Using Technology to Improve Hotel Operations and Management

Hotel operations encompass myriad activities and efforts related to everything from guest services and amenities to housekeeping and administration. As a hotel brand scales, operational complexities increase, with each new location adding layers of logistical challenges around regulatory compliance, guest experience, and hotel staff management. 

Technology can ease the logistical burdens facing hotels and other hospitality venues, allowing them to scale operations and open new properties without feeling the pinch of inefficient processes. 

This article looks at the different departments that must come together to deliver quality guest stays, how behind-the-scenes operations can improve those outcomes, and ways to use technology to drive efficiency and cost control across hotel operations management.

Download the free tool: Hotel Budgeting Template

What are hotel operations?

Hotel operations are the processes and activities required to run a hotel property efficiently. Operations touch every aspect of the guest experience, starting the moment they check in at the front desk. Hotel industry operations also include services and amenities, such as restaurants, room service, pools, fitness centers, and event spaces. 

The following departments have a hand in managing operations:

• Front office management
• Housekeeping
• Maintenance and facilities
• Guest services
• Employee management
• Procurement
• IT and security

Empowering all departments with accessible information and services ensures everyone works toward the same outcomes. Operations’ ultimate goal is to create desirable, repeatable guest experiences that build customer satisfaction and encourage retention over time.

Connecting the departments of hotel operations

Every department, from front-of-house to facilities and finance, has a hand in managing the operations of a hotel property. In many cases, these functions act independently, which makes it more difficult to streamline management and ensure consistency in delivering guest experiences. 

For instance, while procurement and housekeeping don’t communicate directly, the procurement team’s activities impact housekeeping and its day-to-day functioning. Their management of purchasing schedules determines how quickly orders come in. Issues in hospitality procurement make it harder for housekeeping to do their job, causing housekeeping to scramble or guest experience to falter. 

The right hotel technology can centralize operations to ensure every department has what it needs to perform its roles. With a procurement tool, hotel procurement teams can manage vendor selection to ensure high-quality products at a competitive price. On-site stakeholders can order supplies from a pre-approved, curated list, while AP automation helps ensure timely payments and reporting. This allows the finance operations team to see the real-time budget impact of procurement to refine its forecasting. 

Tool

Hotel Budgeting Template

Growing a hotel business calls for strong process, cost savings, and commitment to guest satisfaction. Download this hotel budgeting template to achieve all three.

Download the tool

Essential software categories in hotel operations

The tech stack in a hotel business should be robust and dynamic, helping departments address hotel guests' needs while promoting the business's growth and management. Hoteliers may use hundreds of individual apps to manage every aspect of the business. Many of these focus on improving operations across the following categories: 

Procurement management: Procurement tools help teams oversee sourcing, purchasing, tracking, and delivery of goods and services essential for hospitality industry operations.y.

Revenue management: Hotels need industry-specific tools (such as a revenue management system, or RMS) that help manage hotel revenue components like room pricing, room type availability, occupancy forecasting, and room usage analytics. 

Reservation and property management: Hotel management software handles reservations and guest activities; centralizes booking, billing, and guest management operations; and helps location manage room inventory. 

Guest management: Tools like in-room management and mobile apps facilitate the guest experience through personalized communication and services.

Point of sale (POS): On-property purchases are a big revenue stream for locations. A POS system helps manage dining, spa, and other hotel amenities operations for billing and inventory management.

Housekeeping and maintenance: Maintaining guest rooms, common areas, and back-of-house areas requires careful scheduling and work management. A property management system helps organize tasks related to cleaning and repair to ensure property upkeep.

Event management: Software tools can help catering, maintenance, and facilities manage the hotel’s use for events and special occasions.

5 signs you need to improve your hotel operations

With its prompt service, clean premises, and satisfied guests, it’s easy to spot a well-run hotel. Many of the best hotels in the world integrate sophisticated systems to manage hotel operations and ensure guests return in the future. 

Here are some of the signs your operations need a boost: 

1. Inconsistent guest experience

Your guests should be at the heart of every decision and activity because their perception directly affects reputation, repeat business, and brand ambassadorship. Inconsistent reviews on social media, negative guest feedback given to the guest services team, and other outward signs of dissatisfaction indicate something is amiss. A root-cause analysis may reveal opportunities to improve operations and meet guest expectations. 

2. Staffing or workload issues

From managing schedules to hiring, training, and retaining employees, staffing is a multifaceted struggle. Overloaded teams can burn out, leave the company, or drag down employee morale. In fact, recent studies reveal that nearly half of hospitality managers are experiencing burnout. However, adding additional headcount isn’t always the answer. When faced with overwhelmed leaders and team members, look for ways to streamline tasks and provide more tools for efficiency and productivity. 

3. Inventory or supplier management struggles

Keeping track of inventory for housekeeping, food and beverage, and maintenance departments is a big task. Issues in this area might appear as shortfalls on critical items or unstructured, redundant purchasing that takes up storage space and leads to capital waste. Low-quality suppliers may also contribute to this problem by delivering damaged or substandard products or failing to meet contractual obligations. 

4. Maintenance and upkeep difficulties

First impressions are vital to the overall guest experience. Lack of routine maintenance, shortcuts on housekeeping or repairs, and poor upkeep of outdoor areas like gardens and pools can all result in instant, negative perceptions of the property. Having the right supplies and tools and creating manageable facility maintenance schedules are critical to earning guest trust and continued patronage.

5. Digital transformation hurdles

Implementing new technology for bookings, check-in, facilities access, and back-end operations is often met with resistance. The perceived time investment, project difficulty, training requirements, or costs prompt many businesses to kick transformation projects down the road. Sticking with the old ways may work in the short term, but make no mistake—guests notice. They base future stay decisions on what they see. 

Management strategies to optimize hotel operations

Depending on the challenges your property faces, certain strategies and best practices can give you everything you need to overcome obstacles and improve operational efficiency. Here are some areas for improvement that may jump-start increased guest satisfaction: 

Understand the customer experience: When in doubt, look at things from the guest's perspective. Seek out opportunities to boost their experiences through process optimization and personalization, such as removing barriers to booking and check-in, increasing access to on-site amenities, and adding unique services. Pay attention to the details your guests enjoy (even small perks like upgraded shampoo and conditioner), and ensure they get a consistent experience that helps them appreciate your brand’s specific benefits. Get feedback from guests through post-stay customer surveys, online reviews, and loyalty and referral programs.

Reduce manual tasks and processes: Automation can streamline hospitality operations, eliminating time-consuming tasks and giving staff more time to improve the guest experience. Build a tech stack that eliminates the most common guest requests and challenges, and look for ways to automate departmental processes like maintenance schedule management, inventory, and purchasing. 

Implement cost control measures: Indirect costs are a big part of a hotel budget. Get serious about FinOps fundamentals like budgeting, forecasting, contract performance management, strategic sourcing, and cost control techniques. Cash management boosts profit and provides more resources for growth and improving guest experiences. Performing an audit of your procurement and inventory management processes will likely reveal opportunities to improve the bottom line. 

Invest in the right technology: Cloud-based hospitality management software can streamline a variety of operations, from reservations and housekeeping schedules to back-office administration and support. Automating mundane and repetitive tasks increases staff member productivity across various departments. This allows team members to focus on work that requires a human touch, ultimately enhancing the customer experience. Not only does hotel technology streamline workflows, it also aids in training staff members and providing stakeholders with valuable data and metrics to improve hotel performance, which fosters a better work environment.

Tool

Hotel Budgeting Template

Growing a hotel business calls for strong process, cost savings, and commitment to guest satisfaction. Download this hotel budgeting template to achieve all three.

Download

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A case study in successful hotel operation integration

Boutique hotel management company Lark Hotels operates a network of 30 full-service hotel and dining establishments, from small 10-room locations to larger properties with close to 100 rooms. The company has grown quickly from a handful of properties to dozens in just a few years. Since the brand has properties in the Northeast all the way to California, centralizing operations is an important part of keeping a consistent brand image and guest experience. 

In the beginning, the organization relied on spreadsheet-based procurement management to run its purchasing functions. But as the business grew and added new locations, manual management couldn’t keep up. Lark partnered with Order.co in 2022 to help streamline purchasing and payment processes, saving time and money which it could put to better use improving guest experiences. 

• With the help of Order.co’s automated procurement platform, Lark created a curated list of supplies to keep the experience consistent across all locations. 
• The centralized purchasing process allowed Lark to easily order supplies, furniture, decor, and consumables to get new locations up and running quickly and consistently.
• Consolidated billing features helped Lark pay for all supply orders across the organization with just a few clicks. 
• Automated GL coding, invoice matching, and AP automation created a totally visible procurement function that empowered better spend management, reporting, and AP processing without adding more hours to teams' workdays. 

As Lark continues expanding its brand and opening new locations, the company can be confident that Order.co will help keep procurement and daily operations running smoothly. 

Build stronger hotel operations through a procurement platform

Order.co streamlines hotel procurement by automating ordering and billing to simplify supply chain management. The added efficiency of using an automated system to handle repetitive procurement tasks protects team members' time and enhances spend visibility and control. This allows hotel operators to save money while focusing on providing exceptional guest experiences for increased growth and profitability. 

To learn more about using Order.co to streamline your procurement process, schedule a demo.