Introduction
Having worked in the hotel business for over four decades, I know most people think the numbers are the “hard” part of hospitality. There’s a common belief that the financials are best left to professionals who can sort out the complex interplay between the different departments of a hotel. It’s just too challenging and complicated for anyone who didn’t go to accounting school.
This idea is just a myth—one you can bust wide open with this book.
As hotel employees, we all grow up in the world of guest service and colleague engagement. Then one day we find ourselves in a different world. A new place where we are expected to manage our department and the numbers too.
If that’s you—welcome to the big leagues. This book is for you.
And if you aspire to the big leagues, well—welcome aboard. This book can help you get there faster and far more prepared and ready for action.
I’ve worked with hundreds of hotel leaders, so I know that having confidence and knowledge around the financials is the key to a successful hotel career and—to a very large extent—your own personal prosperity. Every successful hotel executive knows that the numbers are the currency for advancement. And their secret is this: it’s not accounting but “hotel business thinking” that you need to cultivate and possess. It’s seeing that the component parts of a hotel can be integrated into a seamless whole—and understanding the financials is the key to doing this.
I spent the first ten years of my hotel career in operations. I know what managers and leaders deal with every day. I also know how your typical hotel financial person makes the numbers seem mysterious and confusing. The Prosperous Hotelier was written to show in a straightforward way what the numbers mean and how you can bring financial skills and abilities into your world.
This book is about the business of hotels, and it’s written for two types of colleagues:
- Non-financial people who want to cross that bridge and become leaders who possess hospitality business mojo. In these pages I explain the language of the hotel business in clear, relatable examples, using stories from the front lines and the back of the house. I’ve lived it all.
- Financial leaders and managers who want to do what I do: bring everyone into the loop around the finances with all aspects of hotel operations, because once everyone’s on board, everything runs more smoothly, and everyone’s happier. We’re all part of something bigger—together.
Along the way I’ll share a lot of what I’ve learned as a financial leader in hospitality, and how I was able to unlock what didn’t work for me and my leadership and make it work. How I was able to take my communication and leadership abilities to a whole new level. In sharing these details with you, I hope you’ll see yourself in them and cultivate the ability to effectively engage with your colleagues and the numbers.
I have personally helped many individuals just like you overcome their fear and uncertainty around hotel financials. It’s my passion.
Don’t wait to get started! No one is coming to save you and do the heavy lifting. You have the ability to change your world and create a prosperous life with the hospitality financial leadership skills I’m sharing in this book. Put them to good use and, before you know it, you’ll be swinging in the big leagues.
A few notes to help you while reading the book.
- Most of the book is written from the perspective of a financial leader, Controller or Director of Finance, but not always. Sometimes it comes from an operational leader or General Manager’s viewpoint. Sometimes it’s slanted to the corporate or regional office view of things. This will help you see why certain concepts and processes are so important.
- Broadly speaking there are three different business models in the hotel world. The “owner operator,” the “franchise” and the “branded/managed.” This book is largely slanted to the view of the branded/managed hotel.
- The hotel business is not a science but rather an expression of ideas and best practices. The book lays out what I think based on my experience having worked inside a global 4-star brand for over thirty years. The hotels I worked in were full-service, with large staffs and leadership teams. Much of what is in this book is based on this experience.
- I often repeat the main themes and strategies, and I do so on purpose for three reasons. One, it’s important stuff and I want you to get it on a DNA level. Secondly, I believe it’s how we learn best—by seeing a similar idea more than once. Third, the themes I repeat are pervasive and show up in different places and events throughout the financial and operational landscape of the hotel.
- There are QR codes throughout the book that will take you to additional resources, including videos, blogs, and spreadsheets to enhance your learning and experience.
This book does not claim to be a comprehensive presentation of the inner workings of hotels and their financials. I doubt any book could do this, especially because the hospitality industry is changing all the time and there’s never a shortage of different opinions! But it’s based on my more than forty years in hotels, holding various positions, including entry-level ones like bartender, waiter, front desk clerk, room and food and beverage operations, and so on. I moved on to a position in food and beverage control, and quite by accident ended up in an accounting role. My operational experience provided me with a unique outlook as my responsibilities in accounting grew, later, as a Controller and Hotel Manager, Corporate Director of Financial Systems and Analysis. My earlier positions influenced how I did those later jobs, and gave me unique, more holistic perspective on hotel financial operations. I have been a coach and consultant for the industry for the past ten years.
So I hope that what I share here at the very least helps deepen your understanding of hotel operations and supports you in your career growth and satisfaction. Onward!
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The Prosperous Hotelier: A Guide to Hotel Financial Literacy for the Hospitality Professional
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