18 November. Mobile photo: Jarle Petterson

Warsaw, Oslo, Stockholm go SIG

HSMAI’s European division faces a busy month with one-day conferences on SIG’s (Special Interest Groups) in the capitals of Poland, Norway and Sweden this November, with a golden opportunity to revive the Swedish chapter, as well as the chartering of a chapter in Poland.

In addition to an introduction to the SIG concept, all conferences will offer a walk-through of HSMAI’s Revenue Management programme.

HSMAI global’s president and CEO Mr. Robert A. Gilbert will give an introduction at the Oslo and Stockholm conferences, whereas Mr. Tomasz Janczak gives same at the Warsaw conference, taking place at the Warsaw Hilton.

All conferences also feature Ms. Marion Hughes’ insights in Revenue Management. She currently makes her home in New York City as Vice President, Business Development for Intelligent Hotels, a global leader who have developed and deployed intelligent revenue strategies for a wide range of hotel groups, including Leading Hotels of the World, Preferred Hotels and Resorts, Small Luxury Hotels of the World, Loews Hotels, Le Meridien, Relais & Chateaux, Millennium Hotels and Resorts, Capella Hotels, Holiday Inns, Ramada Hotels, Choice Hotels, Marriott, Hilton International, and Mexicos Grupo Posadas.

Marion has worked for a European luxury hotel group managing sales and marketing for 6 of their hotels and overseeing 14 sales executives. She has extensive experience from working in online distribution and has held a global marketing role in a key European Travelocity business unit.

The conferences will be opened by HSMAI Europe’s CEO and president Ms. Ingunn Hofseth, also CEO and president of HSMAI Chapter Norway.

The participant fees in Warsaw include one year’s HSMAI membership, with access to the SIG’s in question – as well as future SIG’s and other HSMAI activities and benefits (the article continues below video clip).

The conferences take place in the Warsaw Hilton 17 November, Oslo Conference Centre 18 November and the Clarion Hotel Stockholm 19 November.

The Oslo conference also features the launch of SIG’s within the following fields of interest:

• Revenue Management
• Resort Marketing
• Travel Internet Marketing
• Environmentally Sustainable Travel-Business

As Norway already has a fully operational chapter, participants are also offered an introduction to theme-based adventures, by Innovation Norway’s travel director Mr. Per-Arne Tuftin. The Travel Internet Marketing session is conducted by journalist and social media specialist Ms. Ingeborg Volan of Sermo Consulting.

Register now!

Please read further details – and register – on these pages:

• The Warsaw conference (PDF)
• The Oslo Conference (web page in Norwegian)
• The Stockholm conference (PDF)

HSMAI.no makeover

HSMAI Chapter Norway relaunched its website, hsmai.no, yesterday, based on HSMAI Europe’s overall functionality and design, but with a domestic twist.

As opposed to HSMAI Europe, the Norwegian chapter also sports a section for career opportunities, as well as a soon-to-launch password-protected member network, Facebook-style.

Rumour has it the redesign and the new functions have been very well received.

“After preparing the redesigned website throughout summer, we’re very pleased to welcome you to our refurbished site, especially facilitating news and two-way integration with the social media,” says Ingunn Hofseth, president of HSMAI Chapter Norway – and the European division – in a statement, branding the new site a lot more “vital, dynamic, copious and informative”.

Up until recently the chapter’s communications have largely been based on the weekly newsletter, HSMAI Weekly, which is now fully incorporated in the new website.

Thon Hotels + First Hotels = True

OSLO, Norway — Thon Hotels and First Hotels sign cooperation agreement for Scandinavia. The agreement includes cooperation in the areas of sales, distribution and marketing. The aim is to increase the total availability for both chains in the Scandinavian and Benelux hotel market.

According to a press release issued today, the cooperation will start 1 January 2010. The two chains will offer over 104 hotels throughout Scandinavia and Benelux.

The two chains are major players on the Scandinavian hotel scene and have their strength in different geographical areas. They have strong brands, extensive coverage, large sales organizations and quality hotel products.

First Hotels has 46 hotels in Scandinavia, of which 31 hotels are in Sweden, nine in Norway and six in Denmark. The annual turnover for First Hotels is NOK 1.2 billion.

Thon Hotels is the third largest hotel chain in Norway, with 53 hotels and two more planned for the autumn 2009. Annual turnover is at NOK 2.4 billion. Thon Hotels also has a number of hotels in the Benelux region, also to be included in the cooperation.

The cooperation will primarily focus on sales, distribution and marketing. This will benefit the customers in terms of a larger range of hotel products in a significantly larger geographical area. There are also plans for cooperation between the two chains’ loyalty programmes, thereby enabling the guests to earn and spend bonus points in both chains.

Both Thon Hotels and First Hotels will maintain full ownership and control over their brands under the agreement.

Photo: Mr. Morten Thorvaldsen, CEO, Thon Hotels.

Scandic buys Oslo hotel

Scandic continues to grow, now adding another hotel in Oslo. Today an agreement was signed between Fornebu Hotell AS and Scandic, confirming that the new hotel in the Fornebu business park will be a Scandic.

“The hotel has a fantastic outlook, both across the Oslo Fjord and to the future, with its location in this fast-expanding part of Oslo. With our own expansion in Norway continuing over the next few years, signing this long-term agreement for Scandic Fornebu means adding another hotel with excellent prospects and a strategic location to our growing inventory,” comments Frank Fiskers, President & CEO of Scandic in a press release today.

Fornebu business park will be home to the head offices of some of the largest companies in Norway with a total of almost 10,000 office workers. Fornebu Hotell AS is owned by IT Fornebu Eiendom and Utstillingsplassen Eiendom, a Hamar-based property company. The Narud Stokke Wiig firm of architects will design the spectacular hotel, which will have a floorspace of 17,000 m², 300 rooms, a restaurant and bar, a spa and gym and top-notch conference facilities for up to 1000 people. It is located on the shore of Rolfsbukta bay, with views across the Oslo Fjord, putting it only ten minutes away from central Oslo, with excellent communications.

“As chairman of Fornebu Hotell AS, I’m proud and pleased that we have secured a leading hotel operator like Scandic to run the hotel, which will be the most important of Fornebu’s portfolio of major real estate. As chairman of IT Fornebu, I’m also happy that we will now be adding the last building along the seafront, completing this part of the commercial development of the Fornebu peninsula,” explains Erik Løfsnes.

The construction of Scandic Fornebu will start in mid-2010, with the hotel due to open in spring 2012.

Top photo: Frank Fiskers, President & Chief Executive Officer, Scandic Hotels. Photographer: bsmart

Succesful meeting on social media

OSLO, Norway — HSMAI Chapter Norway’s breakfast meeting on social media last Tuesday was a success, spurring members and other attendants, as well as the Norwegian chapter itself, to explore the Web 2.0 possibilities.

The 45 attendants were met with fresh coffee and croissant outside the auditorium of VG (Norway’s largest daily newspaper) at eight o’clock, before the immensely inspiring lecture given by Sermo Consulting’s Ingeborg Volan, who, for more than an hour gave numerous concrete examples of successful corporate use of the social media, after an in-depth introduction.

“You simply can’t help feeling happy and inspired by someone able to instigate enthusiasm in the audience, as Ingeborg did during our breakfast meeting,” HSMAI Chapter Norway president Ingunn Hofseth says.

And you have to agree. Only hours following the breakfast meeting, new twitterers from the meeting popped up on our screen, full of praise.

If you don’t have a Twitter profile yourself; hesitate no more. Register here.

The success has led HSMAI Chapter Norway to set up a series of courses on the Internet and social media during the upcoming autumn – with just Ms. Ingeborg Volan.

Here’s a YouTube clip from the event (we’re sorry for the distorted wide-screen format):

Top photo: Some 45 members and non-members attended HSMAI Chapter Norway’s breakfast meeting on social media on Tuesday. Photographer: Jarle Petterson