Opera Reservation System Specific Advantages and Disadvantages - Case Study Example

?Business Contents Contents 2 Opera Reservation Systems and Hotels and Restaurants 3 Advantages for Restaurants using Opera Reservation Systems 3 Disadvantages for Restaurants using Opera Reservation Systems 4 Opera Reservation System –Specific Advantages and Disadvantages 5 Advantages of Opera Reservation System 5 Disadvantages of Opera Reservation System 8 References 9 Opera Reservation Systems and Hotels and Restaurants Advantages for Restaurants using Opera Reservation Systems The hotels and restaurants operating in the service sector have earned large scale dynamism owing to the extended use of the Opera Reservation Systems Software. The use of such software especially in regards to its Sales and Catering department have led the company manage the database pertaining to both customers and inventory in an effective manner. Moreover the use of such software has helped the company in earning the potential in managing the accounting systems in an overall manner in regards to the concern and also in properly administering control over the several departments. Opera Reservation Systems also happens to render specialised services to the restaurants and hotels by designing different software like that for the Sales and Catering department. The Opera Reservation Systems also happens to enhance the potential of service quality rendered by the hotel and restaurants through the high amount of incorporation of different types of innovative tools. This tool helps the hotels and restaurants in generating effective services to the customers through maintaining effective relationship based services with them. Again the tool also helps the hotels in effectively maintaining the guest rooms and also helps the corporation in adequately working out resources meant for organising events. The software also helps the hotels and restaurants in effectively tracking the sales pertaining to the different departments and also in tracking the highest sales figure in regards to the different items. Opera Reservation Systems software also helps in regulating the inventory pertaining to the different category of guest rooms in the hotel. Acting like an effective planning tool the software helps the hotel in arranging for the food and beverages meant for domestic and international guests. The software also helps the hotels in effectively meeting the different bills pertaining to banquet and other room services rendered to the guests. Opera Reservation Systems also acts as an effective forecasting tool for the hotel and restaurants in helping the companies estimate the rise in the number of guests and the sales pertaining to the different categories of services and products rendered. The operating system also helps the hotels in effectively analysing the margins pertaining to the cost and the profits emanating out of the services of the company. Having said the essential features and services rendered by the software to the hotel it can be easily understood that such services tend to make the people much effective in rendering continuous services to the customers. The people operating based on such software can thereby effectively communicate with the guests and consumers and thereby help in enhancing the brand image of the concern. Thus the incorporation of such software helps to render specialised services to the hotel corporations and thereby enhances the potential in gaining new markets and also in successfully developing its brand image. Enhanced use of the software by the different level of employees thus makes the people get an overview of the entire operation performed in the hotel sector (HRS, 2006). Disadvantages for Restaurants using Opera Reservation Systems The hotels and restaurants operating based on software such as Opera Reservation System though reflect salient number of advantages is also struck from some serious drawbacks. The practice of depending highly on such software creates a problem for the concern especially in cases of long term power cuts. The internal people of the concern being highly dependent on system based performance fail to render effective services in such scenarios. This creates a problem for the concern as the guests or the consumers fail to get the right services or entertainment and this fact in turn disturbs the brand image for the concern. The internal people apt on booking the rooms for the guests based on system technologies now face increasing difficulty owing to maintenance of such in a manual manner. This in turn delays the service structure of the firm or hotel corporations and henceforth reduces the value of brand equity for the company. Again the computers running in the hotel and restaurants may also get highly infected by virus and thereby also create a problem for the employees in effectively rendering services to the guests or consumers. Ideal training is required to be imparted to the employees at all levels in helping them cope with the innovations in regards to the software in question. However in regards to the above statement an ideal trainer is required to be employed who would fully focus on the development of the employee potential to actively work based on such software. In this connection it is found that the concerns fail to reflect any such effective trainer for which the people are required to become trainer by their own while handling such software. This eventually creates a problem for the firm handling such large amount of consumers eager to earn the best possible service. Similarly any type of error can occur in the computers of the hotels and restaurants that obstruct the people to properly login into their official accounts and perform the required task assigned. Further the performance and operational audit also requires the incorporation of systems that also creates a problem for the hotel operation to run in a smooth manner. These are some of the underlined disadvantages that the hotels and restaurants reflect in regards to the enhanced use of Opera Reservation Systems. Opera Reservation System –Specific Advantages and Disadvantages Advantages of Opera Reservation System The ORS or the Opera Reservation Systems helps the hotel industry operate on a very effective basis. This system helps the hotel services to largely connect to a large number of automated systems provided in the Opera Family and thereby helps to improve both its customer servicing potentials and also increases the revenue capacity therein. The specific advantages provided by the Opera Reservation Systems can thereby be underlined as follows. Speaking on the global front the Opera Reservation System helps in the automatic conversion of rates and currencies to the national currency of the region in which the hotel is based. Such a system helps the hotelier to accurately bill the customer or guest coming from a foreign nation. Further the global feature of the online reservation system also helps in the rapid conversion of languages so as to enable proper means of communication with the guest hailing from a foreign nation. The information required by the customers being furnished in multiple languages would help in enhancing on the dimension of consumer loyalty for the firm. Likewise another significant advantage obtained through the use of Opera Reservation System is that the system provides the hotelier a process through which the inventory pertaining to the guest rooms can be managed effectively. The system would help in the fixation of rooms and also decide on the rate for the same depending on the seasonal changes by making effective forecasting of the amount of tourist traffic. The tour agents can also gain the effective advantage of such operating systems in helping the tourists gain the best services at affordable rates. The Opera Reservation Systems software can also enable the hotelier to effectively operate on complex functioning tools pertaining to several accounting functions. These functional tools can help the hotelier in serving the customers through rendering routing services wherein the consumer is informed about the different rates charged onto him during the tour operations. Further the software can also enable the service industries in operating effectively on the loyalty schemes thus enhancing the dimension of consumer loyalty and thereby helping in to attract a large number of consumers. Similarly other complex functioning like helping in the reservation of people who come in groups along with providing the consumers with separate discounting rates largely helps the hotelier in effectively serving the consumers. The Opera Reservation Systems acts like an effective Property Management System in that it helps to allocate the resources of the hotel pertaining to rooms, banquets, halls and other such properties in an effective manner. This system of allocation helps the hotelier in forecasting the sales and demand functions and the strategies that can be used to meet the growing demands. Apart from acting focusing on a resource based approach the Opera Reservation Systems can also help the service industries to track the amount of sales conducted pertaining to different categories of properties and commodities and services. Similarly the software also depicts a salient advantage wherein the software can be effectively customized for different purposes or for different consumer environments. This view helps the software in maximising on the optimal use of the resources pertaining to the hotel companies. Tour Agents depending on the Opera Reservation Systems can easily inform the consumers about the rates and charges of the different hotels and services rendered. In that the relationship approach with the consumers gets further enhanced. The Opera Reservation Systems can also act as an effective search engine. The operating system can help the tour agents in searching different hotels based on rate specifications or in terms of effective ratings like five, four or three star ones. Opera Reservation Systems can also help the consumers and agents in gaining a view of the maps and routes through which they can reach the hotels and restaurants in a cost effective manner. Again the software can help hotel industry experts in tracking the total number of sales made in the different hotels operating in a certain region. This process would enable the industry experts in understanding and mapping the sales maximisation and recession periods in an effective manner. More specifically the industry experts can map the sales on a category basis that understands which rate of rooms and rather which packages have sold out effectively in the current seasons. Opera Reservation Systems also helps the hoteliers in making effective reports pertaining to sales and performances of the different categories of services and resources rendered in entertaining the consumers. Large amount of data can be stored in the system which can be used for effective analysis by the hotelier in regards to forecasting future sales and demand criteria. The configuration of the software is made in such basis that would help a person in effectively choosing between the different alternatives in the course of formation of a report or in the course of analysing the sales criteria in peak and recession periods (Micros, 2011). Disadvantages of Opera Reservation System The Opera Reservation System being of a centralised nature though has potential advantages also suffers from certain weaknesses. It is found that the data being fed in the reservation system is conducted by human beings. Thus there are huge chances of data faltering which in turn would lead to potential problems while rendering quick decisions or in making eventful analysis. Similarly enhanced dependence on online systems also creates a behavioural problem among the employees who avoid taking pains in conducting manual searches. Rather they start largely depending on the internet communication failure of such proves to be an increasing problem for the analysis to be made based on comparative data resources obtained. Thus the Opera Reservation System suffers from such inherent weaknesses that in turn make the system quite weak to function in an effective manner to render potential services to its client and consumer bases. Moreover the Operation Reservation System is still in its nascent stage and thereby requires further research and development to be rendered to enhance its customization styles (Kullman, 2007, p.10). References Kullman, P. (2007). Managing Distribution Channels in 4 to 5 Star Hotels in Austria: An Analysis of the Room Reservation Process. GRIN Verlag. Micros. (2011). The Most Advanced Central Reservation System - OPERA Reservation System (ORS). [Online]. Available At: http://www.micros.com/Products/HotelSolutions/CentralSystems/OPERAReservationSystem/. [Accessed on 4th January, 2012]. HRS. (2006). OPERA Enterprise Solution. [Online]. Available At: http://www.hrs.ru/prodsols/hotels/opera_en.php. [Accessed on 4th January, 2012]. Read More