Pearson New International Edition International pcl tp indd 1

FRONT OFFICE PROPERTY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM
In addition to the information in this PMS report, Jodi might seek other data:
the ADR paid by guests from each of these states, average length of stay, room type
selected, number of guests in each room, or days of the week guests visited. Clearly,
with this type of information, Jodi will be better prepared to decide where hotel
advertising dollars should be spent. Such historical data are probably not important
to Jodi on a daily basis, so she is unlikely to need a daily updated report of the Top-10
revenue states. A monthly or even quarterly report would probably be sufficient. In
contrast, the executive housekeeper needs a daily list of the occupied rooms and may
request hourly reports of the rooms from which guests have checked out so the rooms
can be cleaned.
Although other managers will request data with a frequency that assists their deci-
sion making, FOMs must regularly analyze the historical data that will be of most use
to them. The first questions FOMs must ask are simple: How many rooms will be sold
today? This week? This year? The answers to these questions are critical, as room sales
provide the revenue that the hotel requires to pay its expenses and to return a profit to
its owners. In addition, staffing decisions require knowing the number of guests who
will be staying in the hotel. For professional FOMs, their “best guess” of the projected
number of rooms to be sold must be short on “guess” and long on “best”!