Hotel Operations

👏 Marito Pires De Sousa won the 2024 Winterhalter Kitchen Porter of the Year award, working at Mollie’s Motel in Oxfordshire. Celebrating its tenth year, the event saw higher competition standards, with Marito standing out for impact and innovation, especially during a 650-cover Saturday. Along with the trophy, Marito received £1000 in vouchers and a meal for friends and family. Mollie’s Motel will get Winterhalter equipment valued up to £10,000. Runners up Austin Ottolorin and Leszek Dajnowicz also earned commendations, with all nominees receiving a bespoke apron.

🏨 Hotel General Managers (GMs) typically manage properties for 3-5 years, focusing on stability and avoiding high-risk changes. They use Business Intelligence (BI) tools to make data-driven decisions, ensuring seamless operations and consistent guest experiences. Tools like Demand Calendar provide real-time performance tracking, revenue reporting, and market benchmarking, helping GMs maintain quality, financial health, and avoid risks during their tenure. Demand Calendar also documents achievements for a smooth handover to successors, emphasizing a "maintain" strategy for hotel success.

🍴 Halil Simsek honed his skills at a kebab stall in Mersin, Turkey, under a traditional kebab master. He admires Massimo Bottura for his creativity. His cooking style involves infusing soul and childhood flavors into his dishes. He emphasizes the importance of rest for maintaining creativity and sharpness in the kitchen. His kitchen essential is a kitchen cloth for cleaning surfaces after each dish. Simsek’s signature dish is Turkish black cod with clear tomato sauce and Urfa pepper crumble.

🍺 European and Americas & APAC winners of the 2024 GuestRevu GREAT Awards announced at Tapa Tapa Wine Bar during WTM London. Over 700 entrants from 55 countries with more than 75,000 guest reviews analyzed from platforms including Google (24.5%), TripAdvisor (13.8%), and Booking.com (61.7%). Entrants averaged a 87% score, with shortlisted properties reaching the 90% range. Awards categories included room quality, cleanliness, and service, with winners like L'oscar London and The Plough & Flail. The event, supported by Hop, HOSPA, and Stenden University South Africa, featured an industry panel and celebrated hospitality excellence.

🍴 Philly's Fringe Bar offers 2-hour bottomless Mimosas for $35, while in Denver, Señor Bear and Tamayo provide weekend bottomless brunches at $35 and $50 respectively. Washington, D.C.'s All Purpose serves them for $23. SpotOn reports over 1,200 all-you-can-eat or -drink deals added between February-August 2024. Boxwood in Beverly Hills offers a bottomless brunch at $82 for food and $110 with cocktails. Smitty's Bar in Uniontown has all-you-can-eat wings for $17.99, and Pizza Tugos in Maryland offers a $9.99 game-day deal. Red Robin introduced bottomless fries 30 years ago and now has over 30 bottomless items starting at $3.49.

🏨 Frontline managers report concerns with maintaining staffing levels, with 75% worried about delivering consistent customer experiences during holidays, as per Axonify data. In hospitality, 70% fear understaffing may cause team burnout. Almost half the managers (44%) are hiring as many or more seasonal workers than last year, yet 61% see a drop in applicant quality. To attract talent, 77% highlight secure work environments, and 80% in hospitality stress this point. Over half (53%) offer upskilling for new hires, but many managers lack resources for effective training. Burnout is prevalent; 65% of managers feel overwhelmed pre-holiday, nearly 40% considered quitting recently, and 9% plan to leave by year-end. Managers believe a more engaged workforce (84% agree) could ease challenges.

💰 Jamelia Lehn, CFO of SPIRE Hospitality, led her finance team on a field trip on Nov. 1, 2024, to bridge the gap between accounting and hotel operations. The excursion aimed to improve financial accuracy through firsthand operational understanding, prepare teams via structured site visits, and enhance team relations. This initiative garnered attention from hotel owners and prospective clients. The episode featuring this story is supported by Hireology and promotes continued learning and application of episode insights within hospitality teams.

🏩 Elizabeth Harlow, Chief Brand Officer at Sonesta Hotels, discusses maintaining a personal touch in hospitality on a podcast episode. The episode underlines the value of hospitality beyond just "heads in beds," focusing on individual guest experiences and creating lasting memories. Harlow emphasizes how personal attention can impact all travel experiences and the importance of staying connected to the spirit of hospitality despite large-scale operations. The podcast also features support from Hireology and offers resources like a masterclass with CEO Adam Robinson. The episode aired on Oct. 31, 2024.