Cornell Issues Revenue-Boosting Tool for Restaurant Managers
Restaurants Can Determine Best Mix of Tables to Increase Peak-period Revenue
ITHACA, NY, November 14, 2005. Restaurant managers now have a new tool that allows them to match their table mix to their customer mix. Cornell University has just released the Restaurant Table-Mix Optimizer, or RTMO, which is designed to give restaurant managers specific guidance on what mix of tables will provide the best revenue boost for their particular restaurant. The web-based tool, developed by Cornell professor Gary M. Thompson, is available at no charge from TheCenterForHospitalityResearch.org.
Most experienced restaurant managers understand that the mix of two- and four-tops in their restaurant affects how quickly and efficiently they can seat their customers. The RTMO improves on that skill by calculating the best table mix based on a restaurant's specific situation.
Here's how the RTMO works. A restaurant manager can log onto the tool at TheCenterforHospitalityResearch.org and input information that most managers already have available: the percentage of each particular party size (say, 20 percent parties of one, 55 percent deuces, and so forth); the average dining duration by party size; the average check by party size; the space to be allocated to tables in the restaurant; which table sizes are available; and the space required by a table of each of the allowed sizes.
The RTMO uses that information to delineate the table combinations that will best to serve each size party at that restaurant, as well as the maximum number of parties that can be served per hour and the maximum average revenue (or contribution margin) per available space per hour. The RTMO allows users to create, evaluate, and save different table-mix scenarios. This means that restaurant managers can play out "what if" scenarios, as they consider how to boost revenue by changing the table arrangements and sizes on their floor.
The RTMO is particularly useful during peak dining periods. "Using the right mix of tables in a restaurant can increase revenue in peak periods by 30 to 40 percent" says Thompson. "The tool works because it finds the best way of matching a restaurant's table capacity to its customer profile." He adds that "using your space effectively doesn't just mean that all your tables are busy, but that all your seats are full."
James C. Allen, executive vice president of Southern Wine and Spirits of New York, observed: "The idea of filling all of a restaurant's seats is not rocket science, but you don't have to look far to find restaurants that are not doing it. This tool should help restaurateurs in that regard."
The Restaurant Table-Mix Optimizer is the sixth tool available from Cornell's Center for Hospitality Research. The CHR's website also offers numerous reports on restaurant management, including "Perceived Fairness of Restaurant Waitlist-management Policies" and "Dining Duration and Customer Satisfaction."
About The Center for Hospitality Research
A unit of the Cornell School of Hotel Administration, The Center for Hospitality Research (CHR) sponsors research designed to improve practices in the hospitality industry. Under the lead of the Center's 43 corporate affiliates, experienced scholars work closely with business executives to discover new insights into strategic, managerial and operating practices. The Center also publishes the award-winning hospitality journal, the Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly. To learn more about CHR and its projects, visit http://www.thecenterforhospitalityresearch.org/.
CHR Partners and sponsors: AIG Global Real Estate Investment Corp., Cendant Corporation, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, HVS International, JohnsonDiversey, Inc., Kohinoor Group, Marsh's Hospitality Practice, Nestl'e, Smith Travel Research, Southern Wine and Spirits of America, Inc., SynXis Corporation of Sabre Holdings, Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces, and Thayer Group of Companies.
CHR friends: ARAMARK o DK Shifflet & Associates o ehotelier.com o Estrela Marketing Solutions o Fireman's Fund o Gerencia de Hoteles & Restaurantes o Global Hospitality Resources o hospitalitynet.org o Hotel Asia Pacific o Hotel China o Hospitality Initiatives India o Hotel Interactive o Hotel Resource o International CHRIE o International Hotel and Restaurant Association o KPMG Japan/Global Management Directions o Lodging Hospitality o Lodging Magazine o Mobile MoneySaver o National Hotel Executive Magazine o PKF Hospitality Research o Resort+Recreation o The Resort Trades o RestaurantEdge.com o Shibata Publishing Co. o The Lodging Conference o Taste & Travel o TravelCLICK o UniFocus oVanguard Foundation o WageWatch, Inc. o WiredHotelier.com
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