Communication Tools in Hotel Industry

This study explores the use of communication tools in the hotel industry, including property management systems (PMS) and operational reports. It discusses the benefits of effective communication between departments and the role of forecasting and budgeting in hotel operations. The study also highlights the importance of communication in executing business operations successfully.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
PART 2 (A)......................................................................................................................................1
Discussing PMS and various other communication tools...........................................................1
PART 2 (B)......................................................................................................................................2
Different operational reports.......................................................................................................2
Forecasting and budgeting..........................................................................................................3
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................3
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................5

INTRODUCTION
Communication is considered to be as an effective tool as it helps in exchanging information,
transmitting ideas, facts and opinions, etc. from one person to the another. This study will highlight on
effectively analysing how communication between front office and other departments helps in executing
operations effectively. This study also focuses on evaluating various operational reports and budgeting.
London Marriott Hotel country hall was opened on September 1998. It has approximately 206
rooms and is considered to be the luxury hotel which offers view of Big Ben.
PART 2 (A)
Discussing PMS and various other communication tools.
Property management system (PMS) Interface helps in transforming the communication system
of the hotel. This help business in providing productivity tool and also allows guest in obtaining necessary
information associated with the business. This helps in providing relevant different services which in turn
leads to higher operational performance and productivity (Moraitis, 2018). This helps company to remain
competitive and deliver effective customer service. Integration of Property management system helps in
converging several core hotel departments like sales, front desk, housekeeping, accounting, etc. PMS
tends to act as a central point of control which helps in eliminating the need to manually communicate the
information to various departments. Property management system helps in integrating and automating the
whole process which in turn helps in providing effective hospitality services. Property management
system is useful as it is used in enabling barring and unbarring of call facilities, real time monitoring,
intelligence console, voice confirmation, wake up calls, real time posting for check in and check outs,
room status update, updating of guest information, statistical report, broadcast of emergency messages,
alert of home staff, etc. PMS is useful in integration of online reputation management method, digital
marketing software, guest self check in apps and online channel managers (Sainaghi, and et.al., 2019). It
is very useful in streamlining the operations of the business of the London Marriott Hotel country hall. This
helps London Marriott Hotel country hall in effectively communicating the message with several
departments. Example, MICROS OPERA PMS which helps in using various cloud services which helps in
meeting ranging operational needs of the hotel. PMS communication system is very useful in coordinating
the operations and functions of the front desk, administration, planning, sales, finances, reporting, etc.
Direct integration between online distribution channels and PMS helps in maximizing online revenue and
also allow interface to control rates, reservations, GDS inventory, etc. It helps in updating reservations
and communicating information across various channels. For example, reputation management system
helps hotel in managing social customer service and online reputation by effectively motoring social
media and also focuses on increasing review volume (Kaitano and Shafaghi, 2017). With the help of this,
posting guest feedback can be effectively automated.
There are various communication tools which are used for internal and external communication.
There are various communication tools like internet, social media platforms, email marketing, video
conferencing, text messaging, social networking sites, productivity tool, G- suite, cell phones, telephones,
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Microsoft office, Voice over IP, instant messaging, virtual reality, etc. which in turn leads to higher
operational growth and productivity (Session 8: Communication Tools, 2019). This is considered to be as
an effective tool as it helps in maintaining strategic relationship and coordination between front office and
various other departments of the hotel. This in turn helps in executing several business operations
successfully (Quarshie and Amenumey, 2018).
PART 2 (B)
Different operational reports.
Operational reporting is considered to be an effective reporting procedure which helps in
providing detailed information associated with the ins and outs of the company in relation with various day
to day activities of the business (Sadek, 2016). There are various operational reports in the hotel industry
which mainly includes housekeeping report, room and tax report, food and beverages report, shift audit
report, arrival and departure report, reservation report, etc.
Room and tax report: This report is useful in listing out the revenue associated with the room
and also evaluates tax for the particular day. This report is useful in determining the potential issues
which are useful in communicating the same to the managers (Rotimi, and et.al., 2017). For example,
room and tax report can be compared with the arrivals, departure and continuous report in order to
evaluate the revenue of the company according to the current occupancy.
Housekeeping report: This report is useful in evaluating the room number of the property,
housekeeping status, type of unit, arrival and departure dates, front desk status (Kovaltchuk and et.al.,
2016). This is very useful for the front desk and housekeeping staff to evaluate which room has to be
cleaned and replace towels, toiletries, sheets, etc.
Food and beverages report: This report helps in providing quantitative and qualitative data
associated with the demand and supply of food and beverages within hospitality industry (Rahimi, and
Kozak, 2017). It helps in keeping the appropriate level of stock related with food and beverages which in
turn leads to higher sustainable growth and development of the business.
Reservation report: This report is useful in providing information associated with the each
individual who are visiting property (Burgess, 2017). This includes name, contact information, number of
visitor, address, arrival time, departure date, number of buses, payment method, security deposit
information and any other information related with the individual at the time of reservation.
These operational reports helps managers of the company to take corrective and strategic
decision by evaluating each and every report of the London Marriott Hotel country hall. These operational
reports helps company, government, owners and customers in taking strategic decision. Operational
report tends to contain real time information which is useful for stakeholders of the company to improve
the performance and productivity of the business. This is very useful for various members of the
department to effectively understand the performance of the business and its financial health. It is useful
for company to demonstrate regulatory and compliance requirements which helps in effective operation of
the London Marriott Hotel country hall.
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Forecasting and budgeting.
Forecasting is considered to be one of the effective strategy as it helps in managing revenue and
is also useful for hotel industry to make vital decision in relation with promotion, pricing, distribution,
performance, anticipated demands, etc. For example, forecasting room availability for the business by the
front office managers helps in forecasting the various number of rooms that are available for the future
reservation (Khoo-Lattimore, and Yunus, 2016). This helps in better communication within the internal
parties which mainly results in higher operational performance and productivity of the London Marriott
Hotel country hall. Forecasting communication helps the various department of the hotels in predicting
future trends, preset responses, resources, engagements, responsibilities which in turn helps in managing
several risks and opportunities.
Hoteliers tend to use forecasting and budgeting as an effective measure for financial control and
strategic planning. This in turn helps in setting standards against which actual performance of the
company will be measured (Banerjee and Bonfield, 2019, March). Financial budgeting and forecasting
helps in strengthening management control over the performance, profitability and expenses of the
business. Forecasting helps company in determining the future information exchanges which in turn
helps in making strategic decision. Forecasting communication helps hotel managers in predicting the
early warning signs, risks and opportunities, possible impact on plans, assessment of profitability, impact
on operational activities, etc. This in turn also helps in analysing the future trends which leads to higher
operational efficiency and productivity of the London Marriott Hotel country hall. It helps in comparative
analysis and determine the current trends of the competitors (Kovaltchuk and et.al., 2016). This in turn
helps in communicating such information to various departments and in turn helps in effective operational
efficiency which leads to higher growth and productivity.
Budgeting is an effective tool as it helps in communicating the pre- determined plan with the
actual results. In case of any deviation communicate the same with the managers which in turn helps in
taking necessary action in an appropriate and efficient manner. Budgeting helps in setting appropriate tool
for communicating the needs and priorities for the business (Khoo-Lattimore, and Yunus, 2016).
Budgeting provides a formal process of planning, tracking and monitoring the activities of various
departments within hospitality industry.
CONCLUSION
From the above conducted study it has been summarized that, communication is considered to
be an effective strategy as it helps in exchanging information from one person to another. This study
evaluates about, PMS helps in converging several core hotel departments and act as a central point of
control of various operational activities. It is very useful in updating reservations and communicating
information across various channels. This study also helps in determining various communication tools
social media platforms, email marketing, cell phones, instant messaging, virtual reality, etc. which helps in
better communication between various departments within hotel industry. This study also concludes that,
there are several operating reports such as housekeeping report, room and tax report, food and
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beverages report, reservation report, etc. which helps in better communication and strategic decision
making. Forecasting and budgeting also helps in effective operational efficiency.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Banerjee, S. and Bonfield, S., 2019, March. How Online Reviews in a Year Predict Online Sales in the
Next on Expedia. com+ Agoda. com+ Hotels. com? A Panel Study of Hotels. In 2019 5th
International Conference on Information Management (ICIM) (pp. 336-340). IEEE.
Burgess, C., 2017. Managerial Competencies for UK Hotel Financial Controllers: Are They Hospitality
Managers or Accountants?. The Journal of Hospitality Financial Management.25(1). pp.27-43.
Kaitano, V.A. and Shafaghi, M., 2017. Impact of exploitation of ICT in the Malawi Hotel
sector. International Journal of Economics, Commerce and Management. (9). pp.104-132.
Khoo-Lattimore, C. and Yunus, M., 2016. CAN BUDGET HOTELS PROVIDE QUALITY SERVICE? AN
ANALYSIS OF E-COMPLAINTS ON LOW-COST ACCOMMODATION IN MALAYSIA. Journal of
Travel & Tourism Research.
Kovaltchuk, A.P and et.al., 2016. Concept and procedures of crisis management in Russian hotel
enterprises. Journal of Environmental Management & Tourism. 7(3 (15). pp.473-480.
Moraitis, P., 2018. Design and development of a “Property Management System” software suite for
hotels.
Quarshie, J.M. and Amenumey, E.K., 2018. Utilisation of information and communication technologies in
hotel operations in the central region of Ghana. Journal of Hospitality Management and
Tourism.9(1). pp.1-13.
Rahimi, R. and Kozak, M., 2017. Impact of customer relationship management on customer satisfaction:
The case of a budget hotel chain. Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing.34(1). pp.40-51.
Rotimi, A and et.al., 2017. Estimation and validation of energy consumption in UK existing hotel building
using dynamic simulation software. Sustainability.9(8). p.1391.
Sadek, H.S., 2016. The Role of Electronic Marketing Practices in Improving Performance in Hurghada
Hotels in Egypt. Journal of Association of Arab Universities for Tourism and Hospitality.13(1).
pp.131-142.
Sainaghi, R and et.al., 2019. Hotel performance: Rigor and relevant research topics. International Journal
of Hospitality Management.78. pp.13-26.
Online
Session 8: Communication Tools. 2019. [ONLINE]. Available
through:<https://www.scu.edu/mobi/business-courses/starting-a-business/session-8-
communication-tools/>
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