And then…it’s time to let the GMs loose as they attend a selection of workshops in the morning and afternoon, designed to enable the attendees to ask each other about their businesses, share best practice, admit errors and regale one another with behind the scenes stories from their properties.
A taster of what to expect is provided on pages 16-18, but topics will include Delivering World Class Service, Where Should the Revenue Manager Sit, and last year’s most popular topic — referred to by some as therapy — Working with Owners.
But what do the GMs want to take away from The Great GM Debate this year? Wajeed Bagwan, in charge of Lotus Hotel Apartments & Spa, is hoping to get up to date on the supply pipeline.
“The biggest challenge — considering the economic backdrop of Dubai — is for those hotel owners whose capital structure does not match the financial and operational needs of the business. For them, it is the time to review and possibly renegotiate covenants as well as develop an appropriate financial platform that meets cash requirements,” says Bagwan.
| Advertisement |
“I think a greater focus on offering additional value-added services within the room rate (instead of dropping rates) is one way to weather the storm and therefore, attending the Boosting Ancillary Service workshop would help me know more of whether others think alike and what are the new approaches towards it,” he says.
For Cora Stuart, GM at Media One Hotel in Dubai, gaining further understanding of the potential of hotel F&B is important, an issue the workshop on Satisfying Savvy Diners aims to tackle.
“I see the F&B business as a more complex proposition for hotels,” says Stuart. “The choices in Dubai are tremendous and I want to gain some insights on trends, what does well, what doesn’t. The life cycle of food and beverage concepts seems to have shortened and hopefully this workshop can help in giving us ideas on ensuring sustainability.”
She agreed that increasing rates was the main challenge facing GMs — but thinks Dubai has begun the road to recovery.
“As anticipated, the increased supply of rooms into the market not only with hotels but with other accommodation availability has made it challenging to grow rates. Generally however, the room business is still promising on an occupancy level and is anticipated to improve after summer,” says Stuart.
“If we look at the current summer months, it is the challenge of getting through alive from both rooms and F&B business.”
So, did your hotel make it through the summer alive? Is rooms business on the up? The Great GM Debate is the place to find out. Stay tuned for live coverage of the event on HotelierMiddleEast.com…
Search our database of more than 2,700 industry companies
