Few people start their workday expecting an emergency to happen, but according to American Aerospace Engineer Edward Murphy Jr. who worked on safety-critical systems: “Anything that can go wrong will go wrong.” If you’re not a believer in “Murphy’s Law,” just ask any of the 701 hotel workers who needed help last year while on duty and survived the ordeal because they were equipped with an Employee Safety Device (ESD) or panic button. Guest Dispute with Valet A hotel valet was assaulted by a guest who did not want to pay the parking fee after his vehicle was retrieved. Displeased with...

Summer break is here. As guests start booking their stays and preparing for a relaxing or adventurous getaway, make sure your hospitality property is in tip-top shape. Germs and unclean facility areas can quickly turn a vacation into a nightmare, making it important to refresh your employees on the best practices to create a clean and welcoming environment. First Impressions are Key After a long day of travel, guests want to feel at ease from the moment they step foot on your property. In fact, most guests make up their minds about a hospitality property’s cleanliness even before they book their...

The year 2020 will forever be remembered for COVID-19 and the start of the global pandemic. However, American historians had thought that the murder of George Floyd in May of that year would be an equally seminal moment in the history of our country, and the start of the human rights revolution in equity and inclusion in the U.S. The hospitality industry—with more than 40 percent of its front-line workers being Black, indigenous and people of color—was well-positioned to draw from its diverse workforce and was one of the first to establish committees to discuss the challenges and bridge solutions. Marriott...

The world’s ongoing water crisis is real. One in four of the world’s largest cities are currently in water stress, and the global infrastructure for collecting, cleaning, and distributing water is critically strained. We are locked in an ongoing struggle to maintain sufficient supplies of water in the face of increasing global temperatures and continuing worsening droughts. Water waste is not only a major contributor to the decline of reservoirs, but also a significant source of carbon emissions. Water treatment and delivery in the United States account for 13 percent of the country’s total electricity consumption. In many municipalities, water is...

Managing maintenance in hotels and resorts with hundreds of rooms, multiple floors, and numerous assets is no small feat. Facility managers must possess strong organizational skills and an efficient maintenance management strategy to ensure a comfortable stay for their guests, which can lead to continued business and growth. Maintaining assets is crucial for guest satisfaction, as it reduces the likelihood of inconvenience and ensures a positive experience during their stay. To enhance productivity among staff and effectively track maintenance needs across all areas of a hotel or resort, maintenance managers should consider practicing preventive maintenance (PM) by utilizing a computerized...

Evaporative cooling towers play an important role in green buildings by significantly reducing energy consumption when they supplement or replace traditional air conditioning systems, thereby reducing carbon footprint and operating costs. Although evaporative cooling is great at saving energy, it does consume some water but the benefits on energy savings outweigh the water usage, which in some places is a scarce resource. Water conservation is therefore a high priority in designing and operating water-cooled equipment and plays an important role in USGBC’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification and other sustainability programs. LEED assigns credit points to reduce...

Earth Day has taken on different manifestations over the course of its 53-year history but to some of us who recall the first one, its purpose remains intact. Credit for the first Earth Day goes to Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin who was a passionate environmentalist at a time when conservation wasn’t a politicized topic or a particularly notable one. He felt the need to expose the environmental damage of unregulated pollution, chemical toxicity, and habitat destruction. He also wisely realized that it was an intergenerational issue, and as a result, children and adults alike celebrated it together on April...

As an institutional investor, consider your investments—a hotel, club, restaurant, anything. Being an investor requires knowing how to allocate the appropriate funds to the right asset at the right time. But what if you have someone who can intricately manage that for you? This is where an asset manager would step in and decide what exactly investors must expect in return from their assets. They define the metrics and targets to be achieved so that the entire asset is optimized to its maximum potential. Then, there is ESG: environmental, social and governance. Environmental: issues related to the quality and function of the natural...

Over the past few years, like all companies, Amadeus has been working both internally and externally, on the impact of its actions with regards to sustainability. However, I believe we have reached a tipping point, particularly in corporate travel, where sustainability is now starting to drive the conversation. We are at a decisive moment in time where governments and organizations move from commitments to actions; from measurement to reducing carbon emissions, and from looking at one sustainability issue to a more holistic view with more elements. For instance, many airlines are defining clear and ambitious “net-zero emission targets by X”...

We at HVS have long valued the importance of embracing diversity, celebrating our differences, and building a better consulting team as a result. Exceptional teams do this: embracing, accepting, and understanding these differences to become more deeply connected and effective. When a hotel operations team is similarly understanding and celebratory of differences, guests can feel the difference and often become repeat guests as a result. Autism awareness is an effort HVS supports by engaging with Autism Double-Checked, an organization that provides education and training about this disability. We encourage you and your hotel operations team to learn more. Beyond the matter...