Torres Consulting Hospitality Podcast

By Pablo Torres

Interviewing hospitality leaders from around the globe in English and Spanish

Entrevistas a líderes de la hotelería mundial en inglés y español... more

· Education

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FAQs about Torres Consulting Hospitality Podcast:

How many episodes does Torres Consulting Hospitality Podcast have?

The podcast currently has 77 episodes available.

Torres Consulting Hospitality Podcast episodes:

July 03, 2021 Ep 76. INTERVIEW: Sheila Krishnan | Revenue Management & Commercial Consultant | SK Consultancy | London (UK)
Ep 76. INTERVIEW: Sheila Krishnan | Revenue Management & Commercial Consultant | SK Consultancy | London (UK)

Sheila has almost 2 decades of professional experience in the industry. I was looking forward to having the chance to interview her, to get her insights on how the revenue manager role develops into a more commercial one.

We talked about:

CAREER PROGRESSION:
Studied accounts & finance, but then got a summer job at a hotel...
From F/O to Reservations, then Events Manager
Loved Revenue: Knew about numbers, but liked to be creative

MENTORS:
Alexandra Fevre
Krupesh Patel
Lisbeth Gernow
Guy Hilton

HER CONSULTANCY FIRM:
They look at all aspects of revenue, take clients up to speed
Draft commercial strategies, and collaborate with sales associates
Act as task force, with tailor made solutions
Develops project management, pre opening and opening
Performs independent business reviews

REVENUE & COMMERCIAL:
Revenue is a component of Commercial Management
Commercial is the umbrella, is about being commercially astute
Need a common goal, apart of the departmental objectives

TECH:
Pandemic has made many hotels discover the tech stack
i.e.: chatbots have been there for years, but they’ve been “discovered” now because of the pandemic
It’s not only about investing in tech, but training the teams to use it

TRAINING:
Large companies do invest, but smaller ones are very cost driven, and it’s more challenging

FOCUS POST-PANDEMIC:
Back to basics
Have a plan: focus on the right segments; measurable targets
Invest in tech: CRM

TOTAL REVENUE:
Should not stop on room revenue
Total RM helps hotels to have one common goal. GOPPAR.
GMs and owners need to adapt to that common goal
F&B have adapted during the pandemic

ADVICE FOR THE YOUNG:
Things will change; there are still plenty of opportunities and more that will come
If you like hospitality, go for it, it also has perks

SKILLSET TO GO INTO REVENUE:
Know Excel, Macros, Pivot….that can be learnt.
It’s about interpreting trends and learn from data.

I hope you find it as insightful as I did.

You have all my previous episodes on the web:

https://torresconsulting.co.uk/en/home/

And on Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZo58jWfG83vwZNYhLZavnQ
#revenuemanagement #talent #hospitality #revenue #hotels

Don't forget to like + subscribe!
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34min
July 03, 2021 Ep 77. INTERVIEW: Bassem Salam | Founder & Managing Director| TRevMax LLC | Dubai (UAE)
Ep 77. INTERVIEW: Bassem Salam | Founder & Managing Director| TRevMax LLC | Dubai (UAE)

Bassem has held truly senior revenue roles before starting his own consulting firm. He has a reputed opinion, and it was a pleasure conversing with him.

Over the interview, Bassem talked about:

HIS CAREER:
From HVS and KPMG in Miami, to VP of Revenue Management for Middle East & Egypt and overlooking Africa and his current role.

MENTORS:
Christopher Froome – Ex VP of Development planning & Feasibility – Caribbean and Latin America at Marriott International, and currently he is the Principal at Appia Hospitality Advisors LLC
Christophe Landais – Currently non-executive director at Action Hotels, and he used to Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer for Accor Middle East

TRevMax:
Offering revenue solutions to many different industries, as well as commercial strategy, digital transformation, outsourcing, mentorship, and turnaround consulting.

TECH:
Some companies prefer to develop their own tech, but not being experts, the results tend not to be very good. Best is to invest your time in selecting the right technology, and then have the experts implement it.
The implementation process and ROI will be much greater, and far more effective

TALENT:
In the hospitality industry, our people are our asset, yet investment in training and development is still not good enough.
Need to do more “on the job” training, and empower them.

MAIN FOCUS POST PANDEMIC:
Be Calm & Patient – Although there is light at the end of the tunnel, things will take time to revert back to the pre-pandemic revenue levels.

Remain Focused on your long-term objectives, but agile to adapt in terms of the segmentation shift, source of business, and new disruptors.

Invest in your team, technology, and be open minded in outsourcing some of the services to reduce your overhead cost. Some areas of outsourcing include but not limited to housekeeping, maintenance, e-commerce, finance, and revenue management.

TOTAL REVENUE:
Better to focus on NetTRevPAR: from mini-bar consumption, menu engineering, room service menu, meeting space areas that could be converted into co-working spaces for SME and startups, etc. As important as to identify such opportunities, we need to know the true cost of each of these potential revenue generating areas and know exactly the flow through on the bottom line. At the end of the day, owners today are far savvier than before, and they would be focused on the profitability of their respective properties.

I hope you find it as insightful as I did.

You have all my previous episodes on the web:

https://torresconsulting.co.uk/en/home/

Don't forget to like + subscribe!
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42min
July 03, 2021 Ep 79 Entrevista: Alessio di Gaetano | Director of Revenue Management Performance Nh Hotels | Madrid (España)
Ep 79 Entrevista: Alessio di Gaetano | Director of Revenue Management Performance Nh Hotels | Madrid (España)

Alessio es una reputada voz dentro del revenue que, además, compagina su rol en Nh con la emprendeduría en el área de Revenue Management en F&B con su herramienta DynamEat.

En esta animada conversación, Alessio habla sobre:

Su CARRERA
Desde rep. de TTOO en Túnez, a su llegada a los hoteles y cuando descubrió el Revenue Management en un curso de la URJC

Su ROL ACTUAL:
Coordina las diferentes Business Units
Orientado a proyectos: Identificar herramientas, maximizar oportunidades, variar segmentaciones...

REVENUE vs (?) COMERCIAL
Hay perfiles muy técnicos, pero hace falta entender el alcance global
Un buen Revenue Manager debe saber números, tomar decisiones, analizar, conocimientos digitales ... .pero también debe tener una visión amplia, ver qué es lo mejor para la compañía
Cada vez más Revenue Managers pasan a Commercial Director o GM

FOCUS POST PANDEMIA:
En Q4 2021 quien quiera viajar va a viajar, y se va a solapar con el business que remontará entonces (grupos pequeños). El cliente leisure es más elástico al precio
Corporate sigue viajando, aunque tal vez utilizando otros canales, debido en parte al nuevo modelo híbrido de trabajo.

DYNAMEAT:
Una solución para la implementación de precios dinámicos en la restauración
Menu engineering dinámico, influenciando el tiempo de servicio para optimizar la utilización de las mesas

TECH:
Es cuestión de educar al cliente, es cuestión de tiempo, algo que va a llegar
El reto es la falta de datos y análisis que tienen los restaurantes
¿En qué basan sus decisiones de marketing si no conocen los datos? Dynameat ofrece un profundo análisis

TOTAL REVENUE:
Se habla mucho, pero no es fácil aplicarlo
Falta información, la tecnología ya la tenemos para explotar diferentes fuentes de ingresos
Hay que cambiar de mentalidad, no sólo usar la herramienta

CONSEJO a los JÓVENES:

Persigue tus sueños
Necesitas pasión y dedicación

Específicamente para Revenue: Estrategia, visión, capacidad de escuchar y de negociar
Has de ser bueno técnicamente, pero debes saber transmitirlo
Actitud y ganas

Recuerda que tienes todos los episodios anteriores en la web:

www.torresconsulting.co.uk
Y en Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZo58jWfG83vwZNYhLZavnQ
#revenuemanagement #talent #hospitality #revenue #hotels

No olvides darle a LIKE y suscribirte.
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35min
July 03, 2021 Ep. 82 Interview: Viktoria Skraba, Director of Customer Success, ATOMIZE. Barcelona (Spain)
Ep. 82 Interview: Viktoria Skraba, Director of Customer Success, ATOMIZE. Barcelona (Spain)

Viktoria describes her career as varied, as varied has been so far: From Latvia, to Sweden, North Africa, Austria, Spain... and working in all sorts of Hotels: independent, family room, global companies, large and small.

All that experience has shaped her vision of the industry, and she has great insights to share on:

Her role:
Her duty is to make sure they have happy and successful customers. That means to continue to enhance the customer experience, staying in direct contact with end users during the entire life cycle, making sure the company introduces global enhancements, with a personal touch.

ATOMIZE:
It's a Lean Revenue Management system, complex on the back end, but easy of use for customers. Its' pillars are:

Real time pricing and automation
Multi property functionality
All mobile-first

TALENT ADAPTING TO THE CURRENT SCENARIO:
Individuals need to be innovative, flexible and resilient, giving that extra bit

INVESTING IN TALENT:
Companies need to make sure they train their teams properly, as that will only have positive effects: remove silos and improve motivation.

ADVICE FOR THE YOUNG:
Young people must have an active stand
Do something that takes you close to your ambition
Don´t be shy to ask for help, taking responsibility
Never stop learning, make innovation part of the daily routine
Make sure you network

I hope you find it as insightful as I did.

You have all my previous episodes on the web:

https://torresconsulting.co.uk/en/home/
And on Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZo58jWfG83vwZNYhLZavnQ
#revenuemanagement #talent #hospitality #revenue #hotels

Don't forget to like + subscribe!
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17min
July 03, 2021 Ep 83: Juan Apresa, Corporate Talent Management & Organization Senior Director, Palladium Hotel Group, Ibiza (España)
Ep 83: Juan Apresa, Corporate Talent Management & Organization Senior Director, Palladium Hotel Group, Ibiza (España)

Juan estudió Psicología por vocación, y enseguida se focalizó en la gestión y mejora del talento.
Durante 15 años ha desarrollado su carrera ayudando a desarrollar organizaciones, roles y perfiles, y en su última etapa se ha metido de lleno en la Hotelería.

Su experiencia le da una visión global y nada endogámica de la gestión del talento. En nuestra conversación hemos repasado:

SITUACIÓN ACTUAL DE LOS RRHH EN LA INDUSTRIA:
La profesionalización del sector ha llegado más tarde que a otras industrias, y eso se sigue notando. La diferenciación, la segmentación, la exclusividad, han llegado hace relativamente poco, y esa especialización de perfiles lleva su tiempo.

CÓMO REDUCIR LA ROTACIÓN:
Pese a que parte de la rotación se debe a la transicionalidad de muchos roles, es cierto que hay que hacer el sector mas atractivo.

PERSONA VS MÁQUINA:
La tecnología está para evitarme acciones repetitivas, y yo, como empleado, debo poder aportar valor al cliente. Y ese tiempo que me ahorra la tecnología, debo emplearlo 100% en mejorar la estancia del cliente.

FALTA ACTUAL DE TALENTO:
Ha habido una fuga de talento temporal a otras industrias (retail, logística), pero el talento vocacional ya está volviendo

Y como siempre, consejos para quienes empiezan ahora en el sector:
Lo más importante son las llamadas soft skills: transversalidad, adaptabilidad, pensamiento crítico, habilidades relacionales y comunicativas, etc...
En base a ellas y a su buen desarrollo se pueden trazar planes a futuro.

Recuerda que tienes todos los episodios anteriores en la web:
Y en Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZo58jWfG83vwZNYhLZavnQ
#revenuemanagement #talent #hospitality #revenue #hotels

www.torresconsulting.co.uk
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19min
July 03, 2021 Ep 74 INTERVIEW: Abid Butt, Global Hotel Leader & CEO
Ep 74 INTERVIEW: Abid Butt, Global Hotel Leader & CEO

Abid has had an extensive career. From his youth when he wanted to be a doctor, to being CEO of companies such as Banyan Tree or the Dream Hotel Group

On our conversation, Abid touched great points:

TALENT:
The industry has regressed, and there is now extremely high turn over. It needs to adapt for the new generations
Baby boomers were more about career, but people now want to feel accomplished

TECHNOLOGY:
The industry is still a bit behind. Tech changes too fast, can not wait for others to test and see.
We might not have the choice moving forward: with the pandemic the adoption rate has raised dramatically

WORK ENVIRONMENT POST PANDEMIC:
If we behave long enough in a certain way (such as working remotely) then we adapt. Change is here to stay.
Business travel might be different, with more hybrid roles. Leisure might like more open spaces.

ADVICE FOR THE YOUNG:
Hospitality can be a really enriching career
Schools need to make sure they teach about what the industry desires
Fun industry, even as an introvert (IT, financing), and also of course for people´s persons
Anyone is welcome

I hope you find it as insightful as I did.

You have all my previous episodes on the web:

https://torresconsulting.co.uk/en/home/

And on Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZo58jWfG83vwZNYhLZavnQ
#revenuemanagement #talent #hospitality #revenue #hotels

Don't forget to like + subscribe!
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30min
July 03, 2021 Ep 75 INTERVIEW: Niki van del Broeck, Manager of Bus. Dev. | Get into More | Antwerp (Belgium)
Ep 75 INTERVIEW: Niki van del Broeck, Manager of Bus. Dev. | Get into More | Antwerp (Belgium)

It’s always a pleasure to speak with Niki. She’s always positive and bringing in new ideas.

On our conversation, Niki talked about:

GET INTO MORE:
The company puts events on the spot as a core for revenue management, based in 3 pillars:
-BI tool: Data driven decisions
-Inventory management intelligence: AI helps you reply to enquiries
-Market Intelligence

HER ROLE:
Focusing on all things commercial
Try to talk/network with as many people as possible about M&E: it´s a relatively new discipline, need to spread the word.

TECH & TALENT:
Hospitality is a risk averse industry, although over the past year things have changed a lot

There can be a lot of personal development, but need to be passionate.

WHAT TO FOCUS ON POST PANDEMIC:
1)Stand out from the crowd, set out for success, client centric
“what are you trying to achieve?” not that much about set up, but about the purpose of the meeting

2) Be dynamic about pricing and inventory management. Forget about first come first serve. Play with the lead time. Be strategic

3) Remove friction. Make it easy. Use tech.

TOTAL REVENUE:
Sell the hotel in the most profitable way. Why optimizing only the space where there is a bed?

ADVICE FOR THE YOUNG:
Tough year, but go study, it's a good time
Need to love it in order to do it. Be a people person. Enjoy creating experiences, making something memorable for others.
Get a test of it asap. Knock on doors, be enthusiastic.

I hope you find it as insightful as I did.

You have all my previous episodes on the web:

https://torresconsulting.co.uk/en/home/
And on Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZo58jWfG83vwZNYhLZavnQ
#revenuemanagement #talent #hospitality #revenue #hotels

Don't forget to like + subscribe!
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25min
July 03, 2021 Ep 73. ENTREVISTA: Laura Bejarano, Revenue Management Director Spain Hotels, Meliá Hotels. Madrid (España)
Ep 73. ENTREVISTA: Laura Bejarano, Revenue Management Director Spain Hotels, Meliá Hotels. Madrid (España).

Laura lleva casi 20 años gestionando el revenue en Meliá Hotels Int.

Para su rol, se necesita:

-Una visión global y transversal
-Dimensionamiento de recursos
-Conocer el posicionamiento vs comp set
-Gestionar presupuestos, para saber qué ingresos esperar

Otros puntos a destacar de la conversación:

Revenue y Comercial están cada día más unido, hay que ir muy de la mano.
Antes los perfiles de revenue eran muy comerciales, mientras que ahora deben tener mayores dotes de comunicación, persuasión y comerciales.

TECNOLOGÍA:
Las grandes empresas invierten, pero quedan pasos por dar.
Las grandes empresas luchan por liderar mientras las empresas pequeñas están más atrasadas, con perfiles menos tecnológicos , ya que no se ha visto como inversión sino como gasto en muchos casos.

TALENTO:
Hay una formación continua que siempre está presente.
Las personas ahora están más formadas de antemano, de inicio.
Los jóvenes han viajado más, por lo que las formaciones deben adaptarse a esos nuevos perfiles
Seguimos teniendo pendiente la mejora del niel de idiomas

CONSEJOS a los JÓVENES:
Es un sector muy bonito si te gusta el trato con el cliente, pero hay que tener vocación y dedicación.
Se aprende mucho porque hay muchos departamentos, y eso fomenta una visión más amplia

PERFIL PARA TRABAJAR EN REVENUE:
La parte técnica y de formación se da por hecho
Es importante la parte de comunicación, que sepan cómo influir (es muy importante cómo influyes para vender tus ideas)
Que de tu análisis salva una buena planificación y liderazgo
Trabajo en equipo y empatía

Recuerda que tienes todos los episodios anteriores en la web:

www.torresconsulting.co.uk

Y en Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZo58jWfG83vwZNYhLZavnQ
#revenuemanagement #talent #hospitality #revenue #hotels

No olvides darle a LIKE y suscribirte.
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22min
July 03, 2021 Ep. 80 INTERVIEW: Karim El Horr, Regional Director of Ops. Support and Hotels Performance Millennium Hotels & Resorts
Ep. 80 INTERVIEW: Karim El Horr, Regional Director of Ops. Support and Hotels Performance Millennium Hotels & Resorts

Karim has been working 15 years in the Hospitality Industry. Being Lebanese, being hospitable is within him, and since childhood he dreamt of joining the industry.

From an internship at the flagship InterContinental Hotel in Beirut to his current role in Dubai for Millennium, Karim has reviewed his career, passions and views on how to deal with teams, customers and owners alike.

Some highlights of the conversation:

Current role:
Covering 3 areas: Overseeing the daily operations of 50 hotels + 9 on pipeline for 2021; dealing with owners; and making sure guests enjoy.

Taking care of staff: Without colleagues (staff) , a hotel has nothing. If we want the team to WOW the guests, we need to WOW them too. It's not about budget, it's about the experience. The top priority needs to be to invest in talent, from the recruitment to the exit interview and everything in between.

Guests: Emotions come from expectations. Knowing how to take care of guests is key to share those emotions. A way to know if a Hotel focuses on guests is how they treat social media reviews. Do they copy/paste or do they really show an effort on replying the reviews?

Young talent: For the ones willing to enter the industry, is important to have clear expectations and goals. Know how to read guests and understand them.

I hope you find it as insightful as I did.

You have all my previous episodes on the web:

https://torresconsulting.co.uk/en/home/
And on Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZo58jWfG83vwZNYhLZavnQ
#revenuemanagement #talent #hospitality #revenue #hotels

Don't forget to like + subscribe!
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36min
July 03, 2021 EP 62 INTERVIEW Lars von der Wettern. Consultant, Hotelier & Start Up Entrepreneur. Germany
EP 62 INTERVIEW Lars von der Wettern. Consultant, Hotelier & Start Up Entrepreneur. Germany

Lars started working in Hotels and, as many, fell in love with the industry.
After many years working in Operations , decided to jump and start working as Consultant and Advisor.

We talked about:

-His reasons to love the industry: People interaction, and creating an impact, both at personal and financial level.

-How the current pandemic is affecting the industry, where many non-value added businesses will disappear

-The accelerated shift towards a more eco-friendly, sustainable tourism, full of opportunities on the new segments

-The future is digital, and hoteliers should use the time now to invest on it

Tips for hoteliers to drive revenue:

-Be creative: Focus on new segments, such as digital nomads

-Organize a startp up camp. Mix local artists.

-Set up F&B workshops, teach cooking, start delivering it

-Be THAT dark kitchen that others are searching

And as always, advice for the younger generations:

-There will always be space for top talent in the industry. Keep training, keep learning

-Nowadays, no one can plan a career 20 years ahead. Things have changed

And a final great message: be away from being a commodity, both as a hotel and as a professional.

BE RELEVANT
MAKE AN IMPACT
HELP CREATE A BETTER WORLD

I hope you find it as insightful as I did.

You have all my previous episodes on the web:

https://torresconsulting.co.uk/en/home/

And on Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZo58jWfG83vwZNYhLZavnQ
#revenuemanagement #talent #hospitality #revenue #hotels

Don't forget to like + subscribe!
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...more
41min

FAQs about Torres Consulting Hospitality Podcast:

How many episodes does Torres Consulting Hospitality Podcast have?

The podcast currently has 77 episodes available.