Pearson New International Edition International pcl tp indd 1

Ten-Day Forecasts
Although there is no industry standard that indicates the best length of short- or
near-term forecasts, many FOMs prepare and distribute a 10-day forecast to selected
hotel staff daily. Figure 16 is a sample forecast. With this PMS system, the 10-day
forecast is an availability forecast. (Recall that this is the inverse of an occupancy
MANAGING FORECAST DATA
Many hotels require that guests use a bank card or other type of payment card to guarantee
their reservations.
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forecast.) Another PMS system might generate an occupancy forecast. This PMS
report reports the following details:
A. Date and time the forecast was prepared
B. Specific days included in the forecast
C. Hotel’s available room types
D. Actual number of each room type remaining to be sold at the time of the
report’s preparation
E. Total number of rooms of all types remaining to be sold per day
FOMs commonly prepare short-term room reports of actual availability or
forecasted occupancy because managers in several departments use the information.
The front office must be appropriately staffed to handle anticipated guest registrations
and check-outs. Housekeeping managers need to fine-tune staffing patterns and
employee schedules, some of which may have been developed one or two weeks ear-
lier. In a full-service hotel, food and beverage managers must forecast restaurant and
lounge volume. In a limited-service hotel, forecasts help those responsible for man-
aging the hotel’s complimentary breakfast program to estimate food purchases and
staffing requirements. Managers in the maintenance and engineering department
and the security department, and even the controller’s office, are affected by the number
of rooms sold and the resulting house count.
Short-term forecasts are useful in all hotels, but they are of particular importance
to properties that have a significant volume of group business. Assume that Allisha