The Minimum Requirements For A Hotel Property Management System

By Rosella Campbell


In recent years tourism has grown to be one of the biggest industries on earth. More people travel to foreign climes than ever before. Of course, this massive increase has led to the development of numerous hospitality establishments and the competition for the business of travelers is fierce. It is vital to have a state of the art hotel property management system in order to make profits and to compete with numerous competitors.

One of the main components of any managing system is its booking facilities. Bookings are not as straight forward as one may think. If mistakes such as double bookings are made, the reputation of the establishment will take a serious knock. It is also very important to keep record of special guest requirements such as the need for special diets or access to facilities for the disabled.

Well managed hospitality establishments maintain various categories of guest. In most cases the rates for the different categories are different. Large tour operators that generate bulk business, for example, receive better rates that average tourists. In many cases establishments have agreements with tour operators. It is vital that these records are kept meticulously and this can only be achieved with a very effective managing program.

Guests quickly become irritated if they are delayed when booking in or departing or if the establishment is unable to quickly answer queries. The managing program must therefore be able to allow multiple updates from various sources. For example, it must be possible for the bill to be updated real time by any department such as the bar or the laundry that supplies chargeable services to the guest.

Most of the large hospitality groups use custom designed managing programs. However, there are several excellent of the shelf packages available. The most important consideration when evaluating the various options is to make sure that all the components of the software is fully integrated. This will make sure that no duplication of effort is necessary. Care should also be taken to purchase a system that can be upgraded on a regular basis.

The competitive nature of the tourism industry requires hospitality establishments to plan very carefully. This can only be done if accurate information and statistics are available. The managing system should be able to provide this information and to empower the establishment to spot trends and opportunities. It should be able to provide reports in just about any format.

The level of support promised by the software supplier is of the utmost importance. Most establishments rely on their systems utterly and if it crash it can cause a disaster. It is vital to enter into a comprehensive support contract that also includes intensive training on a regular basis. The system should make provision for regular backups. It may be wise to test drive a few packages on a trial basis before making a decision.

In the highly competitive tourism industry it is establishments with access to reliable data that are able to spot the trends and to make informed decisions. Managing programs can help owners to save money when it ca be saved and to increase their profitability, thus ensuring the long term success of the enterprise.




About the Author:



No comments:

Post a Comment