Even though independent hotels consistently make the news, the concerns of the owners and managers of independent hotels are often overlooked. Many cite consolidation, low margins, distribution, loyalty programs, rising operational expenses and technology as some of their key issues. How are independent hotels meeting these challenges? With capital flush and entrepreneurs eager to enter the new peer-to-peer economy, the rise of fresh ventures has created a breadth of innovative, stimulating options for independent hoteliers. This is an exciting time for hotel owners who are ready and willing to embrace the changing landscape. READ MORE

Your hospitality business is small, with a single hotel or locations in only a few tax jurisdictions. Your accountant is taking care of compliance quite well, with the help of a local, seasonal tax specialist. But as you grow, expanding to another state, another region, it's time to seek tax expertise. Hiring an in-house state and local tax professional is often part of the evolution of a hospitality business. Its decision criterion is generally the same as that of any other position, arrived at through a cost-benefit analysis, and there are any number of metrics that can be used. READ MORE

The Department of Labor (DOL) Final Rule promulgated new regulations that will go effect on December 1, 2016. All employers need to know how these regulations will change the test for exemption to understand what they need to do in response. This article will review the basics for the most common exemptions from overtime under Federal law and will also provide an executive summary of the key changes made by the Final Rule. One of the biggest myths in the workplace is that a "manager" who is paid a salary is automatically an exempt employee. READ MORE

The saying goes that there are always two sides to every story. In the hotel business this couldn't be truer when examining the relationship between operator and owner, or in many cases between operator and asset manager. Both want to optimize performance, but often this requires a careful balancing act between guest satisfaction and profitability. If a hotel is exceeding expectations - i.e. beating budget, surpassing last year, stealing market share - one might ask “does that mean the revenue management effort is optimal”? If a hotel is falling short of expectations, does that mean that somehow the revenue management effort is lacking? READ MORE

The true art of Revenue Maximization (RevMax) at the elementary foundation is segment mixology including all points of revenue generation. I label this the perfect RevMax Cocktail with the ingredients engineered for total consumption of market share by segment from top rate to the lowest, while also considering each element of contribution to NOI margin. In terms of maximum RevPAR, it is simply maximum achievable occupancy at the highest deliverable ADR. However, before the hotel can celebrate success the team must also have a discipline to avoid the typical erosion of RevMax thru Rev-Leak! READ MORE