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Editorial Board   Guest Author

Mr. Connolly

Patrick Connolly

Chief Customer Officer, Orange Lake Resorts

Patrick Connolly provides strategic vision and leadership for Orange Lake Resorts' operations, guest services and the company's Holiday Inn Club product, managing its development, growth and delivery to more than 125,000 Club members throughout the world.

In his role, Mr. Connolly also manages inventory and operations for the growing resort portfolio, as well as customer service and product engagement for more than 340,000 owners and Club members.

Mr. Connolly's strategic leadership and initiatives were instrumental in the growth of the company from a single-site timeshare property in 2006 to 28 resort properties located in 14 states today.

In 2009, he also helped to conceptualize and launch the company's first luxury villa product, the Signature Collection, which is has expanded from its launch at Orange Lake Resort in Orlando, FL to ten resorts across the country. His teams have been honored with numerous industry and national hospitality awards for guest service and operations.

Mr. Connolly's career encompasses 30 years in customer service and manufacturing roles, including extensive experience in the mortgage and timeshare industries. For nearly a decade prior to joining Orange Lake Resorts in 2006, he was engaged in the member servicing divisions as Senior Vice President of Membership for RCI® North America, the largest timeshare exchange company in the world, and oversaw many of their relationships with numerous member clubs throughout the industry. He also held previous management positions with PHH Mortgage and General Electric.

Mr. Connolly holds a B.S. from Notre Dame University and an Executive M.B.A from the University of South Florida.

Please visit http://corporate.orangelake.com for more information.

Mr. Connolly can be contacted at +1 407-395-6876 or pconnolly@holidayinnclub.com

Coming up in April 2020...

Guest Service: First Impressions Matter

Hotels spend large amounts of money on marketing their operation and brand, but sometimes they fail to remember that guest service is the lifeblood of their business. It is outstanding guest service that allows a hotel to create an amazing and lasting impression, one that will remain with guests far beyond the duration of their stay. In pre-internet days, first impressions were formed the moment a guest walked through a hotel's front door. These days, first impressions are created long before a guest arrives at a hotel property. They begin when a customer visits a hotel's website or social media pages for the first time. When a guest connects with a property online, they immediately form an opinion of the hotel. First impressions matter and because of that, a hotel website should be mobile-friendly with blistering fast speed; it should be graphically appealing; and it should provide visual representation of the kind of experience a guest can expect. It is also vital to engage the customer; to actively solicit and respond to guest feedback. When a hotel personally engages with someone, it is demonstrating to other customers that guest opinions matter, and that management is willing to go the extra mile to provide superior guest service. Similarly, when a hotel sends out personalized emails with satisfaction surveys attached, it demonstrates that management values guest feedback, so that service can be improved at every level. Additionally, social media messages can be sent out prior to a guest's arrival to learn more about them, so their visit can be personalized. It's the small touches and details that are most remembered and appreciated. The April issue of the Hotel Business Review will examine what some leading hotels are doing to cultivate excellent guest service in their operations.


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