...3(2): 297 – 316 (2009) ISSN 1823 - 836X Linking CRM Strategy, Customer Performance Measures and Performance in the Hotel Industry NOR AZIAH ABU KASIMa* AND BADRIYAH MINAIb b Graduate School of Management, Universiti Putra Malaysia Faculty of Economics and management, Universiti Putra Malaysia a Customer relationship management (CRM) has been increasingly adopted because of its benefits of greater customer satisfaction and loyalty, which in turn, leads to enhanced financial and competitive performance. This paper reports on a study that examines the relationship between CRM strategy and performance and determines whether the use of customer performance measures plays a mediating role in the relationship between CRM strategy and performance. This study contributes to the limited literature on CRM strategy since little is known about the use of CRM strategy and customer performance measures and their relation with performance in the hotel industry in Malaysia. Data were collected through a questionnaire survey of hotels in Malaysia. Hierarchical regression analyses on a sample of 95 hotels revealed that only the information technology dimension of CRM strategy has a significant and positive effect on performance. In addition, the hypothesis concerning the role of customer performance measures as a mediator was supported. Keywords: Customer relationship management strategy, customer performance measures, hotels, performance, mediator. JEL Classification Codes: M41,...
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...Customer relation management (CRM) Topic- Comparative analysis of CRM tools in Hospitality industry ACKNOWLEDGEMENT We would like to express our gratitude toward Mrs. Vandana Ahuja ma’am for her kind co-operation and encouragement which helped us in completion of this project. We would also like to express our special gratitude and thanks to industry persons of Taj and Oberoi group of hotels for giving us such attention and time. Our thanks and appreciations also go to our colleagues in developing the project and people who have willingly helped me out with their abilities. * Group members INDEX 1. CRM introduction 2. Architecture of CRM 3. Hospitality industry 4. Classification of industry 5. Top players in India 6. Challenges for hospitality industry 7. Customer management in hotel industry 8. Research framework 9. Technology and CRM 10. CRM software for the hotel industry 11. CRM in Oberoi hotels 12. CRM in TAJ hotels 13. CRM implementations 14. Conclusion 15. Recommendation 16. Bibliography CRM INTRODUCTON Customer satisfaction is a business philosophy which tends to the creation of value for customers, anticipating and managing their expectations, and demonstrating ability and responsibility to satisfy their needs. Qualities of service and customer satisfaction are critical factors for the success of any business. Enterprises exist because they have a customer to serve. The key to...
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...Hilton Hotel Corporation The Hilton Hotels Corporation, one of the leading international companies in the hospitality industry started with a humble beginning in 1919, when Conrad Hilton bought the first of what would later become an international chain of hotels and resorts, revered by competition and valued by customers, for the high quality of hospitality and leisure services provided as well as original hotel and travel concepts presented. With an international portfolio of 9 hotel brands that extends to up to 79 different countries worldwide, the Hilton hotel corporation has more than 3,400 hotels spanning the globe and approximately 22 million guests across all nine brands owned by Hilton. The goal Hilton aspires to achieve however is to be the first choice of guests, team members and owners alike, the paramount global hospitality company, which is reflected solidly within the company’s core values which are the drive of the corporation’s team members. H HOSPITALITY I INTEGRITY L LEADERSHIP T TEAMWORK O OWNERSHIP N NOW (Hilton worldwide, 2009) Through creating exceptional guest experiences, Hilton was able to ensure that each customer is made to feel valued. Challenges However, with an increasing number of competitors in an aggressive and quite competitive market, A diverse number of properties in 79 around the world, each with unique cultural norms and traditions and a changing hospitality market, due to the increasing bargaining power customers...
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...SUBJECT: Case Study: Hilton Hotels – Brand Differentiation Through Customer Relationship Management List of Key Issues or Problems in the Case * Hilton’s strategy to maintain its leadership position in the US as well as in the international lodging market * Hilton’s focus on profitability and Return on Investment * Personalized customer service and development of Customers Really Matter initiative (CRM) * Implementation of a new enterprise system OnQ and the associated costs * Maintaining competition with other hotel brands Discussion questions 1. What is Hilton’s core business? The case presented in the book describes the evolution of Hilton Hotels Corporation, nowadays known as Hilton Worldwide. It is a public company founded in 1919 by Conrad Hilton. Hilton is one of the leading hospitality companies comprised of over four thousand hotels in ninety-one countries. Hilton’s web site states the following: “Ten brands, more than 4,100 hotels, and more than 300,000 Team Members across corporate offices and owned, managed and franchised properties make us the world’s leading hospitality company.” Hilton’s core business is to provide outstanding customer care of their guests, ensure their one of a kind experience while staying at the hotel. The acquisition of Promus Hotel Corporation in the year of 2000 added additional 1700 hotels to Hilton Worldwide. The company also invests heavily in the new hotel development, franchising and affiliating with real...
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...Hilton Case Executive Summary As the most recognized brand name in the lodging industry, Hilton is a diversified cooperation for its strong presence in all segments of hotels, casinos and vacation ownership. In terms of organizational strategy, Hilton Hotels Corporation relies on its scale, gaining members through its loyalty program and continuously expanding its hotel network. Beginning with acquisition of Promus Hotel Corporation, It now owns, manages, or franchises a portfolio of brands which includes Waldorf-Astoria Collection, Conrad International, Hilton Hotels, etc. With the focus of Customer Really Matter strategy, Hilton Hotel Corporation has invested much in CRM since 2002 aiming to build a broad customer base and the premier global hospitality business. Hilton Hotels Corporation considers customer as the most important component of their business, so they developed objectives to build a close long-term relationship with their customers. To provide consistent and outstanding service to its customers, the CRM initiative was primarily focus on its four categories of Best Guests: members of Hilton Honor program, 4+, Fast Rez members and local VIPs. Hilton achieves this tight relationship through recognition, personalization, service recovery, and customer analysis. Refer to the endnotes ix and x, the net revenue per call is a measure of efficiency of call center and that the conversion ratio measures how many calls were “closed” turning callers into bookers...
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...To:$Tom$Keltner,$CEO/Americas$ From:$0619$7389$ Date:$February$16th,$2008$ Re:$Future$CRM$direction$and$Strategy$ $ It$is$proposed$that$Hilton$Hotels$Corporation$reinvest$approximately$$2$million$dollars$in$the$OnQ$CRM$ initiative$with$the$focus$on$a$more$targeted$approach$to$better$serve$the$diverse$Hilton$portfolio.$This$ tactic$addresses$the$objective$of$significant$growth$given$the$key$issue$of$achieving$service$ standardization,$a$typical$challenge$of$service$delivery$operations.$$With$Blackstone’s$capital$backing$ (see$Exhibit$A),$the$perfect$opportunity$is$presented$for$Hilton$to$reinvest,$revamp$and$expand$the$OnQ$ CRM$program$to$ensure$excellent$service$in$their$existing$and$upcoming$hotels.$ $ In$evaluating$CRM’s$performance$to$date,$several$measures$were$examined.$Total$calls$have$increased$ by$15.31%$since$the$CRM$strategy$launch$(see$Exhibit$B),$net$revenue$per$call$have$been$steadily$ increasing$(see$Exhibit$C),$and$there$has$been$a$1.12$billion$dollars$increase$of$revenue$through$the$call$ center$(see$Exhibit$D).$$This$can$be$explained$due$to$the$decreased$talk$time$on$the$phone$that$was$ achieved$as$OnQ$allows$agents$to$quickly$have$all$the$needed$information.$Even$if$this$result$was$only$ 0.54%$(see$Exhibit$D)$due$to$the$CRM$initiative$(or$1%$given$new$suggested$spending),$Hilton$would$ breakeven$on$it’s$minimal$annual$maintenance$expense$for$CRM$(see$Exhibit$D).$CRM$has$also$provided$ Hilton$Hotels$with$a$competitive$advantage.$RevPAR$Index$was$used$as$a$brand$competitiveness$...
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...Hilton core business: Hilton Group of hotel is one of the renowned names in the lodging industry. With close to 3000 properties and 500,000 rooms in 78 countries, it is among the top most brands in the hospitability sector. It is a brand management company, catering to the needs of millions of travellers around the globe. With about several billion dollars of real estate invested in Hilton brand of hotels, it offers distinct products across a whole range of consumer segments. Being a brand management company, Hilton hotels own many properties and also franchises its brand name to the property owners who chooses to invest with them. While offering its brand, Hilton wishes to create a unique standardized experience for all the customers across the world. At the same time, Hilton offers property owners an immediate recognition, more footfalls, advertisements and other branding benefits so as to have the best guest experience associated with the Hilton Hotel Brand name. Hilton competitive advantage lays on both its size and diversification as it is present in almost all the segments of the industry. Unlike their competitors who are either big but less diversified or are diversified but lack presence in all segments, Hilton brands offer whole gamut of products in all segments. As per my analysis Hilton hotel is mix of both sales oriented and market oriented firm with the belief of putting customer needs first. Their Customer Really Matter initiative and the subsequent OnQ program...
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...Hilton Hotels: Brand Differentiation through Customer Relationship Management Business Context * Founded by Conrad Hilton in 1919, began it’s operations with Mobley Hotel in Cisco, Texas * In 1946 went public as Hilton Hotel Corporation and had 15 properties in 11 states * The chain in 1964 spun off the International business into a separately traded company Hilton International that was sold * In 1964 divided the domestic lodging segment into: * Casinos * Vacation ownership * In 2000 acquired Promus Hotel Corporation, took Hilton’s close to 1700 properties marks. * In 2005 Hilton Hotels bought back Hilton International Co. * Hilton opened 1,000th hotel in North America since 2000 reaching a presence in 78 countries and over 100,000 employees. Key Business Drivers * Retain their excellent services improving Hilton experience * Aggressive growth strategy * Enhancing the value of its brands portfolio * Keep its leadership in the market Initiative Objectives/Benefits Objectives | Benefits | Introduce the Customers Really Matter promise | * Recognition * Personalization of the customer experience * Service recovery | Foster a closer relationship with best guests | * Improving customer loyalty | Improve the flexibility of the company | * Storing detailed information about customers * Use the SALT survey, key component of CRM | Initiative Challenges Challenges | Solutions | Make CRM part of...
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...Page 1 Introduction…………………………………………………… Page 2 Literature Review…………………………………………….. Page 3 – 4 History and Development of CRM………………………..... Page 4 – 5 CRM in Action………………………………………………... Page 6 – 7 CRM and Competitive Advantage…………………………. Page 7 – 9 Implementations Considerations and Recommendations. Page 9 Conclusion……………………………………………………. Page 10 References…………………………………………………… Page 11 – 13 Abstract For our research paper, we’re going to focus on customer relationship management and how it plays a role in a company’s consumer base and profits. The cycle of CRM is primarily divided into four parts which are marketing, sales, support, and feedback. We’re going to look into detail at all four of these components and how they correlate with one another from an organizational aspect. We’re going to be looking at CRM through the eyes of the seller, the person behind the counter. We want to know how this information technology helps the organization and in what ways does its performance project competitive advantage. There are many different systems of CRM such as operational CRM which focuses primarily on the marketing, sales, products, and services of the company. Another system is analytical CRM which focuses primarily on the database and how the management uses it to make important decisions for the company. According to scholars, “Analytical CRM involves using firms’ data on its customers to design longitudinal models of choice over the breadth of the firm’s products...
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...of a brand in the lodging industry? Hilton Hotels Corporation is a global hospitality company. Perhaps it is the most recognizable name in the lodging industry. Hilton offered significant recognition and customer traffic with their advertisements, programs and electronic distribution systems. The company is responsible for delivering the guest experience on property and abiding by the brand standards. Brand values have a lot to do in lodging industry. For instance two companies selling similar product at a same price. Yet people tend to buy one product more. If the question is why the answer is brand value of the product. There are various aspects that determine a brand value. This can be quality, premium price, higher market share or even a positive image. In the case of lodging industry, once the customer have a bitter experience with the service they are never going to come back to stay at the same place anymore. The brand value in this industry is more over attained through word of mouth. If a customer gets a quality service obviously he will recommend the place for his known one’s too. That’s how a strong brand image is built in lodging industry. The brand should create values in customers mind by helping to assure them of a uniform level of quality. Then the customer becomes loyal to the brand. 2. Evaluate the performance of the Customers Really Matter initiative to date. The nervous system of Hilton Hotels Corporation was a comprehensive and integrated...
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...Customer Relationship Management Alan D. Kero HTT/220 May 9, 2014 Rhonda Moore Customer Relationship Management CRM is a customer service management database that holds guest information and then can tell you what the guest’s likes and needs are. This is best used to anticipate a guest’s preferences before they arrive for a stay at your hotel. A true CRM is based more on recognition of the guest than on rewards that can be given to that guest (Nyheim, et al, 2005). A true CRM program is all encompassing when it comes to the information on any individual guest, from check-in to marketing. A CRM is best used when all aspects of the hotel staff are trained in its use. The information in the CRM comes for history with the guest, staff observances, and guest interactions with all touch pints within the hotel. With all the information gathered on a regular basis, the staff can look at the guest’s folio to find what their references are. This helps to prepare the staff for that guest’s arrival. With today’s reliance on the internet and social media the CRM helps hotels to now market to an individual rather than a mass group of people (Nyhiem, et al, 2005). The CRM allows the hotel to keep information on each guest. By using this information the management team can be better prepared to try and keep a repeat customer by showing the client that they care what the guest thinks and how to go about making them feel relaxed and welcome. References: Nyhiem, P. D., McFadden,...
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...MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEM ANALYSIS ON THE PAST AND THE FUTURE OF HILTON HOTELS Spring Semester, 2015 1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In this report we analyze Analysis on the past and the future of Hilton Hotels. The first part of the report concentrated on the literature review about Hilton Hotels’s background, followed by analysis of the past and the future of Hilton Hotels in the second part. In order to create linkages, we chose the core related their strategy in Hilton Hotels like OnQ and Customers Really Matter (CRM). 2. LITERATURE REVIEW Hilton was the most internationally recognizable name in the lodging industry, in large part due to the role that the Hilton family had played throughout its history. The company went public under the name Hilton Hotels Corporation in 1946, with a portfolio of 15 properties in 11 states. A strong commitment to economies of scale was made in 2000 with the acquisition of Promus Hotel Corporation, a transaction that pushed Hilton close to the 1,700 properties mark. Promus Corporation originally incorporated as Holiday Inns of America in 1954, focus on franchising and managing brands after selling its Holiday Inn division in 1990. In 2005 Hilton Hotels bought back Hilton International, bringing about 400 Hilton properties into the fold. Organic growth also continued, and in September 2006 Hilton announce the opening of the 1,000th hotel in North America since the acquisition of Promus. Poised to break the 3,000 properties mark, with a presence...
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...Evalueer het Customers Really Matters initiatief van Hilton Hotels. Hoe succesvol is dit project? * Hoe zou u het management van Hilton adviseren ten aanzien van verdere investeringen in Customer Relationship Management (CRM)? Is het noodzakelijk om verdere investeringen te doen of is het simpelweg voldoende om de status quo te handhaven? Welke aspecten van Hiltons CRM toepassing zou u willen verbeteren, en hoe zou u dat doen? Diversificatie, groei, verschil in klantenwaardering; maar toch dezelfde treatment. Wat ze goed doen is aansluiten bij de strategie. CRM systeem is geen doel op zich, maar een hulpmiddel. ‘relentless focus on measurement, executive championship, employee training and empowerment’ is de aanpak geweest om CRM in het Hilton DNA te krijgen. Doelen voor de best guests waren: 1. Recognition, 2. Personalisation, 3. Service recovery, 4. Customer analytics. Daarvan afgeleid: speed up reservation process, increase service quality en enable cross selling. Probleem is dat rigide wordt als company groeit. Voorbeeld: 50% gasten met pre-assignment kost flexibiliteit. Daarnaast is een probleem met pre-assignments dat reguliere gast-voorkeuren niet persé te allen tijde hetzelfde hoeven te zijn. Lastig: meten van resultaten. Vraag van mijn kant: SALT surveys handmatig of geïntegreerd? Is belangrijkste stuurindicator. Backbone OnQ is USP van het bedrijf. Daar stap je niet vanaf, dus ook niet van de CRM applicatie lijkt me (wordt ook niet outsourced). Key is dan...
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...The Eight Building Blocks of CRM: Vision A successful CRM vision creates a positive perception of the enterprise, bolstered by loyal customer advocates. IT and operations leaders and CRM stakeholders should follow these six steps to a clear, actionable and successful CRM vision of how to get, keep, satisfy and increase customers. Key Challenges ■ Many enterprise IT operations and other leaders, as well as CRM stakeholders, find it hard to devise a well-thought-out CRM vision, even though it provides the basis for creating a customer-centric enterprise. ■ A number of enterprises are challenged to construct a customer-centric culture that can successfully capture, retain and grow their customer base, while realizing bottom-line growth. ■ Many enterprise IT and CRM stakeholders don't take time to craft clear customer objectives stated in a CRM vision, even though this, coupled with leadership, a supportive culture and properly oriented staff, contributes to success in customer interactions and in fulfilling business goals. Recommendations ■ Create a CRM leadership team. ■ Create a model of the ideal customer experience. ■ Create a corporate personality objective and model. ■ Understand the guiding principles of successful customer-centric strategies to help compose a vision of what the enterprise wants to deliver to customers. This will help enterprises plan and prioritize their investments, which improves the chances of success. 1. Vision 2. Strategy 3...
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...Hilton Case Executive Summary As the most recognized brand name in the lodging industry, Hilton is a diversified cooperation for its strong presence in all segments of hotels, casinos and vacation ownership. In terms of organizational strategy, Hilton Hotels Corporation relies on its scale, gaining members through its loyalty program and continuously expanding its hotel network. Beginning with acquisition of Promus Hotel Corporation, It now owns, manages, or franchises a portfolio of brands which includes Waldorf-Astoria Collection, Conrad International, Hilton Hotels, etc. With the focus of Customer Really Matter strategy, Hilton Hotel Corporation has invested much in CRM since 2002 aiming to build a broad customer base and the premier global hospitality business. Hilton Hotels Corporation considers customer as the most important component of their business, so they developed objectives to build a close long-term relationship with their customers. To provide consistent and outstanding service to its customers, the CRM initiative was primarily focus on its four categories of Best Guests: members of Hilton Honor program, 4+, Fast Rez members and local VIPs. Hilton achieves this tight relationship through recognition, personalization, service recovery, and customer analysis. Refer to the endnotes ix and x, the net revenue per call is a measure of efficiency of call center and that the conversion ratio measures how many calls were “closed” turning callers into bookers...
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