Briefing: Global business in the face of uncertainty

According to a report from Markit and CIPS, the UK services economy rebounded in August with The Business Activity Index up to 52.9 in August, from 47.4 in July. But we live in a global world and work in an international industry so global forecasts and upsets are always in mind. Markit and CIPS also state that Eurozone economic growth is at a 20-month low in September. FocusEconomics panelists see GDP in China rising 6.6% this year with a slow down to 6.3% next year. This is still positive but reflects a change from recent years.

This week our hospitality experts discuss market uncertainty and global business:

The month-on-month gain in the UK business activity index, at 5.5 points, was the largest observed over the 20-year survey history, following a record drop of 4.9 points in July. This goes to show how changeable today’s economy is.

Markit’s Eurozone PMI® Composite Output Index suggests that the economy is losing, rather than gaining, momentum  as the average index reading over the third quarter (52.9) is below that of quarter two (53.1).

According to FocusEconomics there is suggestion that things are looking in Russia up as GDP fell just 0.6% annually in Q2, the smallest decrease since Q1 2015.

As our experts discuss above long term confidence is difficult with so many factors possibly affecting business. But all business that embrace the international perspective are more expectant of these changes and better equipped to perform in all weathers.

If you’ve been sent to this page and you’re not yet on the circulation list to receive these regular briefings and you would like to sign up, you can do see here. It’s free.

Video clips produced by ybc.tv for the Hospitality Channel, including interview from industry conferences such as the IHIF conference as well as specific Hospitality Channel shoots.

Briefing: Serviced Accommodation gets five-star recognition

The AA is now taking applications for its new Serviced Accommodation accreditation scheme. Unlike the hotel scheme, which rates properties from one to five stars, the new scheme only accredits properties which achieve a quality rating of three to five stars. This expansion of the AA’s services is a response to the growth of the industry and reflects the increased consumer awareness of the sector.

In these videos experts discuss customer expectations of serviced apartments, and the similarities and differences to hotels.

There is an existing accreditation scheme within the industry run by the The Association of Serviced Apartment Providers (ASAP). However, this addition could further expand interest in serviced products.

The AA Serviced Accommodation Scheme recognises 9 designators within the sector including Extended stay, Corporate Housing, Serviced Apartments, Budget, Studios and Aparthotel.

Product definition has been a continuing challenge for the industry. In its quality standards, the AA scheme clearly differentiates between Corporate Housing and Aparthotels, while ‘Serviced Apartment’ acts as a catch all designator. A separating criterion, for example, is that Corporate Housing would have a minimum stay and Aparthotels would not. Also aparthotels would have a fixed inventory and corporate housing would have flexible inventory.

The scheme scores the properties across 11 elements, which must all achieve a minimum standard to achieve a star rating. These elements include overall ‘hospitality’ (interaction and customer care), overall ‘service’ (staff performance and information provided), cleanliness, bedroom, bathroom etc.

The AA has been around for over 100 years and is one of the UK’s most recognised and trusted brands. The AA currently accredits Hotels, Restaurants, Guest Accommodation, Self-Catering accommodation, and Caravan and Campsites. The latest version of the AA Hotel Guide has details of over 3,500 establishments.

If you’ve been sent to this page and you’re not yet on the circulation list to receive these regular briefings and you would like to sign up, you can do see here. It’s free.

Video clips produced by ybc.tv for the Hospitality Channel, including interview from industry conferences such as the IHIF conference as well as specific Hospitality Channel shoots.

Briefing: The measured approach to decision making

According to a report by CIMA; ‘72% of organisations admit to at least one strategic initiative failing in the last three years as a result of flaws in their decision making process.’

It is said that we make 35,000 decisions a day. In a fast evolving business day, we need to have enough confidence in our information and processes to make decisions quickly. In the longer term, important strategic changes need to be considered and implemented carefully, as our experts discuss in these videos:

Our industry is changing fast, in hospitality, time sensitive data can now be used to update strategies on the fly. But investing in the technology to do this is in and of itself a big decision to make and even a good idea can be badly actioned.

The report ‘Joining the dots: decision making for a new era’ from CIMA (Chartered Institute of Management Accountants) surveyed board-level executives at large organisations. In the survey, 80% of respondents said flawed information has been used to make strategic decisions.

Technology and data, when set up carefully, can be the competitive advantage that makes a significant difference to your business. With so much data coming through it is important it is systemized and ordered well but 36% of executives say their organisation is not coping with information overload. There is debate over how useful ‘big data’ is, with 37% saying it has helped and 32% saying it has made things worse.

Another factor in good decision making, identified by the report, is communication. 43% said their level of trust in fellow executives needed improvement and 57% said more active collaboration was required.

If you’ve been sent to this page and you’re not yet on the circulation list to receive these regular briefings and you would like to sign up, you can do see here. It’s free.

Video clips produced by ybc.tv for the Hospitality Channel, including interview from industry conferences such as the IHIF conference as well as specific Hospitality Channel shoots.

Briefing: Corporate travel demand is growing

According to Reuters, spending on business travel in Western Europe is expected to rise by over 6% in 2016. This is good news for serviced apartments and extended stay products, which see a lot of demand from this sector.

A report from the Association of Serviced Apartment Providers states that UK businesses registered an 86% increase in the use of serviced apartments in recent years. They also say that Booking.com is experiencing strong growth demand for serviced apartments.

These videos discuss corporate travel and serviced apartment demand:

A report by Accura Media Group found that four out of ten business travellers surveyed said they will travel more in 2016 than last year, while more than half say they will travel more than they did two years ago.

According to Reuters, Germany is the largest business travel market in western Europe at an estimated $57.9 billion, and spending is set to rise 9.5 percent in 2016.

In contrast a new report from the Global Business Travel Association found that business travel volume growth in US is slowing in 2016 due to global uncertainties, but the report still says there are reasons to be optimistic for 2017.

Association of Serviced Apartment Providers found that occupancy figure for serviced apartment across the whole of the UK were high. London was at 84% and the rest of the UK just slightly lower at 83.1%.

If you’ve been sent to this page and you’re not yet on the circulation list to receive these regular briefings and you would like to sign up, you can do see here. It’s free.

Video clips produced by ybc.tv for the Hospitality Channel, including interview from industry conferences such as the IHIF conference as well as specific Hospitality Channel shoots.

Chat Button