RESEARCH FIRM KALIBRI LABS is working with industry associations, including AAHOA, Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals and the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International, to launch a Commercial Strategy Certification Program. The program will offer hotel operators with tools to navigate costs and enhance profitability amid digital disruption.
The program shifts the focus from revenue maximization to growing asset value through profit contribution, Kalibri Labs said in a statement. It encourages hotel professionals to consider the bottom line when making commercial spending decisions, such as advertising, sales deployment, digital campaigns, and loyalty initiatives, the statement added.
"In collaboration with Dave Roberts from Cornell's Hotel School, one of my coauthors on the book, 'Demystifying the Digital Market & Guide to Commercial Strategy', we acknowledge that a rigorous certification will establish a standard of excellence and impart the essential skills and knowledge needed to propel the emerging field of commercial strategy within the industry," said Cindy Estis-Green, cofounder and CEO of Kalibri Labs. "This certification serves as a critical toolkit for effectively managing the elevated costs associated with operating in today's marketplace."
Also, the program will feature an advisory board of industry leaders, academics, and practitioners, ensuring a comprehensive and interdisciplinary curriculum. “Their guidance will shape the program's development and cover topics like asset value calculation, trade off analysis, and evaluating actions within a hotel's business mix,” Kalibri Labs said.
“Hoteliers at various levels must grasp the vital importance of evaluating performance based on profit contribution,” said Bharat Patel, chairman of AAHOA. “At present, the burden of debt service has doubled, while labor costs have surged since the pandemic. Consequently, owners are scrutinizing every dollar. A primary avenue to improve asset value lies in growing a hotel’s profit contribution. The main controllable element for a hotel lies in managing customer acquisition expenses by being selective about the business mix pursued.”
According to the statement, the program targets a range of roles, including on-property and above-property general managers, financial and accounting managers, hotel owners, asset managers, and commercial teams encompassing revenue, sales, marketing, and digital leaders.
“Acquiring deeper expertise in this new approach is crucial for sustained success, as digital disruption significantly impacts profitability,” the statement added.
“Commercial strategy certification is a vehicle to sustaining a healthy hotel ecosystem in the decades to come,” said Bob Gilbert, president and CEO of HSMAI. “Leadership in revenue management, sales, marketing and digital have already started to come together in integrated planning and decision making, and the commercial strategy framework will facilitate this process.”
Upon successful certification, each team can adapt their own commercial strategy playbook according to their specific portfolio and organizational structure. The Commercial Strategy Certification Program is projected to launch by the close of 2023.
“This is a sea change in the hotel industry, and we want to be part of it,” said Frank Wolfe, CEO of HFTP. “We recognize the significant transformation in how hotels go to market and are committed to contributing to this evolution.”
