The Coronavirus is the mass extinction of the hotel industry, yet it has a vital lesson for you to l earn from it.
66 million years ago, the asteroid struck our planet and it cause drastic climate change. For which, the dinosaurs couldn’t adapt fast enough as it most of the race went extinct.
And now, the coronavirus played out the same process in the hospitality business. So, you got to adapt or die!
Speaking to many hotel directors today, they tell us many headaches they’re are facing currently. Like – When will the borders open? When should we open? Is my job safe? How do we forecast our hotel occupancy for the next coming 12 months, that too with so much uncertainty?
No expert can predict the future in such unprecedented times, and we are no different. But, yes common-sense says it that hotels will experience low occupancy levels this year.
Day by day, we are getting more precise picture on how the crisis is emerging and affecting the tourism industry profoundly than any other sectors with the travel & airlines, OTA’s and MICE destinations are laying off after facing the reality.
So the obvious question you might be asking yourselves that, how can you run your hotel profitably? Well, if you can reconfigure your human resources then you’ll be best place once the travel and tourism starts its recovery.
Let’s get into the details to know what we meant!
One of the best way for you to survive this pandemic is to identify you staff who can do multi-task, where they can not only check-in a guest but also serve them food afterwards.
If you’re serious about reducing the staffing level, then you have to consider employees who are able to and prepared to do this.
Typically, if your hotel is of 4-star rating with 100 rooms then it could open with as little as four to five employees with a 20 percent occupancy and it is feasible entirely.
But, the critical point is that over the upcoming next two to three years, many hotels will be fighting for the survival so implement drastic measure from now as it will be vital for you to survive the crisis.
As an owner, you need to make judgements certainly. Suchlike whether your hotel or hotel chain require a general manager who cannot or will not helping out in serving guests better. Are your head of the department actually needed when the occupancy level is around 30%? Basically, you will need to fundamentally ask what’s the minimum possible staff required for your hotel to function.
Like turkeys don’t vote for Christmas, most of your general managers or hotel directors wouldn’t recommend anyone that are not needed. But you need to make the difficult decisions in this unprecedented times. That’s how you can operate your hotel more profitably on low occupancy levels, which is new normal.
If you can rent or lease staff on contract, it stands like a life support and your business moves forward and operations become streamlined, minimizing the loses.
Build CAPITAL RESERVES, as they can be BUFFER in the future crisis
Implement new and innovative technology, switch to automation to improve your staff productivity. Embrace Hotel Accounting Software solutions, bookkeeping support to ultimately reduce staffing levels.
Make your hotel more dynamic and free up receptionists work by welcoming app-based rooms keys and self-service check-ins, improving guest satisfaction.
“Once a receptionist, always a receptionist” doesn’t hold any more water. Train and make them versatile in diverse departments, which will actually bring in mileage to growth themselves within the hospitality industry. Eventually, they will become in-demand employees and hotels come forward
