A time line with completion dates for all items will deliver timely openings.
The commissioning of equipment, roll out of training on site, defining staff uniforms, the details of guest service all become your brand.
Prior to opening the resort to guests, all the operating systems and standards should be in place and tested, staff recruitment and training of staff on systems and equipment undertaken, and detailed punch lists prepared and actioned.
What is it that makes you a 5 a 4 or 3 star rating property?
This is complex question. Historically industry “Star” ratings are a reflection of ticking the right boxes. Air-conditioning, 24 hour room service, restaurants, etc. Whilst still applied today the rating base has shifted and you can be described as 6 star destination and offer none of these!
What is expected by guests today is value.
An experience more than a check list of services. The consumer is more likely to pay attention to your reviews on social media platforms and what other guests have said or specialist media or travel agents than “worry”about a star rating. Value perceptions are important.
Operations covers everything to do with the day to day running of your resort business Taylor Dade has stepped away from classic hotel concepts and won accolades in the international arena for bespoke dining experiences delivered by local teams. Karen’s teams learn how to exceed the expectations of discerning customers.
Customers become repeat guests and staunch advocates, spreading “the word” to families and friends, driving both the reputation and the bottom line of the business.
The size of a resort will reflect the size of departments and the offering to the guests. The smaller resort will have a flatter hierarchy, keeping the structure flat helps ensure cost containment and requires multi tasking between staff with an emphasis on teamwork.
Decisions need to be made whether to outsource services, or to retain these “in house” .
The required level of service offering to be extended to the guests will also impact on operations. Sometimes these decisions come down to:
Taylor Dade will help review these opportunities and come to decisions on each and every one. This will then flow on to the SOP’s required, the HR requirements, equipment and general procurement of the necessary basics to start operations.
Defining service outputs for each department requires a lot of thought. This thinking should be done whilst still at the planning stage. Special sites and situations demand different solutions to deliver.
What is your service profile?
Brand hotels tend to define their standards for their brand. Not for the culture or the site or the specific situation or to a special cultural space, but primarily for their brand. This is what they charge for when you pay their management fees and they hire to ensure that this is delivered as prescribed.
Private hotels can be what they want. The important thing is to make sure that this is clearly definedand so there can be no misconception.
This comes back to original planning thinking and sales strategies.
Food & Beverage ServiceDefining the product offering for food and beverage services is one of the most impactful strategies you will make. Food and beverage service requires a lot of thought and investment.
Guests should be the cornerstone to decisions that relate to service delivery. Getting food and beverage right, is key to the success of the resort project. A kitchen is a large capital investment.
Architects are not chefs, equipment suppliers have self interest, and a chef may have a wish list that would be very different, if he was paying the bill.
It is important to define what your offering is and be well informed with practical knowledge of operations and trends.
Kitchen planning and food and beverage service is an area where very expensive design mistakes can have a huge adverse impact on the project. All these experts are important. And need inclusion, but the very first step is to determine what it is that you are offering as a concept.
In addition to these early considerations you will also have to consider the skills set of the Food and Beverage team and complete their checklists, and job descriptions.
With extensive food and beverage experience for discerning guests, for events, fine and casual dining, Taylor Dade can suggest alternatives that will not only create a point of difference but will deliver great guest feedback provide income opportunities, and save on infrastructure costs.
Throw out the classic hotel strategy, and consider the options.
Who said that it had to be done “that” way?
The service for in room is a solution to many other potential challenges that can arise when delivering a room based product. These issues should be considered when defining the accommodation services, and in the planning stages.
How can service delivery be changed to improve the overall guest experience.
What support is needed to then make this deliverable?
A classic hotel solution may be the final decision, but it should be the end result of reviewing the options, not an automatic planning approach.
Again there are many things to consider that will define your guest experience and these need to be considered early as these decisions can affect your planning and investment in equipment.
In addition to these early considerations you will also have to complete their checklists, and job descriptions for day to day operations.
Establishing routine procedures for upkeep of plant property and equipment is important.
Ensuring that the allocations budgeted are spent wisely even more so.
Some “ savvy managers” make themselves look good to owners, by delivering a robust bottom line from “savings” made on maintenance spend, at the cost of the long term wellness of the resort. This is a very short term strategy, and consequences can be very serious.
Taylor Dade will help identify routine maintenance costs and programs. These programs must cover all equipment in all departments, and ensure that world standards and government compliance is delivered.
Defining the skills required for your maintenance team based on your project needs will lead to a job specification and the checklists required to manage day to day operations
Ongoing works should ensure that the completed gardens are maintained.
Ensuring that the team have the right tools and the right guidance on trimming and pruning, and that the gardens continue to flourish.
Defining the skills required for your maintenance team based on your project needs will then lead to a job specification and the checklists required to manage day to day operations
Utilities and solutions will be dependant on individual sites and preferences.
Taylor Dade will make sure that these solutions are resolved to the right compliance standards, assist energy savings and help to minimise future operating costs whilst allowing for potential expansion in demand at some stage in the future.
Future choices for other software systems may be limited by initial decisions when these relationships are not defined early on and changing later can be costly.
Choosing the right operating systems
The flow on repercussions are profound. Taylor Dade will help work your way through the right options to suit your needs.
Front OfficeGuest reservations, pre arrival communications, guest check in and check out and optimising revenue on rooms are core tasks of the Front Office.
An empty room cannot be put on the shelf for re-sale later. Understanding demographics, booking trends and being able to forecaste occupancy and respond will make a huge difference to revenue.
Critical to the success of this department:
Taylor Dade can help you define policies and procedures to make sure that every opportunity to optimise rooms revenue is made in Front Office.
Training in on line sales communications and silent shopper reviews are offered to support the sales outcomes.
The boutique offerings should reflect a sense of place.
Taking time to source local items or that have some relevance to the resort from a cultural or environmental perspective.
Profit margins need to be mindful of competition in the local area. The product range should be defined with care as Stock can easily get out of hand. There is a holding cost, and if not well stored it can be “lost”! It is easy for this to become loss making! Not profit making. How do FOC sales impact on the COGS, and how should these sales be recorded. Tax implications need to be understood.
Considerations Include:
Taylor Dade will help you with creating a robust income by ensuring that you have your boutique appropriately stocked for your situation, and designed to facilitate sales and inventory management.
A complex department that requires sensitivity to local customs, staffing recruitment, training and leadership. In many cases Human Resources may be part of the role of the General Manager, as the property may not warrant a stand along person.
Defining your company Mission Statement and Core Values will help you to select the right team and ensure a united vision.
These action items are building foundations. They must be robust. They cannot be set aside or changed on a whim, or with ebb and flow of Management.
Sales budget and strategies for the year must be reflected in operation strategies. Sound work on competitors, the year ahead forecasts and more is required.
Taylor Dade can provide a document that will assist you with the setting up of the sales and marketing agenda, which must be rolled out with agreed funding, and in consultation with the PR representative.
Preparation of realistic budgets ensures credibility when investors are invited to fund the project. It is will ensure future cash flows are achievable. A budget is based on the best available data to hand at the time and requires a comprehensive review of the competitor set, an understanding of the “value proposition” and should have constant review against tracking performance.
In considering revenue it is important to know what is inclusive and what is an extra charge. What is the wash down rate after commissions and taxes? How should complimentary guests stays be managed for revenue reporting.
Budget review and end of month reporting/ The accounting team is the watch dog over operations. Who is watch dog over the accounting team?
How supplies are stored and managed post procurement, will affect the ability to deliver the guest experience. It can also have very heavy cost impacts on the business, but seldom gets the attention it deserves at the planning stages
Furthermore the cost control of consumable goods invariably leaves a lot to be desired.
Understanding what is standard “issue”, for anything, soap, beverages, chemicals and then managing this with a tight reign, becomes a management accountability.
Each of the chosen activities need to have their own set of SOP’s and procedures, training, budget and performance review process.
With a diverse hands on operating experience, Taylor Dade offers insightful considerations and solutions to each of these specialty areas.
and other regional activities...
Be prepared. Plan for the best. Prepare for the worst.
Be ready for an emergency, and understand the procedures that should be in place to manage any work place incident. Taylor Dade has managed properties for self insurers and the obligations are extreme. It is easy to dismiss the impact of an emergency arising until you have suffered the damage to your investment and your reputation. It is crucial to include emergency planning to make sure that risks are responsibly managed.
Liability issues arise when you do not have in place proper safety protocols. You must consider:
Taylor Dade can provide you with a detailed check list and operating standards that will respond to the specifics of your resort, location, and special needs for safety compliance.
A sudden or a planned absence can be challenging whatever the reason. Taylor Dade are available to support your business with short term management support subject to compliance with the relevant government laws for the particular location.
Added Value
Ask about our “relief management package”
Option includes a detailed review of all the current operating standards and systems with suggested future actions concurrent to interim management support.
There are industry standards for performance review.
However it can be easy to make a big mistake if these standards are simply applied in a vacuum of knowledge of the specific operations. It is easy to be mis-led by mis information or half truths, especially when dealing with other cultures.
This is when it is vital to be objective. To ask questions, before assuming that something is wrong
Staff motivation and staff training support should be the outcome of a Performance Review so that things can be kept on track, and existing procedures reviewed and possibly changed. Taylor Dade will conduct a robust audit the operations wellness.
A comprehensive list of actions and recommendations will be submitted for consideration. Agreed changes must then be detailed in the required standards and operating procedures and job descriptions to ensure consistency is achieved across the operations, and become part of the next audit review.
Need help in compliance, safety, cultural or other questions on your planning or concept?
Tell us what your concern is and we will see if we can help or direct you to the help you need.
